Summary
Most efforts at advancing research to be more inclusive focus on methods or methodologies or participation. Though helpful, those efforts have unfortunately not been sufficient for inclusion and we continue to be constrained by stronger forces which go to the root of what research means and the definition of inclusion. To be fully unconstrained and reach true inclusion we must learn to let go. Do we have the ability to do that? Let's talk about that. Join us for a half-hour of becoming undone, joyfully.
Key Insights
-
•
Diversity in research teams does not inherently guarantee inclusivity or counter systemic oppression.
-
•
Awareness of power and identity positionality often leads to feeling stuck without clear action steps.
-
•
Our ways of being deeply shape our epistemologies and methodologies in research.
-
•
Colonial Western ways of being emphasize objectification and individualism, limiting emancipatory knowledge production.
-
•
Indigenous knowledge systems, like those of the iBio people, view knowledge as relational and emergent from relationships.
-
•
Songs and oral traditions can serve as valid research methodologies tied to indigenous ways of knowing.
-
•
Systems of value influence which knowledge is considered legitimate or beneficial, often marginalizing community knowledge.
-
•
Immigrant communities bring preserved ways of being that produce measurable health and social benefits.
-
•
Positive deviance in communities reveals untapped local wisdom that can guide effective interventions.
-
•
Radical participatory research requires researchers to relinquish control and let communities define methods based on their own ways of being.
Notable Quotes
"If diversity alone made research inclusive, then police could never be anti-black because they include black officers."
"Whiteness isn’t about color; people of all colors can reinforce white supremacy."
"Awareness leads to feeling stuck because we don’t know what to do or don’t feel empowered to act."
"Our ways of being are roots that grow into ways of knowing, doing, and methods, all nourished by systems of value."
"In Western modernity, if something is not an object, it is not real research or real knowledge."
"For the iBio people, knowledge is relational, not objectified, emerging from relationships like songs."
"Songs become methodologies—the way you identify who is at the door is through the song they sing."
"Colonial ways of being, knowing, and valuing will never produce emancipatory methodologies."
"Community-rooted wisdom like the Mexican 'guana' practice reduces postpartum depression without traditional research."
"Will you learn to let go? Better yet, will you let go?"
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"We took all the leadership admins to a call center for a week to make them feel what customers go through."
Panel Discussion: Communicating the Value of DesignOps
November 7, 2018
"Start small to make a big impact by building one advocate relationship and then replicating the success."
Louis Rosenfeld Jose Coronado Rachel Posman Guneet Singh Crystal YanThe Bigger Picture: A Panel Discussion
October 23, 2019
"Work gets done through our relationships, and that becomes more true the higher you go in your career."
Alla WeinbergCross-Functional Relationship Design
December 6, 2022
"If we are working on something that does not ladder up to our KSPs, then we should not be working on it."
Saara Kamppari-Miller Nicole Bergstrom Shashi JainKey Metrics: Comparing Three Letter Acronym Metrics That Include the Word “Key”
November 13, 2024
"Nobody’s gonna listen to you people until you start speaking in the language of business."
Mark Interrante Harry MaxAI for Prioritization (3rd of 3 seminars)
July 11, 2024
"Before sharing insights, I try to prime the room by acknowledging feelings and starting fresh."
Jerome “Axle” BrownHow to Use Self-Directed Learning to Ensure Your Research Insights are Heard and Acted Upon
March 11, 2021
"Language is very important; sometimes new vocabulary helps because people didn’t have a word before."
John Mortimer Milan Guenther Lucy Ellis Patrick QuattlebaumPanel Discussion
December 3, 2024
"Make an uncredible experience credible. That was the directive from organizational resistance to UX."
Dan WillisEnterprise Storytelling Sessions
June 3, 2019
"One thing that sets high performers is psychological safety: do people feel safe to raise a flag when something’s not working?"
Alana Washington(Remote) Service Design: A Transformation Case Study
June 8, 2022
Latest Books All books
Dig deeper with the Rosenbot
Why do designers often rely on legal compliance approvals instead of legal knowledge when designing privacy features?
How can service design facilitate collaboration and alignment between public and private sector organizations?
What are the key financial metrics that influence product and service design decisions?