Interactive Diversity Solutions is passionate about bringing a social science perspective to reducing bias and creating more inclusive spaces to work and to learn. We work with your organization to find the right combination of services for your specific needs. Services offered include:
Speaker Services: Dr. Baran, cultural anthropologist and President of IDS, has spoken on race and diversity issues throughout the country and the world. He has presented to representatives from corporations (such as Boeing, Alaska Air, Costco, and Starbucks), schools (ranging from Harvard University to high schools and middle schools) and foundations/non-profits (such as MacArthur Foundation, National Human Services Assembly and Transform Justice). Recent speaking topics include: Reducing Implicit Bias Through Social Science, Flipping the Classroom on Race and Diversity, Multiple and Complex Identities in Times of Disruptive Change, Creating Inclusive Spaces: New Ways to Think and Talk about Race and Diversity.
Workshops: In addition to speaking services, experienced facilitator Dr. Baran can lead smaller group discussions. These sessions will be highly interactive and designed to spark conversation, bring people together and increase inclusion in both work and learning environments. Workshop topics can be tailored to provide the learning experience your organization is seeking. Workshops can be given to everyone in an organization or for specific groups such as employee resource groups, leadership teams, diversity officers, recruiters, human resources, etc.
Train-the-Trainer: If an organization prefers to facilitate its own workshops internally, Dr. Baran can conduct train-the-trainer workshops, working specifically with the diversity team, the HR leadership and/or the learning and development team to provide interactive activities and lessons from the social sciences that can be applied to the workplace to reduce bias and increase inclusion.
Interactive Digital eLearning Programs: Our eLearning programs cover key topics that promote inclusive and respectful workplace environments in an engaging and educational way. They are backed by the latest social science research and customizable to meet the needs of any organization. Programs can be used as self-contained compliance modules for new and existing employees, or as pre-work and/or follow-up for in-person learning experiences.
In all my years I have yet to see a tool with as much potential to change the way people think about diversity and which also allows people to have those courageous conversations that need to happen.
What works so well about the (Don’t) Guess My Race diversity program is that it’s very easy for employees to use—it’s fun and interesting, done on their own time and pace. But what really excites me, as opposed to other diversity initiatives, is that this one actually has the potential to impact how employees view and talk about race and diversity issues. It opens up great conversations and raises issues around implicit bias. (Don’t) Guess My Race is really going to make a difference to any company looking to not just avoid problems around diversity (though it will accomplish this as well), but to strive towards an inclusive and diverse company culture.
The game was incredibly effective at unsettling students’ understandings of race and pushing them to think more deeply at how racialization works. It’s engaging and effective.
By combining gaming, art, the participants own poignant words, and bite-sized nuggets of anthropological insight into how race developed—or rather how we developed it, Baran is turning a conversation stopper into a conversation starter.