Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice

Why This Matters

U.S. agricultural and STEM fields have been critiqued for overlooking the voices, experiences, expertise, and wisdom of marginalized, minoritized, and/or disadvantaged groups. This exclusion not only can harm these communities and individuals, but also deprives the broader agricultural and STEM workforce of substantial human resources.
Why This Matters

The imperative of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) in achieving organizational success is widely recognized, as it ensures that people from various backgrounds, identities, and experiences are part of scientific endeavors and conversations, which enriches research, innovation, and problem-solving.
Why This Matters

However plans to support inclusion developed by those lacking DEIJ expertise or lived experience tend to miss the mark by failing to address the right problems with achievable objectives. At the same time, it is unfair to burden minoritized groups with the responsibility to address their own exclusion.

What We Are Doing

For NASA Acres to achieve all of its objectives (not only those related to increasing DEIJ), we must invest time and resources in addressing these issues collectively at a table where everyone has a seat and an opportunity to contribute. We know our impact will be mediated by the buy-in of the different community members where we are working; we aim not to study about people or places, but collaborate with the key agricultural decision makers in the U.S.

NASA Acres kicked off with DEIJ and Workforce Development as a program foundation on which our collective success within and beyond this program can be built. The intent is not to pose fear or judgment when discussing DEIJ, but rather to develop a safe space for leaders and members of the NASA and agtech ecosystem to discuss best practices and understanding of how they can be supportive leaders and allies to future agtech leaders.

We have identified key leverage points to improve participation in our field through our innovative strategic plan: Increase recruitment and retention of underrepresented scholars in Acres through mentorship models

Access and Visibility - making connections between existing NASA researchers and Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and marginalized communities to hear the challenges they have in accessing and benefiting from STEM and agtech, and develop successful partnerships;
Recruitment - developing plans to broaden the pool of applicants and remove barriers to participating in NASA and agtech, from high school through early career;
Capacity Development - training the next generation of scientists in satellite monitoring of agriculture through programs like UC Merced’s Boosting Representation of African Americans in the Geosciences (BRAAG) , U of Maryland’s Summer Research Initiative (BSOS SRI), NASA DEVELOP, and working directly with MSIs.
Retention - teaching and training NASA Acres Partners toward building more inclusive workplaces that will retain newly-recruited talent; developing and employing mentorship and cohort models
Finding Synergies and Not Reinventing the Wheel- taking stock of, building connections with, and leveraging existing NASA and other STEM and agtech resources and programs related to: