Our June forum was powerful, informative and enlightening. It began with an online audience poll which revealed that 70% of the participating audience had experienced or witnessed sexual harassment. Moderator Rane Johnson, CEO/Founder at Ranemaker Institute, talked about the history of our unconscious bias and how discriminations cost businesses $64 billion a year!
Christine Coffin, Director of Communications at OSU-Cascades, retold an emotional and authentic story about an early sexual harassment workplace experience and how it shaped her and still affects her today. “We as men and women can work together to make things better.”
Jim Morris, Chief Consulting Officer with White Men as Full Diversity Partners, spoke about the importance of speaking up when we see something that is unsafe. He stressed that it’s okay to intervene and help each other identify our unconscious bias. “We need to be aware of our blind spots.”
The City of Bend is aspiring to be one of the most inclusive cities in Oregon and the United States. How can our whole Central Oregon community achieve this? Invite folks into the conversation. It might be uncomfortable but we all need to step in.
Here is a list of resources from our panelists to help continue the conversation:
- Catalyst is a global nonprofit working with CEOs and companies for an equitable workplace. Multiple national speakers talk about Gender, Race, and Ethnicity; Sexual Harassment; Be Inclusive; and Unconscious Bias.
- Harvard Business Review – articles on gender provide many viewpoints on the subject.
- National Center for Women & Information Technology – multiple research papers and articles about women in IT.
- Sandford University’s The Clayman Institute for Gender Research – published research papers and articles. Including Breaking the Culture of Sexual Assault, Reducing Gender Biases in the Workplace, and a Dual Career Toolkit.
- The White Men as Full Diversity Partners Way: A Pathway to Full Inclusion – white paper
City Club thanks panelists Christine and Jim, moderator Rane, forum Sponsors Cole Breit Engineering and Loan Depot.
Engage!
Linda Orcelletto, Ginger Carney, Becca Gilbert, Craig Letz, Moe Carrick, Jodie Barram – City Club forum team
City Club of Central Oregon
See more pictures from the forum on our Facebook page!
