Inclusion Should be part of your Culture

The Institute is about to have a planning meeting to get work started on it's 2008 Big Idea Conference, which will likely once again be held at the Kellogg Conference Hotel at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. You can see pictures of our 2007 Big Idea Conference in a slide show format by clicking here, or using the menu link.

Whether you can come to the 2008 Big Idea Conference or not, it's never too late to begin to work to make Inclusion a part of your culture at work and at home and in your various interest groups.
Judith Katz (see bio) has written about some simple definitions of Inclusion and some simple, basic ways in which Inclusion can be brought into the culture of an organization. Her blog entry, titled "The Signs of Change: Small Actions Make a Difference" has some wonderful, "entry level" ideas that we can all think about and adapt to our own situations. Her premise is that by modeling Inclusive behaviors we can introduce Inclusion. She goes on to list 5 examples of Inclusive behavior modeled by leaders within one of her client organizations. They start as simple as opening meetings by saying "Hello" to each and every person - an idea that doesn't sound world changing, but in the context Judith outlines, it is easy to see how each incremental addition contributes to creating a new culture.
I've mentioned that for me, teaching Inclusion has to be experiential rather than intellectual, and I think Judith's new blog exemplifies the power of experiencing Inclusion. It's interesting to contemplate that Inclusion, the Big Idea might have its most promising introduction by means of very small actions!
Thanks, Judith!