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Writer's pictureCultures Connecting

Newsletter: December 2023 Issue 1


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Equity Leaders Workshop


Equity Leaders workshop with dates and pictures of Caprice Hollins and Ilsa.

Our next workshop is for Equity Leaders who are leading diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts and will be held on February 8th & 9th at 8:30-12:00pm PST. Led by our co-founders Caprice Hollins and Ilsa Govan, this workshop provides an opportunity for equity leaders to share strategies for organizational change, problem solve some of the challenges they face, and to network. Caprice and Ilsa will share a model of multicultural organizational development and strategies for change they've identified over the past 15 years in their work with hundreds of organizations.

Participants will:

  • Be able to identify stages of multicultural organization development and strategies for moving equity initiatives forward.

  • Collaborate with other equity leaders by sharing resources and best thinking around challenges.

  • Develop a network of equity leaders for on-going support.

Learn more and register at Eventbrite by clicking on the button below!




 

A Farewell to Jerod


Jerod Grant, Racial Equity Consultant at Cultures Connecting, is leaving our organization at the end of this year. We feel so fortunate to have had him as part of our team. As we’ve worked together over the past five years, we’ve seen him graduate with a master's degree, get married, and become the father of two children.


We loved Jerod for the authentic way he showed up and connected with everyone and we'll miss him. To read our thoughts about his time with us, visit our blog post A Farewell to Jerod.


Casual setting in front of lake with Ilsa Govan, Caprice Hollins, Jerod Grant, and Richard Kim.
 

Intentional Spending & Belonging with Laura Clise of Intentionalist


Laura Clise in front of a store with shopping bags.

The holidays are coming up for many of us and the tradition of giving and receiving gifts means we are spending a lot more. Judy, our Support & Projects Manager had a chance to sit down with Laura Clise, founder and CEO of Intentionalist, an online guide to spending that supports brick and mortar small businesses and marginalized local communities.

Read the interview with Laura on our blog to learn more about the why behind Intentionalist and steps we can take to close the gap between our good intentions and ability to easily take action.

In the meantime, here are some ways you can start your own intentional spending practice.

  • Visit the Intentionalist website for an easy to use, searchable database of diverse owned brick and mortar small businesses throughout the Pacific Northwest.

  • Get the Black Black Friday prepaid card, which you can use exclusively at more than 100 black owned businesses throughout the greater Seattle area.

  • Consider giving the Intentionalist card as a gift that can be used at over 150 diverse businesses in WA or online at the Intentionalist store.

 

Learning to be a Better Ally for people with Disabilities


National Disability Employment Awareness Month was in October but that doesn't mean we stop educating ourselves on universal design and ways to create more accessibility for people with disabilities.


Judy Lee, our Support & Projects Manager, took a workshop with Elizabeth Ralston and as part of our preparation, she asked us to watch this Ted Talk by Stella Young, I'm not your inspiration, thank you very much, which you can watch below. Stella talks about ways we unintentionally other people with disabilities. She says, "I use the term 'disabled people' quite deliberately, because I subscribe to what's called the social model of disability, which tells us that we are more disabled by the society that we live in than by our bodies and our diagnoses."


To learn more about what we learned and how to take actionable steps, visit our blog Learning to Be a Better Ally for People with Disabilities.

 
List of diversity calendar dates for December.

It's a new month which means taking a look at our Diversity Calendar to see important upcoming dates for December. Click on the days to learn more about them.

  • 12/08: Feast of the Immaculate Conception (Catholic)

  • 12/08: Bodhi Day (Rohatsu) (Buddhist)

  • 12/07-15: Hanukkah (Chanukah) (Jewish)

  • 12/12: Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexican Catholic)

  • 12/16-24: Las Posadas (Mexican)

  • 12/16-24: Simbang Gabi (Filipino Catholic)

  • 12/21: Winter Solstice/ Yule (Neo-Pagan)

  • 12/25: Christmas Day (Christian, No School)

  • 12/26-01/01: Kwanzaa (African American)

 
Social Justice DEIB Calendar with clock and calendar page.

Upcoming DEIB/Social Justice Events


For details on these and other events, workshops and conferences, visit our Events Calendar. If you have an event you would like us to share, please reach out to us!

  • 12/01: FOCS Indigenous Parents Groups

  • 12/04: Restorative Schools Fellowships Applications Open

  • 12/05: Brave Conversations: Transforming Workplace Conflicts

  • 12/05: Strategies for Addressing Microaggressions & Bias

  • 12/05: NAMI BIPOC Support Group

  • 12/05: Working with the Live Wire of Oppression Virtual

  • 12/06: SpeakOut from the Heart: Tim Wise

  • 12/06: The Asian American Education Project Professional Development Workshop

  • 12/07: Understanding the Roots of Racism and Bias

  • 12/07: Palestine Power Hour: Cease-Fire Now

  • 12/07: Sharing Solidarity & Kinships between Japanese Americans and Palestinians

  • 12/07: NAMI LGBTQ+ Mental Health Support Group

  • 12/08: Black, Trans & Queer: A Covid Conscious Support Group

  • 12/14: Conservative Cross-State Organizing: Lessons for Progressive Power-Building

  • 12/14: Evergreen State College: Dr. Yusef Salaam

  • 12/14: CARW Monthly Connection

  • 12/15: Better Not Bitter with Dr. Yusef Salaam

  • 12/15: The Tender Work: Acknowledging White Responsibility in a Racialized World.

...and more!

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