top of page

NOW OFFERING INCLUSION AND EQUITY Conversations

Unearthing Our Past Consulting is built on the premise that the work of antiracism does not start at an institutional or behavioral level, it begins WITHIN individuals committed individuals who want to make a positive difference in their community, institution, or organization. Antiracism is a lifelong journey, and as such, I do not offer traditional “trainings,” which can encourage resistance. Instead, I focus on individual conversations that invite participants to engage without fear of being blamed, attacked, etc. Using a three-pronged approach, these hour-long conversations offer a unique model to create and sustain inclusion and equity practices. Each conversation is designed to take an historical, intersectional, and theoretical approach without being overly academic. They are perfect for those just beginning their inclusion and equity journey and those who may need a refresher. All conversations come with a supplemental resource packet, an annotated bibliography, and follow-up support. Conversations and resources are 508 compliant.

 

Flagship Conversations:

Flagship conversations are introductory sessions that can stand alone and cover Unearthing Our Past Consulting’s three-pronged approach of fostering empathy and compassion, increasing knowledge, and encouraging action. These sessions are required in long-term inclusion and equity plans.

  • Becoming the Change: Strategies for Developing Today’s Change Agents​

    • “Becoming the Change” is an hour-long introductory conversation about the historical legacy of racism and what we can do to move towards inclusion and equity. This conversation encourages participants to confront the impacts of unproductive behaviors such as unconscious bias, fragile egos (identity fragility), and unintentional insults (microaggressions) that serve to perpetuate racism. Additionally, it encourages participants to adopt productive behaviors such as empathy and compassion, encourages them to increase their knowledge, and to act. Unlike traditional inclusion and equity trainings, this conversation offers skills that can be turned into real action. At the end, participants will begin to formulate an action plan for inclusion and equity that sets attainable short-and-long term goals.

  • The Language of Inclusion and Equity: Fostering a Common Understanding (90 mins)

    • When used correctly, language can be a powerful tool that builds communities, deepens relationships, and encourages understanding, healing, and change. It is constantly evolving, which makes it hard to keep up. This conversation introduces you to the latest language of inclusion and equity. This conversation covers disability & ableism; gender identity and sexual orientation; and race & ethnicity.

  • Beginning with the End: Foundations of Lexicon Development (180 minutes)

    • This 3-hour training builds on the Language of Inclusion and Equity: Fostering a Common Understanding by providing a more in depth look at the power of langugage, the foundations of developing a lexicon, and includes several activities that will prepare participants to build a lexicon. The conversation wraps up with best practices for lexicon development.​

  • Foundations of Racial Justice (180 minutes)

    • In this 3-hour introductory conversation, participants learn about foundations of racial equity and racial justice, including how to break the black/white binary. Throughout this conversation, participants will gain essential skills to begin developing a process of eliminating racial disparities within their organization.​

  • Fighting Systems not People: Navigating Resistance to Inclusion and Equity (90 minutes)​

    • Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training is a billion-dollar industry. Despite their popularity, they are, in many cases, ineffective. Part of their inefficacy is resistance. Whether it’s from the belief that these trainings won’t create and sustain change, employees feeling victimized or singled-out, or arguments about autonomy and choice, resistance can create the opposite effect of what they are intended to do. This conversation addresses various barriers (communication, political correctness, deeply entrenched bias) to resistance and what we can do to overcome these barriers.​

  • Self-Care is Radical: Creating Safe Spaces for Marginalized Communities 

    • Today, the term self-care has been stripped from its radical feminist context. It has come to mean any activity that promotes “me time”, such as, spas, extravagant trips, and high-end shopping all beautifully displayed in Instagram and Snapchat posts. Activities of which are mainly accessible to people who can afford the luxury, evidenced by the fact that the self-care industry is an estimated $10 billion business. The once invitation to collective survival has become yet another form of individualism. This conversation looks at the radical history of self-care, and offers tips and strategies for creating safe spaces for marginalized communities in the workplace.

 

Selected Conversations:

Fostering Empathy & Compassion

  • Hello, My Name Is…[Inserts Pronoun]

    • Confused about gender-inclusive language? This conversation covers the unconscious bias of gender and sexuality to encourage inclusion and equity in your community, institution, or organization.

  • The Unconscious Bias of Disability

  • Conquering Identity Fragility

 

Increasing Knowledge

  • Racism 101

    • Why are we still talking about racism in 2022? Would you be shocked to know that the Civil Rights Movement has not ended, just evolved? This conversation breaks down the history and legacy of racism in the United States.

  • How to use Critical Race Theory Effectively

 

Encouraging Action

  • Accessibility

    • This conversation covers a wide range of topics including: digital accessibility, writing for the public, and community engagement.

  • How to Ask “New Questions”: The Conversational Mapping Technique

  • Engaging Digital Communities of Practice: The Let’s Talk About It Model

 

In addition to these conversations, I offer the following services and more:

 

  • Writer & Speaker for Hire

  • Listening sessions: Interested in inclusion and equity, but unsure where to start? Listening sessions are a series of conversations and interviews with staff members to aid the community, institution, or organization in identifying strengths and opportunities and proposed next steps.

  • Executive Coaching

  • Long-term Inclusion and Equity Plans

  • Faunal Analysis

  • Site Assessment: Curious about whether your community, institution, organization, archaeology project etc. is inclusive and equitable? Interested in expanding your site’s interpretation and education? Site assessments will include identifying opportunities for inclusion and equity, reporting, and next steps.

​

Selected Clients:
  • Association of African American Museums
  • Carleton College
  • Council of Texas Archaeologists
  • Coalition for Diversity in California Archaeology
  • Howard University
  • James Madison's Montpelier
  • National Park Service
  • Northwestern University
  • Oklahoma Public Archaeology Network
  • Prince George's County Parks and Recreation
  • Rutgers University
  • University of Pittsburg

​

Contact me for further information!

​

​

​

bottom of page