Diversity, Equity, Inclusion,
and Belonging

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Our Core Values

STATEMENT OF INTENT

At Destination Imagination (DI), our vision is to ignite the power of all youth to be the creative and collaborative innovators of tomorrow. One of the most powerful ways to achieve that vision is to create a diverse and inclusive environment in which our youth participants can explore and grow together.

We acknowledge that discrimination and bias, even when unconscious or unintentional, hinder the creative process and negatively impact our entire community. We are aware that as a global organization, we must first recognize where we lack in diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging. We are grateful for the members of the DI community who have engaged in meaningful conversations that called our organization to task. We also know that meaningful, long-lasting change requires looking inward in order to identify, understand, and actively remove barriers that exist for certain groups of young people in our global community.

Moving forward, Destination Imagination will function as an equitable and inclusive organization, affirming our core values of respect, collaboration, stewardship, perseverance, and integrity as we frame action steps for the future.

Our collaborative skills are needed now, more than ever, as we work together to achieve the goals of diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging at every level of our organization. Creativity and learning are enhanced when we consider perspectives that are different from our own. We embrace the call and the responsibility to co-create a better, more inclusive community in which all participants can thrive.

Statements have meaning, but change is created through purposeful action. Our organization pledges to take the following action steps to ensure the creation and preservation of an inclusive DI community:

  • We actively seek out and listen to the experiences of our participants, especially to facets of the community that have not historically been given a voice in our decision-making processes, with the understanding that their input will help us frame a healthier and more inclusive community.
  • We are developing and implementing strategies and procedures that dismantle discriminatory practices and unconscious biases throughout our organization.
  • We are identifying and removing barriers that prohibit people from participating in the DI experience, ensuring opportunities and necessary modifications for the entire DI community.
  • We recognize that inclusion is a lifelong journey, and we commit to open, public communication as we navigate change and possibility for our future.

Key Terms

For our organization’s purposes, these terms will be defined as:

  • Diversity – representation among groups and demographics that embrace the entirety of the DI community, including but not limited to: race/ethnicity, gender/gender identity, age, sexual orientation, neuro-diversity, living with differing abilities or disabilities, socio-economic status, religious affiliation, political affiliation, level of education, language, or geographic location
  • Equity – a state in which all members of the DI community are given unique supports to make it possible for them to have equal access to the DI experience.
  • Inclusion – the active practice of including and/or integrating all people and groups into the DI experience; barriers to participation are removed whenever possible, accommodations are created as necessary, and policies/procedures are established to ensure participation.
  • Belonging – the sensation or experience that DI is an open, supportive community that warmly welcomes all people
  • Accessibility – the active practice in which access to the DI experience has been created, in compliance with all local regulations, and with all necessary accommodations or modifications in place to ensure a safe and healthy experience for all participants and volunteers (Note: though Accessibility is not listed in this Committee’s name, it is at the core of the Committee’s intent and actions.)

Meet our DEIB Committee (click here)


What’s New in 2024

Global Finals Event Guide

This document was created according to Inclusivity and accessibility guidelines.


 

WATCH OUR WEBINARS FROM IGNITE 2024

FOR UPDATES ON OUR 2024 INITIATIVES

Event Guides: What We’ve Learned and DEIB

Destination Imagination: Where We Are Now



DEIB Strategic Plan

View our DEIB action items for 2023 and beyond.


 

DEIB Committee Actions

June 2024: Began a review of our organizational culture within DEIB
 
March-June 2024: Reviewed Affiliate Accessibility Event Guides
 
January-June: Performed accessibility audits on our Event Guide, training, and accessibility documents.
 
May 2024: Launched our Champion of Inclusion nominations at Global Finals 2024
 
March-April, 2023: DEIB Committee Norms were established.
 
January 2023: Induction of new DEIB Committee Members
 

January-December 2023: Working to reach our year one goals of our Strategic Plan 2023-2027. You can see the full working plan here which will be reviewed annually.

October-December 2022: Finalizing the DEIB Strategic Objectives, KPIs and actions; Open applications for DEIB Committee member recruitment.

July 2022-September 2022: Incorporated focus group feedback and Global Finals feedback into the initial action areas.

April 2022-May 2022: Focus Groups were moderated with our Destination Imagination community members (Team Managers, parents, Affiliate leadership, and tournament officials)
 
February 2022-May 2022: Established strategic objectives and initial action areas.
 
November 2021-January 2022: Presented findings of Needs Analysis to stakeholder groups (Board of Trustees, Affiliate Directors, Alumni, Operational Volunteers) for feedback.
 

May-October 2021: Completion of internal Needs Analysis to identify areas of improvement and understand the scope of our need.

January-May 2021: Development of DEIB Project Plan

January 2021: Formation of internal DEIB committee, including members of the DI staff and all major stakeholder groups (Board of Trustees, Affiliate Directors, Alumni, Operational Volunteers)

This page will be updated as additional action steps are completed. Questions, comments, or concerns about Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging in DI are welcome and may be submitted via the form below.
 

Have Questions? Drop us a line.

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