Diversity Surrounds

Keane State College in New Hampshire is a US Department of Education Green Ribbon School (2017), on the Princeton Review to 375 Green Colleges, and listed on Sierra Club's list of most eco-literate colleges. It's know wonder they know something about sustainability and biodiversity.

This became eminently more clear in Dr. Dottie Morris' fifteen minute TEDxKeene Talk on May 17th, 2017. Dr. Morris is the Associate Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion at Keene State College. In this roll, she knows a bit about diversity. Her style is engaging as a story teller, and message is strong:

In nature, we adore diversity. The colors of the fall, the sparkling of light on the water, the variety of trees, flowers, animals across the planet.

Biodiversity makes for a healthy environment and a thriving habitat.

Yet, as people, we still fall short on that mark when it comes to diversity. 

Difference is not something we should fear. We need to learn from nature and the greatest takeaway is that diversity is essential. She makes a powerful point: division is NOT the answer--it's socially constructed. Made up. Gender. Race. Class. I love her quote: "We have been snookered, we have been bamboozled, we have been fooled." 

Think of our polar partisan politics. Think of our siloed social media feeds. Particularly in the US, now more than any point in my own personal 5 decades, we are more divided than ever before. Yet, as Dr. Morris points out--in order to be sustainable, we NEED diversity. Of thoughts. Of Beliefs. In our community. We are interrelated and part of each other. It is through creativity in ourself and our works collectively in the world. Innovation NEEDS our diversity of thought. As Dr. Morris points out: "Diversity is the mother of innovation." She goes on to say that we live in a highly complex world. Because of that, we need those different views and vantage points. There really is no room in a world of problem solving for narrowness of thoughts. We, as people, are the perfect picture of "together we can accomplish more."

Just as the natural world needs biodiversity to thrive, we too need diversity as a national and global community.

Video from  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8leYAVPKaLA, photo of Dr. Dottie Morris from https://www.keene.edu/news/stories/detail/1592406971205/, quote image created at canva.com