Joint statement: Brandon University and BU Faculty Association share firm commitment to EDI

At Brandon University, everyone belongs.

Today, Brandon University and the Brandon University Faculty Association jointly reaffirm a shared commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, including related principles of Indigenization, decolonization, and reconciliation.

We must be a welcoming institution. We are responsible for creating a nurturing environment on campus, where all students, faculty and other employees, and guests can feel accepted and appreciated. Research, teaching, and learning depend on the free sharing of wide-ranging ideas and varied perspectives. Academic freedom requires that we honour and promote a diversity of experience and ways of knowing.

We also recognize and respect the shared humanity of every person, knowing that diversity improves our institution and its mission. Brandon University and BUFA have enshrined these values in our new Collective Agreement, and we see our commitments as a shared responsibility. In our agreement, both parties have committed to timelines to integrate EDI into all parts of our shared, collegial governance, as well as in research, teaching, and service. Additionally, a new EDI Strategic Plan will guide further University-wide action. No plan or agreement is perfect, and we affirm also a commitment that we will continue to improve as we act on our principles.

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion work is urgent. We push back against generations of complex, cumulative, and intersectional harms, including colonization, racialized persecution, disabled exclusion, disregarding of mental health and neurodivergence, and the marginalization of people based on their gender identity, sex, or sexuality. We acknowledge the culpability of educational systems, including universities, in perpetuating harmful mindsets, systemic racism, and social inequalities, and we take responsibility for doing our part to repair these historical damages.

The legacies of oppression are deep and long-lasting. We see the erosion of EDI principles happening elsewhere, and we choose to stand firm for our values, our principles, and for all the people who make up our campus community.

BUFA and BU’s commitments to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion work are continuous. We affirm our commitments to EDI through meaningful actions, no matter the broader political landscape. Other people and institutions across Canada and around the world are also doing the work of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. We see you, we stand with you, and we invite you to join us in our strong public commitment to continued action.

Contact