Dr Zoë Gallant, Dr Leda Kamenopoulou and Dr Zachary Walker University College London Our department is committed to raising awareness and changing culture and behaviour when it comes to race and racism. Over the past 2 years, we have been engaging in projects focused on promoting more inclusive work cultures and greater belonging in academia, through creating an environment where conversations about race and racism are supported and progressed. In this presentation, we will share some of our department’s current projects related to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) that aim to decolonise higher education and to make it more inclusive of under-represented groups. Examples of the work that we will present include: 1) our Epistemic Justice Seminar Series, a free online series open to the public, that aims to challenge the various imbalances in knowledge production and sharing, in which speakers share their work on different areas, such as decolonising curriculum and assessment, establishing equitable research partnerships, and making scientific publishing more inclusive; and, 2) our EDI Journal Club, a series of monthly webinars for our staff and students, that aim to offer a safe space for open and honest reflection on a range of topics, including some nominated by students, such as for example increasing representation, race, social inequality, and gender. We will also talk about our wider practices and actions at the strategic level; about what we have achieved and why we think it is critical to our department’s success. Whilst we acknowledge that there is still much work to be done, we look forward to sharing our experiences and coming together with others to collectively reflect on our decolonising journeys. This presentation was delivered at Reimagining Higher Education: journeys of decolonising at De Montfort University, Leicester, on Wednesday 8th November 2023.

1. REIMAGINING HIGHER EDUCATION:
JOURNEYS OF DECOLONISING
Dr. Zoë Gallant (z.gallant@ucl.ac.uk)
Dr. Leda Kamenopoulou (leda.kamenopoulou@ucl.ac.uk)
Dr. Zachary Walker (zachary.walker@ucl.ac.uk)

2. EDI JOURNAL CLUB
Who: ALL students and staff invited.
When: 90-minute online sessions, once a month during term time.
How: Each term, two papers chosen by staff, with the third one
nominated by students.
Gives students the opportunity to have a say in their curriculum.
Wide range of topics, from intersecting identities, to non-binary/
genderqueer identities and class, social inequalities and education.
What went well: Good turnout at the start of the year
What can improve: Attendance throughout entire year

3. EPISTEMIC JUSTICE SEMINAR SERIES
When: Nov 2022- Jun 2023
What: 6 seminars, online, free, open access
Focus: Decolonisation, equity, social justice, diversity, inclusion in academia.
Speakers: 3 PHD and 3 guests
Topics: Decolonising (curriculum, assessment, university), equitable
research partnerships, scientific publishing, minority & international
students
What went well: 303 attendees (ranging 97-22); curated recordings
What can improve: More accessible time [2PM]
Variety of topics [speaker nomination form]
Sustainability [or quality over quantity]

4. DEPARTMENTAL REPRESENTATION
Who: IOE Psychology and Human Development (#1 inWorld since 2014)
When: July 2021
What: Increase Diversity in our Department (1/45 Faculty were non-white)
Why: Representation Matters
How: Reach out before posts come open
Use social media (e.g. @blackinpsych)
Composition of panel
Welcoming interviews
Follow up with personal emails and feedback if desired
Induction
What is going well: 6/14 hires (42%) from diverse backgrounds
What can be improved: Tipping Point… Black Scholars… Building aTeam

5. COME JOIN US!
Dr. Zoë Gallant (z.gallant@ucl.ac.uk)
Dr. Leda Kamenopoulou (leda.kamenopoulou@ucl.ac.uk)
Dr. Zachary Walker (zachary.walker@ucl.ac.uk)