I cannot stress enough how important diversity is in today’s society. The lack of South Asian diversity has been a subject of debate and concern in various fields, including media, entertainment, education, politics, and most notably the environmental sector. South Asians are often underrepresented or stereotyped in popular culture and media and their contributions and perspectives are often overlooked.
In 1993 when I studied for a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Biology and in 1997 when I studied for a Master's degree in Environmental Planning and Management it was immediately apparent that the demography of my courses did not represent the demography of the Universities at large.
In 2000, when I entered the world of environmental recruitment it seemed the profession, especially at the decision-making level, from my own experience, appeared largely dominated by white, middle-class males.
The lack of diversity and the skills shortage in the environmental profession go hand in hand. Diversity, not only diversity of skin colour or ethnicity but also of ability and disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, and social background makes the environmental sector a stronger profession. One that is better able to draw on the widest pool of talents and skills needed to tackle the environmental skills shortage crisis we currently face.
At a time when the profession faces a crisis, in terms of the shortage the profession needs to be extending a warm welcome to competent environmental professionals from all diverse backgrounds. There must be a positive culture of welcoming individuals into the profession and not restricting their ambitions to contribute to the profession. In short, there must be a systemic and institutional, requiring holistic, multi-layered solutions and evidence-based interventions.
At Buckingham Futures, the aim is to attract a more diverse pool of candidates for our clients by creating change and making the environmental profession more inclusive, more welcoming, and more diverse.
We understand that environmental concern and action – so often the precursors of a career within the sector – are not the preserve of any one social, ethnic, racial, or gender group. So we need to understand:
• Why is that concern and action not translating into a professional career choice?
• What barriers prevent people from seeing themselves as environmental professionals?
• How can we champion our profession as a profession for all and create more routes into it?
It is encouraging to note that environmental employers are now acknowledging the importance and benefits of inclusivity and diversity and are taking steps to ensure that this is given high priority in the future. Greater effort is essential in terms of widening accessibility for individuals from different backgrounds. It is clear that the majority of those interested in pursuing a career in the environmental sector possess passion and enthusiasm and an unparalleled desire to make a lasting contribution to the vocation.
