New DEI library in the GCC Steger Hall Office

December 14, 2021

What? The Global Change Center Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Library.

Who? Available to all GCC affiliates, including faculty, staff, and IGC fellows.

Where? Books can be checked out (max 30 days, if there is a waiting list) by coming into the GCC office in Steger Hall. Members can check book availability or add themselves to the waiting list using the book availability sheet HERE. If a GCC member needs access to Steger Hall to check out a book, please reach out to Program Coordinator Bri Wills at bmwills@vt.edu.

Why? The goal of the GCC DEI library is to encourage GCC members to continue their DEI education by providing free access to relevant books. We also hope that we can use the knowledge we gain from these books to plan DEI initiatives and foster a more inclusive GCC community.

Winter break would be a great time to do some reading! The library currently includes 2 copies of the following books:

• Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer 
• Equity in Science: Representation, Culture, and the Dynamics of Change in Graduate Education by Julie R. Posselt
• Disability Visibility: First Person Stories from the Twenty First Century edited by Alice Wong 
• How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi 
• We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
• Coming in March 2022: The Intersectional Environmentalist: How to Dismantle Systems of Oppression to Protect People + Planet by Leah Thomas 

he IGC DEI committee organized a DEI reading group, and all IGC fellows are welcome to attend! During the past three semesters, they have covered a wide range of topics, notably How to be an Antiracist and Braiding Sweetgrass (two books that are now available in the GCC DEI library). Next semester they plan to host invited speakers and discuss more DEI topics, including building inclusive communities and developing strong diversity statements. Fellows should look out for an email from Lauren Maynard in January for scheduling the bi-monthly meetings for the spring semester. Also, if you’re interested in joining the IGC DEI committee, reach out to the GSO committee members.    

Written collaboratively by the IGC DEI Committee.