Unearthing diverse narratives and creating inclusive spaces, on purpose.

Mission

Through the Public Diplomacy Grant from the U.S. Embassy, I created and taught a diversity and inclusion course at the American Center Korea, the public-facing arm of the embassy in Seoul. In order to equip students with practical tools to create more diverse environments in their own communities, I incorporated design thinking workshops into my lessons. Classes were a balance of lectures, small group discussions and partner exercises. I intentionally incorporated students feedback into my classes, taking an iterative approach to covering only topics that were most relevant to students. My motivation for creating this course was just as much for me to learn as it was for me to teach. The discourse around diversity and inclusion is so rooted in cultural context, and I was curious to understand how Koreans were approaching this conversation. My priority was to help students recognize the diversity of Koreans and opportunities to improve inclusion within their own society.

Topics were expansive and evolved with student interests.