University Of South Florida issued the following announcement on Jan. 29.
What does it mean to be resilient? The answer depends on who you ask. For Tristen Johnson, Assistant Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, resilience is the ability to overcome the unjust and unforeseen challenges people face in their day-to-day lives.
A new conference at USF St. Petersburg aims to strengthen resilience for individuals in higher education. Hosted by the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Diversity and Inclusion Conference will promote resilience with the tagline “Still We R.I.S.E. – Resilience In Social Experiences.” The full day of talks, presentations and breakout sessions take place on Saturday, February 1 starting at 9 a.m.
The Diversity and Inclusion Conference is Johnson’s brainchild. She was inspired to launch the conference last spring after grappling with a problem that plagues culturally diverse communities around the country.
“One of our biggest challenges as humans is communicating with people who are culturally different from us,” Johnson said. “At this conference, we want to showcase how people have been resilient to social injustices in this country. People attending the conference can learn from those experiences and stories, which will empower them to be more culturally competent people.”
Approximately 200 attendees will travel from across the state and country to attend the inaugural conference. Faculty, staff and students from USF, the University of Central Florida, Northwestern Mutual and the University of Wisconsin, Madison will be in attendance.
The conference’s keynote speakers include Shannon Ashford, Associate Director of Diversity Education at Wake Forest University, and Sam Obeid, Program Director of Community Tampa Bay.
“The theme of the conference speaks to my personal and professional values,” said Ashford, an educator who trains leaders to develop more inclusive behavior and practices. “Resilience is such an important skill and something that can be developed over time.”
Ashford defines resilience as a person’s ability to adapt and make the best out of bad situations. In talks at campuses and nonprofit organizations around the country, she points out that although people often plan their lives years in advance, we can’t predict the future. Life comes at us fast, she said, and plans don’t always pan out the way we anticipate.
“Resilience is the way that we push through even though the plans we set for ourselves don’t look the same as we may have thought. Resilience is about reframing our perspective about the trials or setbacks we’re facing,” Ashford said. “Those changes can be opportunities for a different and even better path forward.”
Sam Obeid carved her own path forward when she emigrated from India to the United States at the age of 23. After earning two masters’ degrees from USF, she committed herself to social justice activism in the Tampa Bay area. At the non-profit Community Tampa Bay, Sam helps to forward the organization’s mission by creating a community free from discrimination through cross-cultural interaction and dialogue. By “seeing through someone else’s lens,” she thinks people can become more attuned to the experience of others. She’s eager to spark those conversations during the conference.
For her part, Johnson hopes the Diversity and Inclusion Conference will not only empower attendees to be more resilient in their everyday lives, but also help them feel rejuvenated through a sense of understanding and solidarity.
“We want people to know their thoughts and identities matter here,” Johnson said. “We all have a voice to be heard.”
Original source can be found here.
Source: University Of South Florida
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