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Audre Lorde

It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.

(Audre Lorde)

Grow

At UC Santa Barbara we value an inclusive and affirming environment for all students, staff, and faculty. Learning about other communities and identities and how to be a supportive advocate and ally is a lifelong project. Many of us receive little exposure to identities different from our own in our earlier lives, and thus universities can be the first time we encounter people different from ourselves. 

We can choose to let these differences divide us, or we can engage in intentional self-development to better understand and appreciate the many aspects of identities, cultures, and backgrounds. The resources on this site are intended to serve as a place to engage with these topics. We called this site "Grow" because we are never finished learning about others and how best to respect and support them. Multiple campus partners contributed to the development of the resources found on this site, guided by four principles:

  • Grow should be a living resource, in that we encourage users to ask for topics they would like to see represented, and resources they would like to see on the site. We are open to suggestions on valuable resources not yet represented, and ask that you email equity@sa.ucsb.edu with these suggestions. 
  • Grow should include content on each topic at varying levels of complexity/depth to allow users to engage with the topic at their level of knowledge/previous engagement.
  • Grow's resources should include first-hand storytelling whenever possible, as first-hand narratives are shown to be effective in reducing bias and increasing inclusivity.
  • Grow's resources should, whenever possible, be authored/created by people who hold the identities/topics being discussed. This prioritizes the knowledge and lived experiences of those communities.

The categories below are not meant to be exhaustive of all identities, cultures, or backgrounds, but are intended as a starting point. Whenever identities are placed into a category, we risk flattening the diversity within those identities. It is important to note, therefore, that any topic may not fully represent those who hold that identity, and people's individual experiences should be honored and respected.

Also, as Audre Lorde says, "There is no thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives." You will therefore see resources in many of these categories that intersect with others.

Contributors

Thank you to the many campus partners who contributed to the development of this site, and continue to contribute:

 

We are open to suggestions on valuable resources not yet represented, and we ask that you email equity@sa.ucsb.edu with these suggestions.