INTRODUCING LANDING (LEADERSHIP ACADEMY AND NETWORK FOR DIVERSITY & INCLUSION IN GEOSCIENCES): A NSF FUNDED INITIATIVE TO BUILD, DEVELOP, AND SUSTAIN DEI LEADERS

AGU, in partnership with other organizations and institutions, has created the AGU LANDInG program. This bold new initiative is based on the rationale that both increasing capacity for DEI leadership within the geosciences and fostering recognition for the value for DEI champions are needed to significantly improve DEI outcomes across geosciences. This presentation will describe LANDInG and provide an update on its key components and launch timeline: (1) a sustainable DEI Community of Practice Network, to engage and support a broad representation of DEI champions within the geosciences; and (2) a DEI Leader Academy, to build the DEI leadership capacity of select cohorts of DEI champions in the geosciences through intensive, cohort-based professional development tailored for them. The LANDInG DEI Leader Academy will also include opportunities for direct experience leading DEI initiatives in the geosciences for cohort participants.

Our model for change draws from research and theory spanning social and organizational sciences, including the literatures on professional networks/mentoring, and implementing effective diversity and leader training. Our methods for enacting change are evidence-based and framed by national models for cohort-based professional development within higher education/STEM. A steering committee and an advisory board of leading DEI scholars, social scientists, and representatives of other geoscience societies will broaden the expertise and diversity perspectives over the project’s life. An additional LANDInG program goal is to measurably increase the visibility and recognition of DEI champions and leaders in order to elevate their value within the discipline. AGU’s vision for sustaining LANDInG well into the future will also be discussed.