Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the School of Biological and Marine Sciences

The embedding of equality and diversity across the School’s functions and strategies
Diversity and inclusion
If you have any queries about Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the School of Biological and Marine Sciences please contact the School Office: biolmarsci@plymouth.ac.uk or the Faculty Senior Administrator for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Emily Bradley.
The School of Biological and Marine Sciences Equality Diversity and Inclusion Committee (EDIC) is made up of academic, technical, research, professional services staff and student representatives. We support the embedding of equality and diversity across the School’s functions and strategies, develop school-led initiatives and work towards equality charter submissions such as Athena Swan. We are committed to promoting EDI principles, ensuing an inclusive learning environment, and preventing discrimination and harassment within the School.

Growth is impossible unless we embrace change and progress. As our society finally moves toward celebrating individuality and fostering open-mindedness, the University should be a safe space where students and staff can voice their concerns, be unafraid to speak up and express their authentic selves. We all need to work together to help transform the University into such a space.

Tetiana BuzykinaTetiana Buzykina
Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Lead

EDI Committee members

Athena Swan

The Athena Swan Charter is a framework which is used across the globe to support and transform gender equality within higher education (HE) and research. 
The School of Biological and Marine Sciences achieved a bronze Athena Swan award in November 2019, and we will be submitting our next application in 2025. 
athena swan

News

School of Biological and Marine Sciences EDI workshop

As part of a drive to make the School of Biological and Marine Sciences as inclusive as possible, and to help explore new ways of doing so, the school piloted a staff Equality, Diversity and Inclusion workshop on 12 December 2023. 

Mentoring scheme 

In September 2021, the school mentoring scheme led by Dr Anne Plessis was launched. The aim of the scheme is to provide staff with informal support from another member of staff within the school. The areas of support include any aspect of professional life, such as career progression, work-life balance, research, teaching and time management. One of the principles of this scheme is that if someone asks for a mentor, they are expected to also offer to be a mentor. 
If you would like more information about the mentoring scheme, please contact Dr Anne Plessis. 

Online welcome event

The welcome event took place online during the January 2021 COVID lockdown and offered an opportunity to everyone who started a position in the School in the past year to introduce themselves to the rest of the School and find out more about the research that is being done here. 
All newcomers were invited to prepare a one minute-speech about themselves, their background, research interests and anything they would like their colleagues to know about them. There were also short presentations about the different research areas and facilities within the School. 
The main purpose was to help new staff get acquainted with the School and feel less isolated. There were 20 presentations by newcomers and eight talks to present research activities. The feedback on the event was overwhelmingly positive.

Resources