At the IDEC meeting during Online IDEC 2021, John Loflin proposed that IDEC make a response to the issue of Black Lives Matter. A group of people volunteered to work on how to respond to this and as a result of this work realized that we needed to look at the broader issues about inclusion and diversity in IDEC itself and in democratic education.

The Inclusion and Diversity Committee has questioned how diverse and inclusive IDECs are and worked on possible ways to create pathways which would enable IDEC to reflect and find real ways to increase diversity and inclusion and change any underlying discriminations, racism and unconscious privilege and power which may be part of IDEC and are barriers to participation.

The group has been meeting approximately once a month, for three years, working to acknowledge our personal unconscious and conscious prejudice and bias as well as choosing issues specific to IDEC that we found needed to have a spotlight and possible action. The first year we examined the place of privilege and racism. The second year we concentrated on the role of women in IDEC and Democratic Education more generally. 2024 in Taiwan, in partnership with the organizers, we highlighted and promoted the place and participation of young people.  

Our goal is to bridge the gaps and barriers that exist at IDECs relating to discrimination, racism, white dominance, and privilege as well as structural power and privilege and to work towards a world that is fair and just. 

Since 2022 we have supported each IDEC’s organizing group with ideas and feedback as we have also been doing for the IDEC-EUDEC team this year. In addition, we regularly contribute to the conference program by offering workshops, giving lectures, facilitating discussions, and holding brave spaces.

February 2025

Present members of the Inclusion & Diversity Committee:
Karen Aoyagui (Brazil), Cecelia Bradley (Australia), Isabel Dennis (Trinidad and Tobago), Chloe Duff (Great Britain), Verena Gruner & Tania Corbett (Aotearoa/New Zealand), John Loflin (USA), Olivia Loria (USA), Dorothea Schütze (Germany)

For more information please contact dorothea.schuetze@arcor.de