New Page — Rieder Lab

As a group, we acknowledge that academic science suffers from a lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Science does not operate in a bubble, nor is it apolitical. Rather scientific issues are societal issues, and societal issues, such as racism, bias, and personal safety, are issues that the scientific community must address. This statement was crafted and approved by all laboratory members, and we will revisit it regularly.

We welcome, support, and advocate for community members from diverse backgrounds including those from different socioeconomic backgrounds, races and ethnicities, gender identities and sexualities, religions, disabilities, familial obligations, and other personal identities.

To do so, we specifically work toward:

Strong relationships:

We will recruit new lab members based on holistic evaluation (not based on ‘pedigree’ or impact factor)
We will ensure that each junior trainee has a direct mentoring relationship with a senior lab member
We will share opportunities, such as conferences or papers, with trainees to enhance professional development
We encourage and welcome contributions regardless of experience
We will conduct an annual review between trainee and mentor that includes both scientific goals and career goals
We recognize all levels of intellectual contributions formally such as through authorship or acknowledgements
We value constructive bidirectional feedback
We support individual lab members and the Biology and Emory communities through participation in seminars, clubs, and off-campus events

An inclusive environment:

We encourage and support non-academic career choices, for example, science policy, writing, industry, non-science careers, etc.
We discuss societal and ethical issues that affect our group members and others in the community
We advocate for constructive changes on a larger level, such as at the institutional, local, and national levels
When safe, we point out problematic behavior
We are accountable to and for each other
We are receptive to constructive criticism
We engage in outreach endeavors to share our science and privilege with the community
We do our best to use non-gendered language and respect each individual’s pronouns
We listen to and accommodate accessibility needs of trainees
We devote lab meetings and group discussions to reading works from excluded/marginalized scientists

A healthy environment:

We will not equate self-worth to scientific success
We will not equate devotion to hours spent in lab
·We recognize each person’s right to personal privacy
We celebrate all achievements

A safe environment:

We acknowledge that individuals have different lived experiences. Not everyone will be affected the same and we are flexible in our expectations of others
We recognize the importance of regularly resting both our bodies and our minds
We prioritize health over experiments
We respect privacy and confidentiality
We recognize that shit happens.
We understand that “No.” is a complete sentence