Diversity, inclusion and collaboration: A critical open knowledge perspective

When universities need to address strategic issues, they increasingly demand data to support decisions. With equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) high on the agenda for universities and governments, at least in the Anglophone North, there is a growing amount of data available. This data tells a largely depressing story of limited progress. But there is more to this story than might first appear. Decisions about whether or not to collect data about EDI; and the terms that are used to describe the aspects of diversity considered relevant to a specific national or institutional context may have as much to tell us about the geographies of our EDI conversations as the data itself. Taking a critical perspective to the data available can help us to identify differing priorities and concerns in various contexts. This presentation draws on the very large data set that has been gathered as part of the Curtin Open Knowledge Initiative: tens of trillions of data points relating to research communication, open access, collaboration and diversity. Outside the Anglophone North ethnic diversity and minority inclusion as understood in the West is not always a priority, and although gender equity may be an intention, outcomes indicate great disparities in some countries. Similarly we can compare rhetoric on diversity and inclusion (for example in Annual reports) with actual performance, not just identifying a gap, but seeing how that gap is related to prestige and resources. Using our model of Open Knowledge Institutions, this talk will examine both what the available data tells us, and what it cannot tell us, and in turn, what that tells us.

Montgomery, L., Hartley, J., Neylon, C., Gillies, M., Gray, E., Herrmann-Pillath, C., Huang, C.-K. (Karl), Leach, J., Potts, J., Ren, X., Skinner, K., Sugimoto, C. R., & Wilson, K. (2021). Open Knowledge Institutions : Reinventing Universities. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/13614.001.0001