So I wanted to close tonight by talking a bit about how I got involved in #diversity #equity #inclusion efforts in #STEM and otherwise, and some general considerations for getting involved, especially as a white, hetero, cisgender individual.

If you had told me 20 years ago that I would be involved, I'm not sure I would have believed you. I was a pretty ignorant and inherently biased individual bc of where and how I grew up. But luckily people can grow. A couple things happened that changed my path.

Gainesville and UF were a huge part of it. I've lived in other colleges and cities, but it's been different here. Even with all their problems, the town & university have more diversity than anywhere I'd been & people were openly discussing big important related issues together.

Some were sharing experiences I never heard before. This all had a profound impact on me. After a lot of annoying questions to some ridiculously patient people who frankly deserve medals, I learned everything I could and saw how my ignorance had played into problems around me.

At the same time, I was really coming into an understanding of #WomenInSTEM. My frustrating experiences were mostly from the public (Are you lost? This isn't safe. Do you need help?) but others were facing some serious barriers from within the field.

This is where #HERpers fit in. I saw this simple hashtag turn into something that gave people a community to connect to, gave them a safe place to share & organize, and helped make change buzzfeed.com/kellyoakes/sci…

Basically these experiences came together to show me what individuals from underrepresented groups can face, not just in STEM but in everyday life, and how connection, representation, and systematic change were important to fixing it. I started to read more and got involved