Transformation: Creating Trans-Inclusive Societies
Focused on building Trans-inclusive societies through career progression and mainstreaming of transpersons through employment and entrepreneurial opportunities.
Today’s LGBTQ workforce has undergone a fundamental, generational shift, both in how it defines itself and what it expects of workplace inclusion. The LGBTQ workforce is far more racially diverse and more likely to include women, transgender employees, and people with more varied sexual orientations than in the past, particularly among younger generations. Of LGBTQ employees under age 35, 28% are people who identify as women, versus just 2% of those aged 55 or older. Consequently, the diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in place at many companies, while beneficial, are no longer sufficient.
The evolving makeup of the LGBTQ workforce and its multifaceted composition present challenges to changing organizational culture—but in this complexity lies the solution.
D&I efforts aimed at LGBTQ space must acknowledge multiple personal attributes in addition to sexual orientation and gender identity. Demographic factors (like race, generation, and immigrant status) and life factors (such as caretaker status, religiousness, managerial level, and income) mean that each LGBTQ has a different life experience. Successful culture change will take a “segment of one” lens to acknowledge each person’s unique life context and needs.
This is a new approach for many but one that is critical to creating truly inclusive societal spaces. Within the LGBTQ space her focus is on 3 spheres:
• Public awakening and Advocacy through Transformation Talks, Youth for Sustainability Dialogues & Transformation Tuesdays
• Capacity building and training to empower and bring about a change through a program called Transformation
• Providing job employment and community-led social enterprises and Trans-preneurs (see link https://connecting-dreams.org/transformation/)
In a diverse society, every individual has the right to be treated equally and have the same access to resources and opportunities. However, there continues to remain an excluded section of the society who have not had equality of access, opportunity, resources or even acceptance, of the Trans community.
They continue to remain ignored and rejected by the majority of society, inviting the need for a socially inclusive initiative targeted toward transgender individuals. The harm to the individuals is not just economic, physical or social, but forms a major foundation for emotional/ psychological issues. There is a dire need for change in the societal perception of the transgender community.
Transformation is a unique program that is aimed to mainstream and give career advancement opportunities for 100 young and aspiring Trans-persons in the Delhi NCR.
With satellite centres across multiple locations in Delhi NCR, the design of the curriculum is such that it will enable individuals to get an unrivalled boost in their career graph and/or start.
Participants are groomed on multiple skills to develop a source of self-employment leading to self-sustainability and incremental livelihood and economic growth.
Written By:-
Simi Mishra, PhD
The catalyst for Building Socially Inclusive Societies