IAYO Online Workshops in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Below Allin Gray, Denise Ní Dhuibhir and Noeleen Hartigan discuss IAYO’s equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policy plans, as well as an overview of EDI.

Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, every child and young person has the right to fully participate in the cultural life of their community, to have their voice heard and to feel valued as a creative individual. Our orchestras and ensembles can be places where young people flourish, not just artistically, but also in terms of their sense of belonging and community.

Increasingly, organisations throughout Ireland, including IAYO, are putting a specific focus on equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) so that we can play our part in making our society, or at least the elements of it that we can influence, more equitable. For IAYO, EDI is a strategic priority that will underpin our activities, and in particular, is closely aligned with our work to enhance youth participation.

Over the course of this year a subcommittee of the IAYO Board will be devising an EDI policy and action plan. The plan will include how we gather data and insights, how we share information and resources and how we support our member organisations.

You can input directly by attending one of the two-hour online EDI workshops on offer in October. These sessions will include an introduction to EDI issues, and an opportunity for you to highlight areas where you are championing inclusion and areas where you’d benefit from guidance.

Workshop Times:
Monday, 9 October: 3 to 5pm
Tuesday 10 October: 6.30 to 8.30pm
Thursday, 12 October: 10am to 12 noon

Please sign-up by Friday, 22 September 2023.

Visit iayo.ie/equality for more information and to apply online.

You can select a workshop time and highlight the issues you’d like to discuss in the brief questionnaire. These sessions, and the formulation of our strategy, will be supported by an independent consultant Noeleen Hartigan, funded by The Arts Council.

We are really looking forward to your input.

– Allin Gray, CEO & Denise Ní Dhuibhir (EDI Subcommittee Chair)

Below, Noeleen Hartigan offers more information on EDI resources.

Definitions from The Arts Council’s EDI Toolkit:

  • Equality: Equality is the guarantee of absence of discrimination on the grounds of gender, religion, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, age, disability, race or ethnicity.
  • Equity: Refers to the acknowledgement that historically excluded, under served and underrepresented individuals or groups experience barriers to full participation, and, therefore additional measures are needed to assist these individuals or groups to achieve equality in the provision of effective opportunities to all groups. Equality means establishing equal treatment for all, equity means assisting those who could not otherwise avail of the equal treatment.
  • Diversity: The presence of differences within a given environment, community or culture.
  • Inclusion: The act of bringing those from traditionally excluded groups into processes, activities, and decision/policy making in a way that shares power.

Some useful resources and tools:

  • The Art’s Council’s EDI toolkit at artscouncil.ie
  • Guidance on including young people’s voice in decision making at hubnanog.ie
  • National Youth Council of Ireland tools and resources on equality and intercultural issues.
  • Resources on harassment, sexual harassment and bullying for arts sector workers at safetocreate.ie
  • Understanding gender identity issues at gendered.ie
  • Understanding LGBTQ+ issues at belongto.ie