Lab and Field DEI

It is important to ensure (1) all researchers working in the field feel safe to conduct their work, and (2) that there is a plan in place to address safety issues when they arise. The resources below are intended to offer guidance when writing a safety plan for your lab, field station, and/or site work. 

Rutgers Unlearning Racism in Geoscience (URGE) Laboratory and Fieldwork Safety Plan contains Rutgers-specific resources for encouraging diversity, equity, and inclusion in laboratory and fieldwork settings, reporting resources, and general guidelines for creating a laboratory/fieldwork safety plan. Updated February 2023. 

Demery and Pipkin (2021): Safe fieldwork strategies defines at-risk individuals, provides example situations in which a researcher may be put at risk, contains additional resources based on safety, mentorship, and inclusion, and offers guidance and strategies for mitigating risk. 

Morales et al. (2020): Promoting inclusion in field experiences explains how field work is often a necessary experience to have in ecological sciences, yet negative experiences in fieldwork can discourage minority and underrepresented individuals from continuing to pursue a career. This paper summarizes challenges for underrepresented groups, and proposes different routes for creating an inclusive field experience.