Inspiring people @WUR: Mangala Srinivas

Wageningen University & Research is committed to creating an environment of inclusion, diversity, and equal opportunities because we are convinced that this contributes to better research and teaching. In this interview, Mangala Srinivas, Chair of Cell Biology and Immunology at ASG, answers questions about diversity and inclusion (D&I).

Inclusion

Can you be 100% yourself at WUR?

Yes, most of the time I can. Maybe as a chair group leader I’m a bit more firm than usual, but that is part of the role. But in general, yes. My colleagues are open and welcoming, and they try to embrace diversity. Most of the time I do not feel uncomfortable.

How long have you been working at WUR? Can you compare it to other workplaces and what are things that stand out in terms of Diversity and Inclusion?

I’m working for almost 2,5 years at WUR as Professor and Chair of Cell Biology and Immunology. I come from Singapore where I did my BSc. I went to the USA for my PhD, I worked at the Radboud UMC in Nijmegen, at General Electric Healthcare (now called Cytiva) and I have my own company. (Laughing)

Working for my own company with 3-4 employees, we have no problems with Diversity and Inclusion! At the university in the USA, Carnegie Mellon, I experienced much more diversity, both with the student body and the staff. In Wageningen there are a lot of Europeans, so maybe it is more diverse here as it seems to me because differences are less apparent.

At Radboud there was a strong preference for reading and speaking Dutch. Maybe because it is also a medical centre; doctors should help patients in their own language. Crazy enough, with promotions students could present their research in Dutch, even when one of the promotors was English-speaking - this is quite awkward.

GE Healthcare was an international company; I had team members from USA, UK, China, and Sweden so everything was in English. During my PhD in USA, I was member of a support group for women graduate students which was very helpful. In Wageningen the number of) female professors is not equal with male professors. Maybe this is an idea for WUR to give women more support?

You organised the event introducing Buddy Benches in the D&I week. What is it about and how does it contribute to more D and I?

I had read about this Buddy Bench on Facebook. It is something for kids; by sitting on this bench, they show ‘I want to talk to or play with somebody’. So, with Wageningen Young Academy we arranged two benches, one will be in Orion and one in Aurora. In an open event during the D&I week, we invited people to write or draw on the benches, outside Forum. One bench is meant to write down failures. We don’t talk much about failures in public, but it is important to realise that not everything is successful and that failures are part of life. The other bench is meant for patterns or doodles. In this way we create unique benches, which are an inviting space to talk to each other, and these benches will last for more than just the D&I week.

Burn-out and loneliness is a problem among students, especially for the ‘corona generation(s)’. They did miss out on a lot of social interaction. So Wageningen Young Academy came up with the idea of Buddy Benches in Forum and Orion. By sitting on the Buddy Bench, you give a signal ‘I want to talk’ or ‘I’m up for a conversation’. These benches create an opportunity for people to show kindness and empathy towards each other, and vulnerability.

You wrote a Call to Action: We can do better. This call to action is endorsed by a lot colleagues. What is the next step?Do you think this will make a change?

I did write this together with members of Wageningen Young Academy. That this paper is signed by a lot of colleagues shows there is a lot of willingness to do better on D&I. I’m very happy with this support. The next step is to send it to the Academic Board. They have to react on it. Can it make a change? The things we mentioned are not new, it simply organizes what is already going on. We also want to publish it on the intranet to give it more exposure.  

Besides the management, what can we as colleagues do to make WUR more inclusive?

Everyone can think about small changes to make others, from different backgrounds or those that are neurodiverse, feel more welcome. Often these are small steps that won’t cost you much effort. For instance, in my group, we rescheduled team meetings from 9.00 to 9.15 hrs. If you take your children to school in the morning, a nine o’clock meeting is very rushed.

For this same reason we could plan team coffee of drinks at 15.30 or 16.00 and not after 17.00, so you can join and still pick you children up from day care. You can also shorten meetings by 15 minutes, no one will be against that! Other small steps you could take is to include the D&I images that HR has developed in your lectures or other slides, which include a diverse range of people. Or, include a friendly “welcome sticker” at your door (pic included).

Diversity

At WUR, it doesn’t matter who you love, what language you speak, where you were born or what you believe in. What is your experience with this?

I myself have no obvious problems (at least, not consciously - we all have unconscious bias), but there will always be (cultural) friction in any group. Maybe there are more differences in a diverse group, but this is the world we and our students have to work in. Welcome into the real world.

A member of the LBTHTIQ+ group in Wageningen told me that he/she wanted to be referred to as ‘them’. This is new and difficult for me, but at least we can try. Think of it the other way around: it is more difficult not to be recognized for who you are.

Can you tell what the five points are in your Call to Action and why they are essential for an effective strategy to put WUR on the map in the domain of D&I?

Our first two points are about to make D&I a core value in the Strategic Plan and to build a coherent and connected D&I framework with targets, a dashboard and communication about the progress we make. WUR should have a D&I officer (at least 0.4 fte) to coordinate all the D&I initiatives. It would simply be more efficient to have coordinated actions, than several bottom-up actions.

We also ask for staff on Broad Assessment Committees (BAC’s) to be trained on D&I. Everyone has bias- even if you think you don’t. At this moment bias training for BAC members is voluntary. Such training should be mandatory, I think. Currently, some interview committees include an external D&I consultant, who helps by e.g., rephrasing interview questions to minimize bias. This is very important.

Finally, we want to have a physical space for employees and student where they can come, have a coffee, and talk with somebody about any D&I problems they are experiencing, or ideas that they would like to implement. A visible location which is open for a few hours a week would be ideal. This also sends a strong message to the community that WUR supports D&I, and not just for one week in the year.

What is the importance of Wageningen Young Academy in the domain of D&I?

This group of young (assistant/associate) professors within WUR meets on a regular basis. The members exchange experiences and discuss WUR policies. Of course, we are also talking about D&I, and both the Call to Action and the Buddy Benches are ideas developed within the WYA.

We believe that there is a lot of work being done already and there is a strong will to improve D&I within WUR, but we are convinced that it will be more efficient and effective to coordinate all initiatives an stimulate them from above.

Equal opportunities

How do you stay motivated at work and what gives you inspiration?

I just started! I really like it here. The research we are doing with our team is very exciting, and within our chair group there is still a lot to do. I like to do a lot of different things and I have the opportunity to do that at WUR. I enjoy being part of the WYA and initiating and implementing ideas, like the Buddy Benches. All these things inspire me.

What motivates me is the impact that I can have on students, and my colleagues. For example, some (female) students are very nervous before a presentation, even if they are doing very well. I can improve their self-confidence by telling them that they can be proud of themselves and have more confidence in their abilities. This is such a small and easy step for me to take, but it makes a lot of difference to the student. Some of them end up in tears.

Another example, perhaps not always pleasant, is that I sometimes get asked “Are you the Chair?!” because I do not match the stereotype of what that person expected as a “Chair”. In some cases, seeing someone non-stereotypical in this position may “break” that person’s stereotypes, and maybe also stimulate them to reach higher.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? Will you still be at WUR?

That’s a difficult question. I don’t know and I think it is nice to know not to know and to keep the future open. I have three children (now 12, 10 and 7 years old) all in Dutch schools. This is their home, and so it is also my home. It is nice to experience that they have a completely different mindset compared to us grown-ups. They don’t make a point of eating vegan. ‘Why would you not eat vegan?’ is their opinion. The biggest changes come with the next generation. Maybe things as gender and Diversity & Inclusion will not be issues anymore when they are our age! Thinking like this makes me optimistic.