Active Bystander: Impact of Discrimination on Well-being

The event aligned perfectly with the significance of March, a month dedicated to raising awareness about racism and discrimination. For example, every year on March 1st and 21st, we celebrate Zero Discrimination Day and International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination respectively. These two celebration days foster a global movement of solidarity to end all forms of discrimination by emphasizing the importance of awareness, inclusion, compassion, peace, and inspiring change.

The event had two segments starting with a keynote speaker presentation and a moderated interactive session between the speaker, two other guests and the audience to reflect and discuss how best to engage comfortably in uncomfortable conversations as an active bystander. The keynote speaker was Pravini Baboeram, a Program Manager at ECHO (Expertise Center for Diversity Policy). Pravini Baboeram facilitates people and organizations in the process of getting comfortable with the uncomfortable with the aim of supporting people in finding constructive ways to have uncomfortable conversations.

Keynote Speaker Pravini Baboeram

In her presentation, Pravini Baboeram shared a video about microaggressions and emphasised how small interactions based on stereotypes can affect people’s well-being and the importance role of active bystanders within a community, institution and society. Pravini explained to the audience the comfort, stretch, and panic zones, as well as the reactionary situations that can happen in the latter, which can be summarized as the three F’s: fight, flight, and freeze. The speaker highlighted critical interventions that can help active bystanders including addressing the situation, challenging, questioning and/or educating the suspect, affirming a norm, and checking with the victim.

Interactive session

The interactive session ignited an engagement with participants with Pravini Baboeram and two other guests; Guido van Vulpen, Alderman at Municipality of Wageningen responsible for diversity, inclusion and care; and Joyce van der Velde, Programme Manager Social Safety. The session touched on how to effectively position oneself as an active bystander in vulnerable or uncomfortable situations and how to empower the Wageningen community to foster an active bystander culture. Further, the discussion highlighted people, creating space and feedback, accountability, and effective structures as crucial supporting resources to sustain the efforts towards zero discrimination and improved well-being. To enhance a broader approach in dealing with discrimination and microaggression where active bystanders can transition into active citizens in a diverse community like Wageningen, Guido van Vulpen highlighted the importance of adopting a multi-layered strategy where the Municipality actively engages with local schools, teachers, parents, residents and like-minded institutions to continuously raise awareness.

In line with social safety and diversity and inclusion as key components for achieving WUR’s mission and vision, Joyce van der Velde acknowledged the importance of building confidence in reporting discrimination incidents to foster a safe and respectful learning and working environment on campus and beyond. The audience also shared their thoughts on the need to improve communication structure to reach a wider audience, awareness of the effect of power dynamics, and reflection feedback and lessons learnt from incidents as a way of ensuring sustainable solutions for tackling discrimination and improved well-being.

Building a community of responsible citizens

The event was resourceful in building on everyone's desires for a sense of belonging, fostering a safe and inclusive culture, and supporting one another in achieving a genuine sense of community both at WUR and Wageningen city at large. Importantly, not just being active bystanders but as responsible citizens in our community.

The event was co-organised by Samira Barari (Municipality of Wageningen), Alejandra Guijo Bermejo (Diversity & Inclusion, WUR), Joyce van der Velde (Social Safety) and Joshua Wambugu (MAE & ENP Group).