Inclusiveness in Tech Spaces: Examples from Bio-IT

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Malvika Sharan Computational Biologist & Community Outreach Coordinator Inclusiveness in Open Science Community Outreach Call, 06.06.2019

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Malvika Sharan Computational Biologist & Community Outreach Coordinator Inclusiveness in ‘Tech Spaces’ Community Outreach Call, 06.06.2019

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About me • Computational biologist in European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) 1

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About me • Computational biologist in European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) • PhD in bioinformatics (RNA and infection biology), Germany (2016) 1

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About me • Computational biologist in European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) • PhD in bioinformatics (RNA and infection biology), Germany (2016) • 9 years in bioinformatics field 1

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About me • Computational biologist in European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) • PhD in bioinformatics (RNA and infection biology), Germany (2016) • 9 years in bioinformatics field • 4 years in computational teaching and outreach 1

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The Global Scientific Community 3

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Lack of “global-ness” 4

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Lack of “global-ness” in tech communities • Science and engineering are more relevant globally than ever • the research focus around the world is different. 4 Adapted from: https://globalscience.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/global_engagement

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Lack of “global-ness” in tech communities • Science and engineering are more relevant globally than ever • the research focus around the world is different. • Technical exchange facilitates advancement of the technologies • inaccessible to those who lack resources. • Inclusion of diverse skills, background and experiences impacts outcome • lack of inclusive technologies. 4 Adapted from: https://globalscience.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/global_engagement

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Lack of “global-ness” in tech communities • Science and engineering are more relevant globally than ever • the research focus around the world is different. • Technical exchange facilitates advancement of the technologies • inaccessible to those who lack resources. • Inclusion of diverse skills, background and experiences impacts outcome • lack of inclusive technology. • Training facilitates skill transfer and use of technologies • not everyone is benefitting from the technical solutions. 4 Adapted from: https://globalscience.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/global_engagement

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Improving “global-ness” in tech communities • Science and engineering • should address more problems. • Technical exchange • shouldn’t be limited by resources. • Inclusion of diversity • develop inclusive technologies. • Training opportunities • builds wider user-/learner-/contributor-base. 4

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Found a compromise in Open Science “Make research resources available online without price barriers and without most permission barriers.” – Suber et. al., 2012 5

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‘Open Science is an umbrella term that involves various movements to remove barriers from sharing scientific resources at all stages of research’ (FOSTER Project, European Union) Open Access Open Source Citizen Science Education resources Scientific Networks Peer Review Notebooks Open Data … 6 Image by @smile_97 on Unsplash

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What is inclusiveness? 7 https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/joining-hands

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“…inclusion of individuals or groups who were previously excluded” Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Inclusiveness is.. 7 https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/joining-hands

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“…inclusion of individuals or groups who were previously excluded” “...measured in terms of eligibility, opportunities, and involvement in decision- making and leadership” Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Inclusiveness is.. 7 https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/joining-hands

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“…inclusion of individuals or groups who were previously excluded” “...measured in terms of eligibility, opportunities, and involvement in decision- making and leadership” “...achieved when members share and not compete for resources or power” Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Inclusiveness is.. 7 https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/joining-hands

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Image by @aaronburden on Unsplash Diversity, Inclusion & Inclusiveness 8

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Image by @huuduong, on Unsplash 9 Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) go hand in hand

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Image by @huuduong, on Unsplash 9 Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) go hand in hand Diversity is the about “attracting different people” of diverse skills, backgrounds, and experiences to work together

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Image by @huuduong, on Unsplash 9 Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) go hand in hand Diversity is the about “attracting different people” of diverse skills, backgrounds, and experiences to work together Inclusion is about “empowering them” by providing an environment that brings the best of combined skills, backgrounds and experiences

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Inclusion vs Inclusiveness 8 Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Image by @aaronburden on Unsplash

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Inclusion • Process by which a community values, includes and involves diversity to improve its well-being Inclusion vs Inclusiveness 8 Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Image by @aaronburden on Unsplash

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Inclusion • Process by which a community values, includes and involves diversity to improve its well-being • Aims towards providing access to community resources to achieve social equality Inclusion vs Inclusiveness 8 Ref: C. Talmage and R. C. Knopf, Springer International Publishing AG 2017, New Dimensions in Community Well-Being Inclusiveness • Outcomes of inclusive policies and actions undertaken in a diverse community to improve its well-being Image by @aaronburden on Unsplash

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https://unsplash.com/photos/IM0GHpsjJic How are these affecting tech spaces? 10

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11 https://www.visualcapitalist.com/gender-diversity-bottom-line/ Why D&I?

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11 https://www.visualcapitalist.com/gender-diversity-bottom-line/ 2018 Statistics from big tech-companies with their employees working internationally. Efforts in Tech Industries Why D&I?

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12 Are (these) efforts making a difference? Perceived success of the current efforts

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12 Can we improve this? Perceived success of the current efforts Are (these) efforts making a difference?

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https://unsplash.com/photos/nUBb39hjAYg Lack of individual efforts can affect overall inclusiveness 13

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Open R&D efforts democratizes accessibility and engagement in research 14

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Open R&D efforts democratizes accessibility and engagement in research but it can’t assure that it will happen. 14

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Open R&D efforts democratizes accessibility and engagement in research but it can’t assure that it will happen. In fact it is inaccessible and unwelcoming to many 14

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Open R&D efforts democratizes accessibility and engagement in research but it can’t assure that it will happen. In fact it is inaccessible and unwelcoming to many - both who experience it and who can change it. 14

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Improving “global-ness” in tech communities • Science and engineering • should address more problems. • Technical exchange • shouldn’t be limited by resources. • Inclusion of diversity • develops inclusive technologies. • Training • builds wider user-/learner-/contributor-base. 15

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A few examples from my work

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European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Image copyright: EMBL EMBL is a Flagship in Europe that serves as a model for organisational structure in other research institutions

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Austria 1974 Denmark 1974 France 1974 Germany 1974 Israel 1974 Italy 1974 Netherlands 1974 Sweden 1974 Australia 2008 Argentina 2014 India 2018 Switzerland 1974 United Kingdom 1974 Finland 1984 Greece 1984 Norway 1985 Spain 1986 Belgium 1990 Portugal 1998 Member States 24 Associate Member States Ireland 2003 Iceland 2005 Croatia 2006 Luxembourg 2007 Czech Republic 2014 Malta 2016 Hungary 2017 Slovakia 2018 Poland 2014 Lithuania 2015 Prospect Member States EMBL Member States

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Bio-IT – Bioinformatics community platform in EMBL Toby Hodges Project Manager

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Bio-IT – Bioinformatics community platform in EMBL Image by: Toby Hodges, Bio-IT, EMBL Training Technical exchange Bioinformatics 1 research D&I efforts

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Community Outreach & Training Deputy Training Coordinator of ELIXIR Germany • Provide training in computational skills and protein bioinformatics • Develop strategies for community engagements and equity • Cooperate with other computational and open source communities

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Bio-IT – Training efforts Course Overview • Introductory courses for biologists to gain computational skills • Advanced courses for learners to improve their skills

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Bio-IT – Training efforts Course Overview • Introductory courses for biologists to gain computational skills • Advanced courses for learners to improve their skills • Including external participants to connect with other researchers

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Bio-IT – Inclusive efforts Course Overview • Introductory courses for biologists to gain computational skills • Advanced courses for learners to improve their skills • Including external participants to connect with other researchers • Opportunities for volunteers to teach and gain experience • Teaching in external institutes to improve visibility

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Bio-IT – D&I efforts • Taskforce meeting with volunteers • Community Assessment to understand needs • Computational capacity assessment • Frequent social events (pizza & beer!) • Regular drop-in sessions • Coffee with individuals • Annual ‘Thank you BBQ’ • Hackathon!!!

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Involving Local Community Beyond Bio-IT Informal open events on science and related topics

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Bringing Global Perspective to Bio-IT Volunteer since 2015 Mozilla Open Leader 7 SSI Fellow 2019-20 Supporting since 2012

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Basic lab skills for scientific computing Skills to work effectively with Open Access data Foundational coding and data science skills for researchers worldwide Adapted from the slides provided by Tracy Teal, Director of The Carpentries For Library Professionals International Computational Community

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Data and images by Kari Jordan, Director of Assessment and Community Equity > 1500 instructors from 44 countries >37000 learners >1400 workshops

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Co-organized the 1st CarpentryCon conference for 125 international members “Feeling of belonging!” “We are all nerds wanting to help each other.” Join us as trainer, mentor, mentee, developer, CoC… https://carpentries.org

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Digital Storytelling for Shaping Culture • Creating more diverse opportunities • Understand the reward system for the community members • Create sustainable resources to facilitate participation

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Developing accessible training strategies in smaller communities • Developing central learning resources to enable peer-to-peer learning • Reducing dependencies on training conducted by advanced researchers • Contributing to the community engagement and sustainability

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64 Brings isolated bioinformaticians together and creates space for them to feel welcomed and appreciated for their work and ideas!

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X Image by @dtravisphd on Unsplash My notes on promoting inclusiveness

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Design inclusive solutions by inviting diverse perspectives Image by @ktabori on unsplash

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• Recruit diverse collaborators and employees. • Reach out to the members from external communities. • Understand your own limitations and list them out. • Be Genuine! https://www.invisionapp.com/inside-design/guide-web-content-accessibility/ What can we do to gain wider perspective? “[Aim to] give your users the best experience possible regardless of limitations or disabilities.”

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Image by @illumire on unsplash Actively share your work with others

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There are several ways! • Develop sustainable tools • Create accessible resources • Create learning materials • Teach a skill • Run a coding club • Learn about policy (specially about the different groups) • Support pro-open-research movements • …

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Image by @rvignes on Unsplash Support, recommend, acknowledge, advertise, nominate and motivate each other. Be an Ally.

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Valerie Aurora Ally Skills Teacher @frameshiftllc Slide source: Valerie’s talk: “Focus on Ally”

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https://unsplash.com/photos/DoA2duXyzRM Shape the culture by engaging with your community 48