A Toronto-based program has successfully increased the number of visible minorities on boards of public institutions, agencies and not-for-profits and will soon share its expertise with organizations in other Canadian cities.
Close to one half of Toronto residents are visible minorities but that is not reflected on these boards. Many of the organizations recognize the need to have this representation but say they have trouble finding candidates. The program called DiverseCity onBoard has managed to make matches that resulted in the placement of 721 candidates in the last several years.
‘A nimble supply and demand solution’
“DiverseCity onBoard is a sort of a nimble supply and demand solution,” says Ratna Omidvar, executive director of the Global Diversity Exchange at Ryerson University in Toronto and a driver of the program. “We know that there are candidates. We know that they are out there. They want to be on boards. Nobody asks them.”
ListenAt the same time, progressive organizations serve diverse communities and recognize that their boards would be better if they reflected those communities, she says. DiverseCity onBoard brings the two together.‘Diversity is our strength’
It would be too expensive to bring the whole program to other Canadian cities, so organizers have created a virtual platform with modules that it will share with organizations in Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, Hamilton and London.
“In Toronto we like to say ‘diversity is our strength,” says Omidvar. “Well let’s show them how diversity is our strength.”
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