The Office of the Associate Vice-President, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-racism is launching the Sankofa Think Tank, a new initiative centered on community building for Black folks from across the University of Waterloo as part of our commitment to the Scarborough Charter (an action plan focused on Anti-Black racism in higher learning institutions).
The purpose of the Sankofa Think Tank is to provide Black Waterloo community members who are interested and committed to re-dressing Anti-Black racism an opportunity to build better mechanisms for community building and outreach to our broader Black communities.
Led by co-chairs, Dr. Christopher Taylor and Jennisha Wilson, the key focus of the Think Tank in 2023 will be planning and executing the Scarborough Charter Inter-Institutional Forum next summer (2024) in partnership with Wilfrid Laurier. The Forum is a nation-wide conference with more than 50 universities and colleges attendees that will engage with experts, thought leaders and directors to address anti-Black racism and promote Black flourishing in academia. Participating members of the Sankofa Think Tank will be asked to take part in the planning committee in collaboration with folks from Wilfrid Laurier.
Outside the planning of the forum, the general principles of the think tank are:
- Decentralized collectivity: Hub for Black university stakeholders from all levels of governance, from administration to students as well as members of the larger Waterloo region community
- Praxis: Action oriented by engaging with Black communities on and off campus and work to uphold actions of the Scarborough Charter
- Advancement: collecting and sharing information about career and funding opportunities to racialized communities who may not be aware of them.