Our commitment to diversity and inclusion

Diversity matters. Environmental professions in the U.S. have historically been dominated by middle class white Americans. Environmental problems, however, disproportionately harm people of color and people who are poor. As the demographics of the U.S. change, for our society to continue understanding and protecting the environments we inhabit, incoming generations of environmental scientists and professionals must be increasingly racially diverse. Most importantly, the environment matters to all people who live within it, and environmental fields should welcome any person invested in environmental issues regardless of their personal identity.

In the Nicholas School, we strive to build a community that welcomes people to the environmental sciences and other environmental professions regardless of their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identification, or other important characteristics of their identity. We value our strong partnership with Duke's Office of Institutional Equity and their long-term support of our expanding efforts to create an inclusive and diverse school and to graduate alumni who will go on to build an inclusive and diverse field of environmental professionals.

On this page, you will find

• Information about our past and upcoming events, including:
  • a series of professional development workshops to help our students, faculty, and staff recognize and address unconscious biases as well as
  • other events that explore how specific groups of people interact with or are affected by the environment.
• Related news articles.
• A variety of NSOE alumni profiles.
• A range of resources on and off campus, including campus organizations, support services, and reference materials.