Four ways to reclaim the D&I narrative

1: Prioritise your wellbeing and celebrate your wins

Resistance to D&I efforts centred around dignity and belonging for all can weigh heavily on practitioners doing the day-to-day work. Sustaining impact and momentum is often easier said than done in the current climate, with many D&I practitioners experiencing burnout, stress and fatigue. While easily overlooked, taking care of yourself is crucial to this work, so we can continue with courage and care.

Catherine Hunter encouraged practitioners in this field to prioritise their own wellbeing and celebrate “the incremental wins” of the job – highlighting that sustained commitment does eventually leads to change.

Maretha Smit reflected on how the discussion served as a powerful reminder of the value in connecting with a “network of friends” – a sentiment that underscored the importance of D&I professionals building communities with like-minded peers. This insight strongly resonates with DCA’s commitment to the power of coming together; DCA regularly facilitates free virtual networking events that create a safe, supportive space for D&I professionals to share challenges, exchange ideas, and explore strategies together.

2: Humanise D&I through storytelling and messaging framing

Reclaiming the D&I narrative requires placing equal emphasis on the moral imperative of inclusion and equity, alongside the economic and productivity benefits for business.

Catherine emphasised the importance of centring lived experience, and sharing human stories that re-frame D&I around themes of humanity and compassion to cut through mis and dis-information.

“Let’s frame it in a way that lets everyone know there are immense benefits and humanise it with beautiful storytelling,” she said.

Emphasising the need for a human-centric approach to D&I, Jeiz Robles said:

“At the heart of global inclusion work is the human — diverse, evolving, and driven by a fundamental need to belong. Recognising this must shape not just what we do, but how we do it.’’

Sharing her own approach, Marni Panas added:

“We know that D&I is not about identifying one dominant group of people. What we’ve really leaned into is sharing stories that show that every single person is diverse from the person next to them.”

3: Ground D&I in shared values, tailored messaging and unifying language

Another strategy to cut through internal resistance and reclaim the D&I narrative is for D&I practitioners to tailor their messaging and approach to meet the individual needs and interests of leaders across the business. Marni advised, “know your audience”. She explained that if you’re speaking to health and safety teams, HR, or risk management, frame D&I in terms that align with their objectives, such as safety, reducing grievances, or mitigating risk. This ensures relevance and builds stronger buy-in.

Marni also suggested that reframing D&I as a reflection of the organisation’s core values can shift the conversation with leaders. In the face of resistance or pushback, draw clear connections to show how D&I initiatives relate to and support your organisation’s values to bring the moral and strategic imperative of D&I into sharp focus.

Déjealous Palota-Kopa reflected on the current crossroads many organisations face — questioning whether to backtrack or double down on their D&I efforts.

“What we’ve seen is that organisations that are smart are actually strategically doing both. They’re pulling back from anything that looks performative and doubling down on embedding it [D&I] within their culture through a strategic values-led lens.”

Jeiz reinforced the unifying power of shared language – terms like “respect” resonate universally and can bridge cultural and organisational divides. She said that respect in this context “goes beyond politeness…It’s about recognising dignity, listening actively and valuing differences.”

Catherine highlighted social class as an important and often overlooked D&I dimension that offers an opportunity to broaden the relevance of D&I work within your organisation. Drawing on DCA’s landmark class research from 2020, with a second iteration of the study due out in October this year, she shared that DCA’s research shows social class is one of the strongest predictors of inclusion at work. Amid the ongoing cost-of-living pressures we’re seeing in Australia, this offers another way into the conversation and for D&I professionals to garner internal support for D&I.

4: Support your leaders to model inclusion

Marni highlighted that it is the role of the D&I professional to encourage workplace leaders to model inclusive behaviour. This entails equipping them with the tools, resources, language, skills, and confidence to do so. She said that most leaders want to do the right thing, they often just need support to navigate fear and uncertainty relating to the work. Marni reiterated the importance of building strong relationships with leaders in your organisation, to be approachable and a create safe space where ideas can be tested without the fear of getting it wrong.

Catherine highlighted that employees look to workplace leaders as trusted information sources and that “CEOs have a mandate more than ever” to help drive inclusion and in-turn equity and dignity for all.

Catherine also shared how vital it is that leaders go beyond box ticking and focus on creating systematic change. “This takes commitment and investment from leaders,” she said.