The U.S. Department of State Offers Grant for Pacific Leaders Diversity & Inclusion Workshop

The U.S. Embassy New Zealand Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out a program to develop and implement a three-day Young Pacific Leaders (YPL) Regional Workshop sometime between October 2022-July 2023 designed to foster the implementation of diversity and inclusion practices with Pacific communities and organizations, pending the availability of funding. The workshop should preferably take part in Samoa, but may be hosted in other Pacific locations pending logistics and costs.

The proposed workshop will focus on building local capacity within Pacific nations to help participants advocate for and foster the implementation of organizational practices related to diversity and inclusion (D&I). Workshop sessions should be designed to introduce and operationalize best practices in this space that emphasize the power of D&I practices to instil greater acceptance and tolerance among communities, mitigate unconscious bias, stigma and discrimination in order to eventually stimulate steady growth, increase participation and productivity, and develop robust leadership and economic opportunities for all. The program will complement good governance initiatives and programs that emphasize respect for individual rights already underway within the Pacific region.

Achieving community acceptance and tolerance for differences in gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, abilities, age, origin, and appearance remains a challenge in the Pacific region. The value of diversity is often overlooked, and discrimination can occur in hiring and other selection processes. Despite the formulation of D&I frameworks within certain corporations, the actual implementation has yet to work its way through the organizational layers and down to the functional level.

This workshop will bring together practitioners from all levels of society and administration including NGOs, civil society, governments and experts to discuss challenges, develop action plans, and leverage opportunities for regional collaborations to foster the implementation of D&I practices. The workshop will be held in Samoa, which is home to diverse cultures and international industries.

Priority Region: Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Islands of French Polynesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and U.S. partners from the American-affiliated Pacific including American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Hawaii.