Lab Values

Statement

Our mission is to create fundamental understanding about the ocean through innovative science that links discoveries about its chemistry, physics, and biology, as well as its connection to human communities. Our lab strives to value and include people with diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences, to ask interesting and societally-relevant questions and use novel approaches to data synthesis and interpretation.

In pursuit of this mission, the Casciotti lab is committed to promoting an inclusive lab culture that provides a welcoming and safe environment for all members to flourish. Many STEM fields, including oceanography, suffer from systemic racism and discrimination. We recognize this requires us to play an active role to dismantle barriers, rectify inequities, and confront racism in the spaces we inhabit. We celebrate diversity in life experiences and identities, both visible and invisible, as diversity is critical for a societally meaningful scientific endeavor. We support each other to achieve success in every individual’s own personal and career aspirations.

Goals

To recruit, support, and retain members from diverse backgrounds and groups that have historically been underrepresented in the sciences.
To foster a safe, welcoming, and equitable environment in the lab, in the field, and in classrooms and meeting spaces for all lab members.
To support and listen to (be allies for) fellow participants in field research.
To provide opportunities for career development and advancement for all members, recognizing that not everyone’s career goals and aspirations are the same.
To engage in scholarship from a diverse set of authors and research groups.
To maintain a positive work-life balance, recognizing that science is done by people.
To support each other in our unique roles outside of our professional capacities.

Conduct

We treat ourselves and others with respect in our actions and communications.
We practice interrupting microagressions and giving microaffirmations.
We give constructive feedback and encouragement, and consider the context in which feedback is being given (i.e., when unequal power dynamics may be at play).
In receiving feedback, we listen and assume that it is coming from a place of help and support.
We maintain a growth mindset; no one is born knowing chemical oceanography, and there is always something new to learn.
We do our best to use non gendered language and respect each individual’s pronouns and gender expression.
We anticipate, listen to, and accommodate accessibility needs of lab members.
We respect professional boundaries, understanding that our relationships with each other are work relationships and treating them as such.

Actions

To educate ourselves on effective bystander intervention techniques for addressing issues of inequity, harassment, and discrimination, and do our best to apply and share what we learn.
To hold discussions of ongoing actions and priorities on a regular basis (quarterly lab group meetings) to ensure accountability to DEI efforts.
To the extent possible, engage in outreach endeavors to share our science and privilege with the community.

Resources: Stanford/Earth System Science

Resources, General

Unlearning Racism in the Geosciences (URGE): urgeoscience.org
LTER Network diversity resources: lternet.edu/network-organization/diversity-resources
Society of Women in Marine Science: swmsmarinescience.com

Land acknowledgement

Our laboratories at Stanford are situated on the traditional lands of the Muwekma Ohlone tribe. We acknowledge the violent colonial history of the acquisition of this land and offer our thanks for the opportunity to live and work on their traditional homeland. We celebrate the culture and perseverance of the Muwekma Ohlone people to keep their identity strong, and we are committed to support their efforts and contributions to diversity.

Lab Poster, inspired by Sammy Katta https://sammykatta.com/diversity