Developed by the SAGE ACT Regional Network, the Intersectionality Walk is an educational package for understanding how a person’s multiple identities can compound advantage or disadvantage.
Following a highly successful trial at a Catalysing Gender Equity 2020 workshop, the Walk has been delivered to over 50 organisations around the world.
How the Walk works
In the Walk, participants assume realistic, multifaceted personas in simulated work-based scenarios. Each persona has characteristics from vulnerable or minority population groups, for example in terms of their gender, age, socioeconomic status, cultural background, disability and sexuality.
The Walk provides a powerful way for participants to visualise how intersectionality plays out in real-life situations. By experiencing workplace scenarios in an assumed persona, participants can more easily empathise with the experiences of others. In guided reflection sessions, participants discuss the challenges of moving away from siloed approaches to organisational change, and identify opportunities to incorporate intersectionality into their gender equity work.
Impact of the Walk
The ACT Regional Network measured participants’ understanding of intersectionality before and after completing the Walk. The data showed that after completing the Walk, participants had a greater awareness of how intersectionality relates to workplace inclusion, and of the intersectional approaches they could use to achieve structural change.
Although research into the Walk is still ongoing, the initial findings suggest that the Walk is a valuable tool for employers to build an inclusive culture that harnesses the talent of all employees.
To learn more about the Walk and its impact, read the paper “Seeing and overcoming the complexities of intersectionality”.
Want to take part in a Walk?
If you work at a SAGE subscriber organisation, please contact us. If you’re from a non-subscriber organisation, you can book an Intersectionality Walk workshop through Charles Sturt University.
