Does everyone in the world deserve a pair of shoes? Or does everyone deserve a pair that fits, and is to their liking?
Social justice through equity is the big picture goal for the Center Of Diversity and Inclusion at Michigan Tech. Despite their small team in the Hamar house, they are the voices that give the word “progressive” a stronger meaning in the Michigan Tech community.
Recently, a new initiative to protect the environment took the wheel, which replaced long towers of plastic cups with reusable mugs. It was a joint initiative started by the current members of the CDI.
“People have been coming to the CDI for coffee, tea and hot chocolate since 2010,” says Kelly Raffaeli, the Director of CDI. “We noticed that the garbage was overflowing with plastic cups and decided to change that,” she says.
Nadine Sikora is a student at MTU, originally from Canada. She was having a friendly conversation with Rohit Pandhare, a resident of Pune, India in the lounging area of the CDI. “I like the new initiative. A lot of people come in for coffee, and it is nice to see them using the sustainable approach,” says Nadine. Rohit agrees with her. As members who are regularly present in the building, they also mentioned that they would like creamer instead of powder for the coffee. “This is not a coffee shop!” they exclaim.
Walking into the CDI building, there is a certain calm, a feeling of inclusion. The walls of the CDI are adorned with posters relevant to social justice and history. There is also a large collection of books. While the current state of social justice in the world is not in equilibrium, Kelly is hopeful that there will be change. “If we all come together, the change will be large, she says. Younger people today are becoming more conscious of the effects of voicing their opinion and are becoming more confident in doing so. But the same battles are being fought from the 1960’s till today; there are merely different instances of them still in existence. The CDI is a part of those battles. They act as a support center by creating a safe and welcome environment in the school; giving us hope.
