Kristen Harrison, author and publisher, felt for a long time that her actions in relation to diversity and inclusion did not match up to her good intentions.
She explains “I have always been a champion for minority rights in many contexts, but when it came to understanding how to apply this to inclusion in my books I had a knowledge gap that needed filling.”
Kristen saw the programme as an important investment: “Through my work as a publisher I learned a lot about inclusion, diversity and empowering underrepresented voices. But I still lacked confidence in decision-making and editorial judgement.”
Prior to the programme Kristen felt a sense of personal responsibility and knew she needed to approach issues of diversity and inclusion in a more objective and thoughtful way. Kristen shared that the programme "has helped me to understand that my lack of confidence stemmed from a lack of knowledge. I didn’t know what I didn’t know. Now I do know what I don’t know, and I know how to find out, and that’s been transformative. I feel empowered and able to make decisions and raise things with those I work with.”
Now she has completed the programme, how is she feeling about her newfound knowledge? “Beth’s course has been transformative. The programme has provided invaluable insights into representing disability, diverse ethnicities, LGBTQ+ characters and families, accessibility and much more. I feel bolstered by this knowledge, and inspired by the creative ideas that have been generated during the course.”
When asked if she would recommend the programme Kristen had this to say; “Just do it. I can guarantee it will be worth your while and if it’s not I’ll give you the money back myself.”
Find out more about Foundations for Inclusion