Harmony Week

During Harmony Week, we celebrate the wonderful diversity of the cultural backgrounds of those who live, work, study, learn, and play in Australia. I often use this week to reflect on diversity, equity, and inclusion, which are core values of Foundations Family Day Care, and how we apply them in our day to day lives.

I was critically reflecting on this with a colleague when she asked a common question: What really is the difference between equity and equality?

Equality stems from the belief that all are equal. Equal rights, regardless of race, religious beliefs, culture, abilities, etc is one of the “Australian Values” identified by the Australian Government. It is the belief that, if given the same opportunities or access, every person can have an equal outcome. This is a great goal, but is not the lived reality of many because their “starting point” on the journey to equality is not the same: they may have a range of barriers that need to be overcome in order to achieve equality.

This is where equity comes in. Equity is about addressing those barriers, be they at the starting point or along the way of that journey to equality. It may mean providing additional supports so all can participate. It may mean altering the starting point for some. This can look like that person or group is being given an advantage, but in reality, it is compensating for the barriers they face. You can easily see that in the picture below.

Equality (everyone given the same start) vs equity (everyone given what they need to reach the same goal)

So then, what can inclusion look like? Inclusion can take a range of forms, such as those needed for equity, but can also involve addressing or removing the barrier altogether. It is another way of achieving equality through adaptations. If you look again at the picture, imagine that fence being completely removed: all watching that game no longer have that barrier at all, are included and equality becomes a reality, at least for this situation.