DEI Committee

As women in a historically male-dominated industry, PWC members are uniquely positioned to recognize disparate treatment and undertake efforts to grow a more diverse workforce throughout the AEC industry. Participation by a multitude of underrepresented voices and perspectives – women of color, LGBTQ, WMBE, people with disabilities – is critical to the vitality, growth, and efficacy of PWC.

TIMELINE:

• May 2020: Board established a four-person Task Force to focus on expanding Chapter efforts to improve Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (“DEI”) within the AEC Industry.
• June-July 2020: Task Force met several times with outside consultants and began a dialogue around best practices towards developing a Plan of Action for a Philadelphia PWC DEI Program
• August 2020: Call to Action phone calls with membership led to engagement across the membership around various ideas and actions that the Board should consider undertaking in support of DEI efforts. Board began to craft a Plan of Action in response
• October-December 2020: Launched DEI Member Calls – every other month interactive call to watch a compelling TED Talk or similar clip and discuss the content. Drafting of a Plan of Action.
• January 2021: Adoption and Launch of the Plan of Action

PILLARS OF ACTION: Through on-going discussion among the Task Force, outside consultants, and the general membership, PWC identified three initial Pillars of Action to guide on-going action and efforts going forward.

• Direct Support
  • at the middle school/high school levels to encourage young women of color to pursue A/E/C careers
  • at the college/trade level to engage and support women in the pipeline
  • launch of a recognition/scholarship program at the college/trade level – not necessarily specific to DEI, but could support those efforts.
• Chapter Programming
  • to encourage and expand diversity in our membership
  • programming should tie back to and support a DEI platform. Diversity of participants/panelists, diversity of topics, consultants and contractors from WMBE companies, etc.
  • continue a DEI-dedicated platform and expand DEI concepts throughout larger programming
• Community Outreach
  • to educate the existing A/E/C community and encourage broader engagement around DEI efforts
  • connect with and support like-minded organizations already working the DEI space
  • philanthropic arm to support underserved communities and encourage AEC engagement