To mark European Diversity Month, IMPALA is conducting the first European diversity and inclusion survey for the independent music sector.
IMPALA’s diversity taskforce worked hand in hand with associations and advisers such as Keith Harris, consultant Vick Bain and Arit Eminue from DiVA Apprenticeships to move forward with this survey, which IMPALA will now undertake on a regular basis.
IMPALA’s survey is the first of 12 commitments in its diversity and inclusion charter released last October. The survey will map best practices, local developments and projects regarding diversity and inclusion in the independent music sector in Europe. IMPALA’s aim is to understand the position of diversity and inclusion in different countries and what tools exist or could be useful in the future.
European Diversity Month 2021 started last week. The European commission invited “all organisations in Europe to take a stand for diversity and act about it”. During the month, events are being organised to raise awareness of the importance of diversity and inclusion.
As well as surveying members, IMPALA is promoting diversity and inclusion through its charter, and podcast series, including with the co-chair of IMPALA’s taskforce. Later in May, IMPALA will release practical guidance for members and will close the month with a roundtable discussion with MEWEM, a mentoring programme overseen by Helen Smith, IMPALA’s executive chair.
IMPALA have committed significant time and energy into devising a diversity and inclusion strategy that works across its broad membership
Keith Harris
Eva Karman Reinhold, co-chair of IMPALA’s diversity taskforce and chair of Swedish association SOM, added: “It’s great to see this survey online, we invested a lot of time and effort to design it and we’ve been working on this for a while now. I’m happy to see that associations have really got involved in the process and we have received great advice from Keith, Vick and Arit. I hope the input we receive from this new tool inspires us for future action!”
Keith Harris, adviser of IMPALA’s diversity taskforce, added: “IMPALA have committed significant time and energy into devising a diversity and inclusion strategy that works across its broad membership. This survey is a very important step along the way.”
Helen Smith, executive chair of IMPALA, said: “We ask all independents across Europe to complete our survey so we can collect useful data and share best practices within Europe. There is no one-size-fits-all strategy to tackle diversity issues, each territory needs to adapt according to their own situation and European diversity month is a great opportunity to highlight our work.”
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