(September 20, 2024) At Cat Adoption Team, we love cats — and our care extends to people too. That’s why, in 2020, we started our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. This group of staff, volunteers, and board members is working to make CAT a more welcoming place for everyone.
Achieving our mission of helping cats means connecting with everyone who has a role in their care or support. That’s why DEI remains a key part of our efforts. Here are a few things we’ve been working on since our last update:
- All Adoption Counselors completed implicit bias training, and we’re rolling this out to our Adoption Counselor Assistants and foster volunteers by the end of this year
- Enacted changes to our paid holiday policies, holiday closures, and decorating practices
- Implemented and refined changes that improve accessibility and equity in our hiring practices
- Researched additional DEI-related trainings for next year, including training for our board
- Translated our informational brochure and adoption application into Spanish
- Presented in a roundtable discussion webinar hosted by Best Friends Animal Society about increasing accessibility in animal welfare
- Recruiting new members to ensure that our committee represents the diversity of our community
Over the past four years, we’ve made progress on a wide range of DEI initiatives. This is an ongoing effort and there’s always more to learn. Thank you for caring about cats and for working with us to create a space where all people are welcome, respected, and valued.
