Richmond plays host to diversity forum

The Richmond Multicultural Concerns Society (RMCS) is holding its 2nd annual Diversity Dialogue Conference in the coming week.
Bringing together over 150 community members, the conference aims to provide participants with a forum to discuss issues of anti-racism, diversity and inclusion.
“Diversity is not only integration but a celebration of people’s unique cultural backgrounds”, said Andrea Arnot, Program Coordinator of RMCS’s Welcoming and Inclusive Workplaces Program. “However, we still see incidences of racism and significant barriers to employment for new immigrants as well as established members of the community”.
Arnot believes the Conference will give community members a platform for expressing some of their frustrations while building on achievements within the community.
“Our goal is to inspire action,” says Arnot. “We have representatives from the Mayor’s office and school district coming in to dialogue with the youth-focused portion of our conference and we are bringing together new immigrant employees with employers to
discuss some of their challenges and successes with diverse workplaces.”
The 2011 Diversity Dialogue Conference is a free event, but space is limited.
For more information or to register, visit www.iamrichmond.ca.
The conference takes place on Friday, March 18th at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Richmond.
For more information call 604-279-7160.