Women of colour face unique barriers in the workplace due to the rigidity of unjust systems. We need to redesign the state of work and create inclusive spaces and environments that support their needs and goals.
I have spent more than six years working in the technology space as a user experience researcher and designer. As an immigrant, Muslim-identifying, Iranian-Canadian woman, it didn’t take long to notice that the workplace environments I found myself in were not designed for me.
In this talk, I will unpack how racial and gender bias and discrimination manifest in the workplace, exploring one central question: how might we create equitable workplaces that allow women of colour to thrive? I will also offer a pathway to how we as researchers and designers can redesign our workplaces, and offer actionable ways in which we can begin to better support women of colour.
Hanieh Khosroshahi
Hanieh is a senior user experience researcher and designer at YLabs, a non-profit design studio working to improve health and economic opportunity for youth. She uses Human-Centred Design to solve complex social challenges to produce impactful and equitable outcomes for communities. She is also the cofounder of Thousand&One, a social enterprise that supports women of colour to thrive in their professional lives, through community, healing, and growth.