We acknowledge the original inhabitants and traditional village sites of the land Oregon Health & Science University is occupying and built upon: the Multnomah, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Tumwater, Watlala bands of the Chinook, the Tualatin Kalapuya, Molalla, Wasco and many Indigenous nations of the Willamette Valley and Columbia River Plateau. We take this opportunity to thank the original caretakers of this land - past, present, and future.

The Sullivan Lab values and strives to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion. We recognize that reaching equity requires an active and daily commitment to actionable change. As a team we are devoted to acknowledging and reflecting on our own contributions to white supremacy, while working to dismantle these problematic systems. In an effort to hold our lab accountable, we have outlined below our actionable commitments and progress toward diversity, equity, and inclusions:

• Antiracist Study Design: As a research team, we acknowledge the racist history of clinical research, and, in particular, reproductive research and psychology. We recognize the destructive nature of these unethical study designs and the collective trauma they have caused to the affected communities. We are committed to actively creating antiracist study designs. We will continue to advocate for increasing cultural competency and educate our team on antiracist practices . One of these efforts include a requirement that all lab members complete unconscious bias training.
   
• Diversifying Study Samples:  In an effort to respect and serve all people regardless of ethnicity, color, gender, national origin, religion, disability, age, HIV status, sex, sexual orientation, race, or source of payment for services, we are committed to diversifying future research cohorts . Our steps toward reaching this goal include:
  • Facilitating access to culturally-sensitive communication by providing translation services to the participants’ preferred language during study visits.
  • Increasing study accessibility by building financial support into our budgets for families that need assistance to participate, including transportation and child care.
  • Seeking to represent the community more fully by prioritizing recruitment from different clinics outside of OHSU..
  • Validating study findings in diverse populations. One of these efforts includes harmonizing our data collection methods with other sites involved in the COVGEN Alliance, an international research collaboration focused on understanding the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on pregnant people and their families. These efforts will allow us access to information from diverse samples across the country and world.
     
• Recognition of Diverse Backgrounds: The Sullivan lab recognizes and celebrates all sexual orientations, gender identities, family structures, and cultural backgrounds. Our efforts to be more inclusive of all identities include:
  • Evaluating all study materials for gender-exclusionary language and editing them to be respectful and inclusive of all genders. We created the gender inclusive language guide to help staff use more gender appropriate language, and we have disseminated this guide both within and outside of OHSU. Please see our gender inclusive language guide.
  • Recognizing local knowledge--the knowledge one acquires from their community and local surroundings--as a valuable addition to scientific research;
  • Attending webinars and training dedicated to measuring race and ethnicity in a responsible and antiracist way.
    • Christy Glass’s anti-racist town hall: “Paying a risk Tax, climbing the glass cliff; How racism limits careers and what we can do about it”
    • NIMH James Jackson Memorial Award lecture: “Black Mental Health, Mentoring, and Health Equity: A Love Supreme”
    • Dr. Sarah L. Webb’s TED talk “How Can We Heal from the Shades of Colorism?”
       
• Commitment to Bodily Autonomy in Research: We believe bodily autonomy is a human right. Participation in clinical research is optional and voluntary. We are committed to ensuring that no one participating in our research studies feels pressured to complete any portion of the study with which they are uncomfortable.
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• Active Participation in Open Access to Science: We commit to making our research, as well as science in general, more accessible to the public. Our efforts toward this commitment include:
  • Creating scientific infographics on relevant concepts to the study as an accessible means of disseminating research findings;       
  • Hosting a booth at fairs/Saturday markets to discuss our research or basic neuroscience concepts to children and families;
  • Creating video abstracts that summarize our research findings;
  • Sharing de-identified data to the National Data Archive with the goal of promoting collaboration among scientists and researchers;
  • Actively promoting a dialogue about our research findings with participants and others. Our team is available to answer questions about our research findings. People who are interested can email our team at PEACH@ohsu.edu.