Women reclaiming Leadership
Advancing Diversity in Environmental Leadership
Access tools, insights, and mentorship opportunities to help your organization attract, support, and retain women and underrepresented professionals in the environmental sector.
47% of the Canadian workforce are female yet only 36% are in management positions as of 2021.
The Need for Workforce Diversity
Data on the demographic composition of workers in environmental careers show that women and immigrants are underrepresented compared to the overall Canadian labour force. This underrepresentation is much higher when considering industries such as mining and quarrying, and construction.
With 30 per cent of the workforce expected to retire in the next 10 years, developing a pool of diverse and qualified talent is crucial for the sustainability of environmental careers. The increasing demand for environmental workers is compounding this labour shortage.
To cope with this demand, organizations must look to strengthen their ability to attract, recruit and retain workers through numerous initiatives, including engaging and supporting diverse workforces.
This toolkit looks to support organizations with useful resources and case studies highlighting the importance and benefits of a diverse workplace.
Diversifying your workforce has strong financial and non-financial benefits, including increased collaboration and innovation, higher employee engagement, and increased productivity.
Toward a Business Case for Inclusive and Diverse Environmental Workplaces
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Diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplaces are shown to have stronger financial performance and profitability.
- There are numerous non-financial benefits for organizations that diversify their workforce.
- Diversifying the workforce can help combat the hiring challenges forecast.
Learn more about the need for a diverse workforce and the benefits for organizations of diversifying their business.
Promising Practices Organizations are Implementing
Here Are Some Resources to Learn More
- Maturn: Program Overview
- Engaging Men Through the Journey Towards Equity
- Suncor: 2021 Report on Sustainability
- Women for Nature: Discussing Career Planning with Mary Granskou and Tara Topping
- Women for Nature Webinar: Collaboration and Partnerships
- Women for Nature Webinar: What Does It Take to Be a Woman Leader in the Conservation Sector?
- OPG's 10-Year ED&I Strategy
- Understanding barriers faced by Black Professional Women in Career Progression – The University of Manchester (YouTube)
- The Only 3 Career Steps that Matter – Rosabeth Moss Kanter (Tedx Talks)
- Women in the Workplace 2021 – McKinsey & Company
- What is Maternal Bias? – Lean In.org
- Exploring Diverse Careers in the Ocean Sector
- The Future is Food: Surprising career opportunities in agriculture and agri food
- From Challenges to Change: Leading with Vision
- The Future is Food: Surprising career opportunities in agriculture and agri food
- Women Leaders in the Environmental and Engineering Sector 2 | ECO Canada
- Advancing Personnel into Leadership The Power of Quality Mentoring
- Diversifying the Environmental Workforce
- Women Leaders in the Environmental and Engineering Sector | ECO Canada
- Essential, Not Optional: Skills Needed to Succeed in Canada’s Environmental Industry | ECO Canada
- Deconstructing Unconscious Bias: Understanding and Minimizing Hidden Barriers
- Real Talk: Career & Stories
- Indigenous Environmental Leadership Program Webinar
- The Next Steps in Building a Vibrant Indigenous Workforce
- Looking Back, Moving Forward: Taking Action Towards Reconciliation
- Working with Indigenous People on Environmental Projects
- Indigenous Perspective on the Environmental Assessment Process
- Building Environmental Capacity Among Indigenous Nations: Lessons Learned from the Field
- Indigenous Awareness 101
- Barriers to Indigenous Recruitment
- Cultural Self-Reflection – Indigenous Cultural Sensitivity Training
- Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- Canadian Human Rights Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-6)
- Canadian Human Rights Commission
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Dimensions Charter
- Gender Neutral Language for Job Ads
- Government of Ontario - Bullying
- Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada
- United Nations Human Rights Office of the Commissioner
- Women and Gender Equality Canada
- Women of Impact in Canada
- Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+). Government of Canada.
- The Power of Parity: Advancing Gender Equality in Canada. (2017). McKinsey Global Institute.
- Key Insights on Diversity and Inclusion. (2020). HRPA and Diversio Report.
- How employers can advance equality and diversity. (2019). Report from the Symposium on Women and the Workplace. Government of Canada.
- Study: Women Get Fewer Game-Changing Leadership Roles – Harvard Business Review
- When Gender Diversity Makes Firms More Productive. (2019). Harvard Business Review Research.
- How to Identify – and Fix – Pay Inequality at Your Company. (2020) Harvard Business Review Research.
- Diversity Wins. How Inclusion Matters. (2020). McKinsey and Company.
- Promoting equity: Gender-neutral job evaluation for equal pay. A step-by-step guide. (2009). International Labour Organization.
- Women in the Workplace Study. (2020). McKinsey and LeanIn.org
Tools for Professionals
- Inclusive Leadership Development or Women’s Leadership Programmes?
- 4 Kind of Gender Bias Women Face at Work – Lean In
- Technical Writing Essentials | ECO Canada
- Project Management Course Bundle | ECO Canada
- Essential Skills 200 | ECO Canada
- Essential Skills for Job Seekers | ECO Canada
- Professional Communications | ECO Canada
- Understanding Barriers as New Professionals - Environmental and Engineering Industries| ECO Canada
Tools for Employers
- Train Your Team with Our Online Courses | ECO Canada
- Employee Engagement and Commitment Guide – SHRM
- Key DEI Metric to Track – People Managing People
- 50 Ways to Fight Bias – Lean In
- Inclusive Language Handout
- Diversity and Equity Checklist
- Allyship Practices to Foster Inclusion & Belonging – ACEC British Columbia
Mentorship Program
Engage with Peers and Mentors
The Mentorship program is designed for professionals in the Environmental and Engineering sectors to connect and engage with peers and mentors on topics of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Through the Mentorship program, professionals will have the opportunity to make new connections, discuss barriers women and underrepresented professionals face to advance to leadership positions, and get support and guidance to overcome those barriers.
Mentorship Process:
- Duration: 6-month program
- Format: One session per month (6 sessions total)
- Matching Criteria: Based on specialization, location, personal traits, and career goals
Benefits of the Mentorship Program
Want to be a Mentor or Mentee?
Sign Up Now!
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Meet the Advisory Committee
Olivier Joyal
Olivier Joyal is the Executive Vice President, Strategy & Execution...
Olivier Joyal 
Rhonda Smith
Rhonda Smith is Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO)...
Rhonda Smith 
Alison Proctor
Alison is a Mechanical Engineer with internationally recognized...
Alison Proctor 
Maureen Reed
Maureen Reed is a distinguished professor and shares a UNESCO Chair...
Maureen Reed 
Stephanie Hurlburt
Stephanie Hurlburt is a proud Sapotaweyak (sap-o-ta-wey-ak) Cree Nation...
Stephanie Hurlburt 
Jocelyn Peltier-Huntley
Jocelyn Peltier-Huntley is an experienced facilitator, EDI researcher, public speaker...
Jocelyn Peltier-Huntley 
Sandro Perruzza
Sandro Perruzza is the Chief Executive Officer of the Ontario Society of...
Sandro Perruzza 
Dr. Yogendra Chaudhry
Dr. Yogendra Chaudhry is the VP of Professional Services at ECO Canada...
Dr. Yogendra Chaudhry 
Pooja
Sharma
Pooja works as a Project Manager at ECO Canada in the Professional Services....
Pooja Sharma 
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This project has been funded by Women and Gender Equality Canada
