Will ABC become the new DEI? It depends on who you ask

Earlier this year, Edmontonians opened their local broadsheet and learned that the University of Alberta had ditched its diversity, equity and inclusion strategy.

Or had it?

The university updated its initial DEI policy with fanfare in 2019, but this January, the school announced an integrated action plan based on three pillars: access, belonging, and community or ABC.

It’s the first Canadian institution to do so, according to the university’s president and vice-chancellor, Bill Flanagan.

“For some, the language of EDI has become polarizing, focusing more on what divides us rather than our shared humanity. Some perceive an ideological bias at odds with merit,” he wrote in an Edmonton Journal op-ed.

“Words matter, and this evolution aims to craft a shared narrative with aligned actions that resonate more universally, emphasizing common ground and fostering authentic connections.”

Observers point out the University of Alberta started to pivot away from the DEI label around the same time that the province’s United Conservative government tabled the Provincial Priorities Act.

While not yet proclaimed, the act gives the provincial government the right to vet and veto all federal funding destined for post-secondary institutions.

National Post columnist Jamie Sarkonak hailed the legislation as “the antidote to Trudeau’s DEI agenda in Universities.” The Graduate Students’ Association of the University of Calgary called it “a temper tantrum being funded by tax-payer dollars.”

Others saw it as part of a growing DEI backlash, now personified by U.S. President Donald Trump, who claims that “radical DEI has dangerously tainted” many of his own country’s institutions.

Some Canadian politicians echo that sentiment, including Conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, who referred to DEI as “garbage” during an exchange filmed last year.

Throw in the possibility of a looming recession, and many social purpose organizations are wondering how best to protect diversity, equity and inclusion—as well as their funding—while weathering political upheaval that some seek to blame on diversity.

“I think there are a number of ways that non-profits who rely on funding and grants to keep their EDI strategies afloat can ensure that the work progresses even if they have to call it something different,” said Michelle Grocholsky, CEO of Toronto-based Empowered EDI.

“I don’t think the work needs to be called EDI.”

Celina Caesar-Chavannes, a former member of parliament for Whitby, Ont., said the shifts occurring now could present new opportunities for cultural change within organizations. 

“I think for Canada, it’s less of a wake-up call and more of an opportunity to say, how can we do better?”

“The scent of the rose is still going to be there. We’re still gonna see the rose. We’re still gonna get the beautiful byproduct of having the rose in our garden,” she said. “We don’t need to call it a rose.”

However, even if a name change enables an organization to avoid political pitfalls, it may still cause confusion among potential job candidates or funders looking to invest in the values DEI represents, said Grocholsky.

“My fear is that if we bury it too far or we change the wording too much, it’ll be harder for those who have this shared value system to pinpoint safe spaces where they perhaps might want to invest their energies,” she said.

“So do it for the money, but I think it’s still important to signal what you stand for.”

Avoiding offence

Ilan Kapoor, professor of critical development studies at York University’s faculty of environmental and urban change, said changes at the University of Alberta are likely a way for the school to avoid offending the provincial government and safeguard funding.

It’s possible that other universities and non-profits in that province will follow suit, he said, given the Alberta government’s “virulent right-wing” views on EDI.

“But I doubt many others will in other parts of the country, even those with conservative governments, which tend to be less stuck on this issue than Alberta’s regime,” Kapoor said.

Imagine Canada CEO and president Bruce MacDonald said while the situation in the U.S. is garnering a lot of discussion, he hasn’t spoken with any Canadian non-profits or charities planning to rebrand DEI.

However, he is hearing many questions about how Trump’s anti-DEI purge will affect American-based companies with community investment budgets operating in Canada.

“There’s probably more questions than answers about that right now,” MacDonald said.

He said it wouldn’t surprise him if some businesses started removing the DEI shingle and replacing it with something new. 

But MacDonald said he doesn’t believe changing the label will change the underlying commitment of organizations that have truly invested in DEI.

Organizations that ditch DEI programming and staff in response to current political trends weren’t really committed to it in the first place, said Ako Ufodike, a professor of equity, diversity and inclusion in business at York University and Alberta’s deputy minister of trade, immigration and multiculturalism.

“This will clearly spell the death of DEI in those organizations,” he said. 

“But for those that have actually undergone some sort of genuine transformation, you know, they might be a little less visible about how they do it, they might be a little less vocal … but it won’t change anything because it’s in the organization’s DNA.”

Trade war may boost DEI efforts

As Canadians rally around the flag in the face of an American-led trade war, Kapoor said it’s also possible that DEI is buoyed by Canadian nationalism and a dislike of the Trump regime.

“Canadians will be wary of following much of what the Trump regime advocates,” he said, adding that Canada is also a far more multicultural country than the U.S.

“Cutting DEI programmes will not be a popular move for most political parties,” he said. “I doubt this issue will feature prominently in the federal election.”

Back in Edmonton, the University of Alberta’s Student Union would have liked to have seen more consultations before the school made the change, especially because the General Faculty Council passed a nearly unanimous motion supporting DEI shortly before the revision was made.

However, union president Lisa Glock said the new policy is more of a tweak than an actual pivot away from DEI principles.

“That’s our understanding as of now,” said Glock.

She said good things have come from the school’s DEI policy and initiatives over the last several years, including increased enrollment of Indigenous Students and the removal of structural barriers.

“The most important thing is that students receive clarity on how the new direction will impact their university experience, especially those students from historically underrepresented communities,” she said.

“Our hope and our goal … is to make sure that those things remain regardless of the name change.”