IDEAL

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For access to read the IDEAL Handbook

  • Enroll in the course called IDEAL Handbook
  • You will have free access for at least 30 days
  • When prompted for the Key, enter “Handbook”

To join the IDEAL Community of Practice

  • Enroll in the course called IDEAL Community of Practice
  • Use credit card to pay $300* 
  • Agree to the Code of Conduct
  • You’ll have access to:
    • IDEAL Handbook
    • Four onboarding workshops
    • Podcasts (~10min audio chats led by Caren Cooper and Anna Woodroof, often with guests)
    • Learning activities and worksheets
    • Individualized feedback on worksheets
    • Forum for asynchronous community conversations
    • Community (virtual) synchronous gatherings

The North Carolina Environmental Justice Network (NCEJN) is excited to share the IDEAL Handbook and Community of Practice (CoP) for inclusive participatory science. The Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable, Accessible, Large-scale (IDEAL) Participatory Sciences Handbook and CoP are for those who recognize the importance of designing projects that can engage a diversity of people in terms of race, ethnicity, language, sexual identity and orientation, dis/ability, and more. 

With IDEAL

  • Learn new vocabulary and concepts
  • Reflect on your experiences and your project
  • Create an action plan

Who is the IDEAL program for?

Leaders – Those who help lead, organize, or facilitate public engagement in science activities (e.g., citizen science projects). Your motivation in participatory sciences might be research, environmental monitoring, advocacy, or education…or all of the above.

At any level – You might carry out these efforts as part of paid or volunteer work at a national organization, a regional office, across a state, or in your local city, town, or neighborhood.

With a commitment to DEIA – IDEAL is for those who are committed to the principles of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. IDEAL helps leaders put these principles into practice in the context of participatory sciences in order to improve the field by broadening participation.

What is the IDEAL Community of Practice?

IDEAL is structured as a community of practice. That means a group of people who share common concerns, interests, or goals related to what they do and together learn how to do it better. This virtual Community of Practice was established around the topic of participatory sciences. The Community is project leaders. The Practice is broadening engagement by putting DEIA principles into practice. If you join the IDEAL Community of Practice, you will have structured access to the IDEAL Handbook supported with resources, learning activities, worksheets, podcasts, and facilitated regular interactions with peers and IDEAL leaders. We created the Community of Practice for leaders with each other and from each other because learning is a social process. 

For the Community of Practice, you can join as an individual, or with a friend or colleague, and we’ll assign you to a cohort. If your project or organization is large enough to support its own cohort of 10-15 people, contact us to make those arrangements. Cohorts meet virtually, converse in the Forum, and can view and respond to each other’s comments. The spaces for conversation and interaction are spaces to share, be vulnerable, and be supported. The spaces are also for collaboration, synergies, and friendships. In the IDEAL Community of Practice, we enforce a code of conduct. 

What is the IDEAL Handbook?

The IDEAL Handbook contains the core content of the IDEAL program. In this free Moodle space, you have access to read the IDEAL Handbook. Maybe you just want to take a peek. Maybe you are curious to see what IDEAL offers, to decide if it is the right choice for you. The IDEAL Handbook is content to assist your efforts, but not a checklist of one-size-fits-all solutions for broadening participation. The IDEAL Handbook is a great starting point to learn. But it takes more to create change: It takes a community. 

Not ready? Join our mailing list: https://forms.gle/o63VwwYW8BQjeft38

If you have questions about the program or pricing, email us at IDEAL@ncejn.org.

The IDEAL Handbook was developed with support to CB Cooper from the National Science Foundation Grants #2139265 and #2313996, Unity Corporation, and the Spencer Foundation. 

If you plan to reference the IDEAL Handbook, the citation is: 

CB Cooper, C Hawn, V Johnson, M Ramirez-Andreotta, J Archer, H Caballero-Gomez, D Chandler, G Harley-Wenn, L Higgins, G Lee Jenni, Z Leggett, D Lin Hunter, R Moore, S Moreno, M Ordeñana, N Osborne Jelks, R Pandya, N Patel, D Perkins, J Sandoval, and A Woodroof. 2023. A Handbook for Inclusive, Diverse, Equitable, Accessible, Large-scale (IDEAL) Participatory Science.