Late last year, an initiative called Grapevine was launched in the Australian startup ecosystem to provide an anonymous reporting platform for harassment. Grapevine has been publishing some of those stories to its LinkedIn channel to bring awareness to the subject and to educate people with advice on how to change those behaviours moving forward.
Grapevine has prompted more stories to be told across Australia, including in the WA startup ecosystem. As a result, StartupWA hosted a roundtable discussion in collaboration with WiTWA to better understand how networking events can be made safer and more inclusive.
In an anonymous pre-event survey, it found:
- 45% said they had experienced discrimination
- 23% said they had experienced harassment
- 45% said such experiences had affected their willingness to attend future events in general
- 95% reported they had attended startup-related events where they felt safe and welcomed
That last point is one that’s worth focusing on and celebrating. The survey data does, however, show that there is an overall issue that needs to be addressed.
Report Launch: Creating safe spaces. Insights into inclusive startup events
StartupWA and WiTWA are compiling the key themes and suggestions into a report which can be used as a reference guide for anyone interested in making their events safer for everyone.
This report will be launched at CERI on Wednesday, June 5th from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. The event will include a panel discussion on Creating Safe Spaces. Insights into Inclusive Startup Events.
In this session, our panellists will discuss actionable strategies and best practices derived from comprehensive discussions on three pivotal questions:
- Empowering bystander intervention: How might we enable attendees to combat harassment and discrimination effectively in real-time at startup events?
- Equipping event staff and volunteers: What training and tools can we provide to ensure event personnel can spot and respond to harassment or discrimination?
- Designing inclusive spaces: How can we design or adapt event spaces to promote inclusivity and minimise opportunities for harassment or discrimination?
Everyone is invited to attend and tickets are available here.
