[D&I Training] Meaning and Mattering Across Difference: An interactive workshop on belonging and meaning through communication

Join us for a workshop in which we highlight communication as a tool for inclusion. Through presentations, personal insights, and interactive exercises in small groups, we will come away with a better understanding of the obstacles to mutual understanding and learn how to create meaning and belonging through communication.

When: 17 October 2025 | 10:00 - 13:00 h CEST

Where: Online on Zoom 

Who: The workshop is open to all, targeting both academic and administrative university staff.

Certificate: Participants will receive a certificate of participation

Register here until 12 October 23:59 CET.

Presenters:

Claire Dorrity (University College Cork) is a lecturer in social policy at the School of Applied Social Studies, UCC. Her current research project Migrant Education: Challenges and Exclusion (MiEd), (UNIC4ER Research Seed Funding), is focused on participatory action-based research addressing barriers to education for migrants in a local and transnational context. Her teaching and research interests include Diversity and Inclusion in the Health Sector; Cultural awareness in Professional Practice; Minority Inclusion; Migration and Borders; and Refugees and Forced Displacement. Claire is a coordinating member of the IMISCOE Standing Committee on Forced Displacement and Refugees. She is also a member of the European University of Post-Industrial Cities (UNIC) research team at UCC.

Shannon Damery (University of Liège) is a postdoctoral researcher in the Centre for Ethnic and Migration Studies (CEDEM) at the University of Liège and co-leader of the thematic line on superdiversity in the UNIC network. She has experience in social work and her research interests include forced migration, home and homemaking, youth and childhood studies, arts and integration, and activism and political participation.

Alice Lacroix (University of Liège) is a communications Officer at the University of Liège, focusing on student engagement for the past three years. Responsible for managing the institution’s Instagram and TikTok accounts.

Anna Santucci (University of Virginia). Dr Anna Santucci is associate director and associate professor at the University of Virginia’s Centre for Teaching Excellence. She is formerly a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in the Centre for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (CIRTL) at University College Cork (UCC, Ireland), where she directed CIRTL’s MA program in Teaching and Learning for Higher Education and co-leads UCC’s Teaching & Learning activities for the UNIC European University alliance.

Lena Örnberg (Malmö University) is the coordinator for equal opportunities for students at Malmö University. She works for an inclusive and accessible learning environment and to ensure that Malmö University complies with the discrimination act.

Anna Arnman (Malmö University) is Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication and Program Manager for the Bachelor Program Visual Communication. Her PhD in film studies from Lund University is titled Hellraiser: on Clive Barker's film (Ellerströms, 2005).

Speakers from the Access UCC Ambassador Programme. The Access Ambassadors in University College Cork (UCC) work together with staff from the Access Office to ensure UCC is accessible and welcoming for all. They assist in making student voice visible in UCC and contribute to improving services for all students at UCC. They are an integral part of the Access UCC stakeholder team and are key players in informing and influencing Access service development and decision-making processes within the university.

• James Bilson is the Access UCC Administrative Manager and co-lead in the development of the Access Student Ambassador Advisor Group. The Access Ambassador project was set up in 2022 to provide a multi-level forum for diverse student voices to be heard at the centre of decision-making in the Access Office. It is a unique initiative that focuses on the development of a continuous and ongoing feedback pathway, recognising student involvement as an important way of valuing the voices of students within the university structures, particularly those of the more marginalised within the student learner population.
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• Pamela Deasy has been an Access Ambassador from the inception of the Programme in 2022. Pamela commenced UCC as a Mature Student and also registered with Disability Support. After completing her Arts degree in she is now studying for her Masters in Sociology and is also a spokesperson for Patient Advocacy Ireland.
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• Breda Murphy completed her studies in Biotechnology and has recently embarked on a Masters in Industrial Pharmaceutical Sciences, Operations & Management. Breda was an Ambassador for the Disability Support group and upon graduation was awarded the 2025 David Latten Social Impact Award for leadership and promoting DE&I issues in Supply Chain Management.
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• Amina Baig has been an Access Ambassador for 2 years as part of the QQI/Further Education Advisory Group, and also contributed to issues around Disability Support. Amina is in her third year of Computer Science and is the Elected Representative in UCC Student Union, for all students in the College of Science, Engineering and Food Studies.

Programme information:

Section 1:

To open the training, there will be an introduction from Claire Dorrity, Shannon Damery, and Alice Lacroix focusing on the theoretical and practical aspects of communication as a tool for inclusion. We will have a short ice-breaker exercise in small groups, and Anna Santucci will lead an exercise on culturally sensitive approaches to communication.

Section 2:

In this section, Lena Örnberg will lead a reflective exercise on cooperation and communication within groups. The method used is applicable for the development of group works for students as well as for development of staff meetings.

Anna Arnman will present on dealing with the challenges of being a teacher, giving practical examples from a Bachelor's program in Visual Communication.

Section 3: 

Section 3 will include a presentation from James Bilson, Access Administrative Manager at UCC, and members of the Student Ambassador Advisory Group - Pamela Deasy, Brenda Murphy and Amina Baig. James will present on the learnings and challenges of the Student Ambassador Advisory Group (SAAG) initiative in UCC, highlighting this as an example of good practice in enabling diverse student voices within university structures. Pamela, Brenda and Amina will speak about the lived experience of being a student in UCC and their role in the Student Ambassador Advisory Group.

Section 4: 

In the final section, Lena Örnberg will lead a structured exercise on tackling challenges together and getting feedback and support from colleagues. This is also a tool that can be used within student groups as well as within staff teams. Discussions will take place in small groups, and you will have the opportunity to bring your own dilemma and get constructive feedback from colleagues.

Photo: Alexander Santos Lima