Protecting minoritised EDI research staff wellbeing: Actions for principal investigators, senior leaders and funders
Key messages Minoritised research staff working in EDI are exhausted, disillusioned and disempowered as a direct result of how their work is tied to their minoritised identities and past traumas.
Executive summary Minoritised research staff working in EDI report heightened levels of exhaustion, disillusionment and disempowerment as a direct result of their roles and how entangled their identities are in the work that they do.
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Principal investigators should design research projects with multiple identities in mind and prioritise upskilling opportunities that do not centre on minoritised research staff’s marginalised backgrounds. Funding bodies and Senior leaders should mandate the integration of support systems within EDI research structures.
Research evidence showed we need Practical guidance on how equitable principles should be applied in day-to-day research practice. Safeguards in cases when equity is deprioritised as the projects progress. The lack of specificity, accountability, and safeguarding leaves minoritised EDI research staff vulnerable to systemic inequities that harm their wellbeing and professional progression. The evidence demonstrates that the resulting exhaustion, burnout, and turnover impose high costs on institutions including recruitment and retraining expenses, lost productivity, and damage to institutional culture and morale. To mitigate these impacts, principal investigators, funding bodies and senior HE leaders must strengthen protections to address the psychological strain and identity-related pressures experienced by minoritised EDI research staff. This policy brief seeks to outline protections needed to support these staff members’ wellbeing.