Meet Emily Braucher | DEI Consultant

We had the good fortune of connecting with Emily Braucher and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Emily, is there something you believe many others might not?
I often hear people say “be nonjudgemental.” I think it is impossible to stop the mind from judging because our brains are meaning making machines. We can’t help ourselves from projecting, organizing, and assessing people around us. What we can do it realized how flawed our thinking is. We have a host of biases that inform the stories we create. I believe we need to see judgement as a tool to use, rather than a thought that holds much truth. So if a judgement comes up like, “Oh, that women is aggressive,” I have a choice: I can start treating that person like they are an aggressive and uncaring human, or I can ask myself, “where is that thought coming from? Is there a cultural difference unfolding? Are they reminding me of someone? Would I draw a different conclusion if I saw those behaviors in a man? What questions can I ask to verify or disrupt my assumption?”

There is a binary we can slip into where we think, “oh, I am judgmental, I must be a bad person.” Or, “look at me, I am so nonjudgemental, I am a better human than most.” Neither of these are useful when it comes to treating ourselves or other people with compassion. In fact, many have argued that binary, either/or thinking is a characteristic of white supremacy culture–if we make people divide into two groups “the good and the bad,” it’s easier to treat “the other” poorly. Living in the grey area is an act of resistance we all need to embrace. It starts with acknowledging we can be quick to judge, but the judgements may give us more information about ourselves and the context where we grew up rather than valid information about other people.

What should our readers know about your business?
I launched ReFresh Communication back in 2011 because I couldn’t find any businesses doing what I envisioned—creating meaningful, educational experiences for professionals in renewable energy and climate justice that would help improve their ability to collaborate across cultures and power differences. I wanted to give them the tools to build real, trusting relationships across differences. What I’ve learned is that to make that happen, you need to tackle three major barriers: culture, ego, and power. Today, my work spans training, consulting, DEI strategy, and organizational culture shifts, all with a strong focus on intercultural communication. Having lived, worked, and traveled in over 35 countries, that global perspective has been invaluable in shaping how I approach this work.

The start of my journey of understanding my privilege was when I was in the US Peace Corps in Kiribati. When I landed Kiribati in 2000, I was faced with two contradictory pieces of information. First, the Peace Corps told us that most likely Kiribati, being a small Pacific island nation, would be swamped due to climate change within 50 years. The second piece of information was not taught as explicitly, it was a little bit more subtly woven into the trainings they offered us before we were assigned to a site for two years. That was we –the Westerners — had figured it out and we were here to teach our ways so that these (brown) people could be saved. So the message I got was that our actions were both destroying their country and saving their country at the same time. I heard this tone coming from fellow volunteers that “we have to save these brown people from themselves! We know how to do this!” I would later learn the term for this is White Saviorism. I was fresh out of college and confused, but I was pretty sure I was in no place to “save” anyone. I did however have years of experience in organizing projects and triaging tasks, just from completing school work at the Ivy League level. So I set about learning the Kiribati language and listening. I listened to the projects they aspired to do, and I asked “how can I help?” I feel like that is still the work I do today in my work with renewable energy companies- I help them grapple with the global climate injustice and internal social injustice that need to be addressed as we work towards an equitable climate transition.

Back in 2011, there were not many businesses that were ready to dedicate time and resources to that work. I continued to plug away at my dream, spending most of my time talking to HR departments about why DEI and intercultural communication work is important. Nowadays, people are much clearer on why it is important. McKinsey, Google, Harvard Business Review and other big names have conducted studies that show the business case for DEI, which has helped the industry. Sadly, after a big interest in DEI after the murder of George Floyd, the focus on DEI is waning. It is no longer “the hot topic” it was for a moment.

The thing about being a DEI practitioner is that the field is always changing. We have gone from sensitivity trainings, to the “post racial” world after Obama was elected, to the George Floyd boom in DEI interest, and now the “anti-DEI movement.” As I have watched the evolution of the field as a white woman, I have learned how society is fickle when it comes to racial justice, a truth my BIPOC friends have always known. I have seen how creative the rhetoric can be to ensure that it is hard to focus on collective liberation. Distracting rhetoric is constantly evolving. Even when I am contracted with a client in a two year contract, I have to spend a significant amount of time continually reselling them on why DEI is important and addressing concerns based on the latest media push to invalidate our work. It feels like a labyrinth- just when you feel close to a break through, you are back at the edge again. My whiteness and proximity to power has shielded me from this most of my life. Again, this experience is very familiar for my BIPOC colleagues. Even my experiences as a women are different- the progress for women feel more linear than the racial justice progress.

I do need to name that I have lots of divergent feelings about being in the DEI field as a white women. I never try to speak for BIPOC, I don’t have a clue what their experiences are like. I do, however, have a lot of experience with grappling with my whiteness and privilege. I do also believe that making gains in racial justice work will take the active participation of white people, so I see my role as continually inviting all people into the conversation, challenging them enough to help them grow, and giving them tools that have helped me on my journey. When I do larger trainings, I hire a team with diverse experiences and perspectives. I know I have huge blind spots and it is my job to compensate for those by being intentional about who I work with as a co-lead on a project.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Say my high school besties came to visit, I would for sure take them up to Estes. RMNP is one of my favorite places. There is a stillness in those valleys that I love. We’d eat at least one night at Amu, a hidden gem of traditional Japanese food in Boulder. We’d spend time hiking, I always love going to Heil Ranch. If we really had a few days, I would take them to Avalanche Ranch for some hot springs, rustic cabins, and beautiful views.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Yes, people who have drawn me further into my understanding of whiteness, power and privilege including Layla Saad, Lily Zheng, Tema Okun, and my podcast co-host, Courthney Russell Jr. Same shout out to my critical intercultural communication teachers at the University of Denver and all the staff and fellows at the Summer Institute of Intercultural Learning.

Website: https://www.refreshcommunication.com

Instagram: @emilybraucher and @thehumanizepodcast

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emilybraucher/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thehumanizepodcast

Other: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/humanize/id1543412139; https://www.apple.co/3as7fz5
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4NfkoyWVUgTD4WYQK4LBWA