Diversity, equity and inclusion is easy to talk about, but how do you make it happen? Society and businesses make commitments to the concepts, but it needs more than policies. The WELL Building Standard is about diversity, equity and inclusion by design within the built environment.
The WELL Building Standard is a building certification that focuses on human health and wellness. The assessment method encourages active lifestyles, and building features such as natural light and good air quality. The Standard includes a set of strategies focused on improving quality of life through the design. The Standard now includes the The WELL Rating™.
Jack Noonan writes in Sourceable that when we design for inclusivity, everybody benefits. Two hundred advisors from 26 countries devised the The WELL Equity Rating™. This rating framework is designed to help organisations meet their diversity, equity and inclusion goals.
The WELL Equity Rating™ was developed through a design thinking approach. This included problem solving in collaboration with people from marginalised groups.
The WELL Rating™ gives organisations a framework to improve access to health and wellbeing and address diversity, equity and inclusion. It contains more than 40 features spaning six action areas:
- User experience and feedback
- Responsible hiring and labour practices
- Inclusive design
- Health benefits and services
- Supportive programs and spaces
- Community engagement
Find out more on the WELL Equity Rating™ website.
WELL also addresses topics such as housing equity, modern slavery and issues of domestic violence. A new feature for the next edition will include colonisation and acknowledgement of traditional custodians of the land on which we live work and play.
The title Noonan’s article is, Driving Equity and Inclusion Through Better Design and Practice.