Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Specialist | Researcher | Consultant

helping organizations create diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace cultures.

Hi! I’m Rumbi and I’m a learnaholic.

I’m obsessed with learning, studying, researching, reading, and writing. All. Of. It. So much so that my insatiable curiosity lead me straight into the abyss of the Ivory Tower of academia, doing my 3 degrees back-to-back in Canada and finally emerging a decade later with a PhD in Political Science, specializing in Gender & Diversity (also, staying a student for that long just seemed like way more fun to me than regular adulting).

I’m naturally inquisitive and like to know the deeper meaning of things, you know, the whys and hows. This unrelenting enjoyment of chasing knowledge can be an occupational hazard in my personal life buuut as an avid learner, it’s a gift that has served me really well.

I have diverse research interests and I spent my time throughout my PhD totally geeking out about postcolonial and black feminisms, critical race theory and praxis, gender and multiculturalism, the politics of (racialized) beauty, the politics of sex, the politics of fashion, and migration & immigrant identity formation. These are some of the things that get me all the way e-x-c-i-t-e-d and I’ll talk your ear off about any of those if you let me.

My doctoral research, titled Diasporic Experiences of Everyday Multiculturalism: Navigating Race & Space Through African Women’s Beauty Practices, explored how everyday multiculturalism and the African diaspora mutually interact to shape racialization processes in multiple spaces, both public and private, through an exploration of African women’s beauty practices.

In the non-academese translation, my project focused on the various ways African immigrant women in Canada use their everyday beauty practices to navigate constructions of race, specifically Blackness & Africanness, and multiculturalism in various social spaces including the home, the church, the workplace, and social media.

Fun fact: the inspiration for my PhD research came from my own personal experiences as a Zimbabwean woman living in Canada and I knew I wasn't the only one so I wanted to tell our stories. My hope was for my doctoral project to begin to demarginalize African women living in Canada within discussions about multiculturalism and race by making us visible and emphasizing our cultural and racialized identities as displayed through everyday beauty practices.

For my doctoral research project, I was awarded the inaugural 2021 Carleton University Graduate Student Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Research Award for equity driven research (and here). In the same year, I was also awarded the Carleton University Graduate Student Association Black Academic Grant for commitment to community-oriented research.

Beyond my research interests and PhD dissertation topic, I generally enjoy learning about (mostly) anything and everything. So, just as much as I enjoy sharing my knowledge and sometimes-too-strong opinions, I really like reading about and listening to people from all walks of life share their stories, perspectives, and insights on things. No doubt, besides Professor Google, people are my favourite teachers!

Professionally, I’m a passionate expert and thought leader on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). I have over 8 years of professional experience within higher education, the private sector, the non-profit industry, the Government of Canada, and consulting. I use rigorous research, critical thinking and creative problem solving to develop, design, and implement strategic and impactful EDI agendas in line with organizational objectives.

• I have worked on multiple initiatives and managed different projects including designing and implementing a Diversity Module to enhance research design tools for doctoral and postdoctoral research proposals for one of Canada’s largest research funding Agencies.

• I have conducted extensive multiyear data analyses to create compendiums on government-funded EDI research projects in the academic community.

• I have consulted and conducted research + workplace assessments to advise senior executives and university faculty while assisting in the development and implementation of Anti-Black Racism action plans to address systemic barriers and discriminatory practices in academia, the private sector and government.

• I have conducted extensive multiyear curriculum scans to identify knowledge gaps and opportunities to create university curriculum that reflects intellectual plurality, diverse scholars and scholarship and engagement with non-dominant voices in the academic community.

• I have promoted and facilitated training activities to enhance employee awareness on inclusion issues and best diversity practices in the workplace.

• I’m also certified in Gender Based Analysis Plus (GBA+), the use of an analytical tool intended for government policy and program development to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion in Canadian society, which I incorporate to review organizational policies, procedures, and processes to make sure they are inclusive and meet government requirements.

Basically, the key takeaway from my whole professional spiel is that I’m passionate about and driven by all things social justice which I engage in by working with various types of organizations to create meaningful EDI solutions, action items and measurable outcomes to effect significant change for diverse groups in society.

When I’m not working on research or other professional projects, some of my personal pleasures include:

• rich conversations over lots of good food

• dancing to a good Afrobeats playlist

• laughing a lot (it’s also one of my many favourite emojis to use)

• reading novels (which I can finally do now that I’m out of grad school!)

• writing for fun (because again, I’m no longer in grad school!)