Our Actions and Goals

SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

Reduce inequality within and among countries
10. Reduced Inequalities

Our goals in action

Research and innovation

A new chapter

Throughout the 2022 academic year, the Black Studies program hosted a series of screenings, conversation, and celebrations to mark the launch of the new interdisciplinary Black Studies program at Queen's.

Teaching and student life

Fostering a climate of inclusion

The Student Applicant Equity Census, which is administered to all Queen’s applicants, asks prospective students to voluntarily indicate their gender and whether they identify as an Indigenous person, a person with a disability, and/or a racialized person. It also seeks to determine the overall economic makeup of applicants. Responses are not used in the admission selection process, but rather, they support our efforts in the pursuit of educational equity.

Queen's Inclusive Community Fund provides financial support to host programs, events, initiatives, or projects that serve to promote a more inter-culturally informed, tolerant, and inclusive campus community. Established by a $50,000 annual contribution from the Office of the Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic), the fund is available to any Queen's student or employee.

The Graduate Inclusivity Fellows initiative was launched in 2021 to advise the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs on matters related to equity, diversity, inclusion, and Indigeneity, including the development of strategies and programs to improve learning experiences for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.

[Line drawing of Grant Hall]

Queen's is committed to counteracting discrimination in this institution and developing a climate of educational equity that recognizes and respects the equal dignity and worth of all who seek to participate in the life, work, and mission of the university.

Encouraging first-generation students

Queen’s supports first-generation students attending university through our First-Generation Admission Policy to First-Entry Undergraduate Programs, which offers additional and alternative admission pathways to full-time undergraduate degree programs.

Supporting aspirations of Indigenous students

Indigenous students face unique challenges while pursuing post-secondary goals. Our Admission Policy For Indigenous Candidates To First-Entry Undergraduate Programs offers Indigenous candidates additional and alternative pathways for admission to full-time undergraduate degree programs.

Finding community

The Four Directions Indigenous Student Centre is a safe and welcoming gathering place for Indigenous students at Queens. The Centre provides holistic support services including peer mentorship, academic assistance, financial aid, and cultural programming.

[Staff from the Yellow House meet students at a welcome fair]

The Yellow House on Stuart Street is committed to creating a comfortable and accountable space for students who identify  as QTBIPoC through programming and events where feelings  of safety, empowerment, and community can be fostered and identity can be celebrated.

The Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) supports more than 2,000 Queen’s students each year.

Supporting students with disabilities

Queen's Student Accessibility Services (QSAS), in collaboration with instructors and staff, is committed to supporting students with disabilities as they pursue their academic goals. Through encouraging the use of well-implemented Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in combination with individualized academic accommodations, QSAS seeks to remove disability-related academic barriers.

Understanding that students with disabilities face increased financial burdens, Queen's also offers financial assistance and services for students with disabilities.

Community impact

A call to action

Working with Jaime Black, creator of the REDress Project, Queen's expanded this year's installation to spaces across both main and west campuses. Draped from lamp posts, the nearly 50 red dresses serve as well-known and thought-provoking icons in recognition of countless lives impacted and lost to violence and system neglect. The installation lined Queen's main thoroughfares marking the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Gender Diverse People and the university's participation in the Moose Hide Campaign – a nationwide grassroots movement of Indigenous men and boys seeking to end violence against women and children.

[A red dress hangs from a tree in front of Summerhill as part of the REDress Project art installation.]

Protecting and advancing human rights

The (HREO) at Queen’s aims to advance human rights, equity, and inclusion by developing and implementing employment and educational equity strategies. The office has four main service offerings: human rights advisory services; equity services; sexual violence prevention and response; and accessibility. Our Human Rights Advisory Services provide advice concerning human rights issues and advocate for practices and policies that address human rights in our community.

Members of the Queen’s community who make good-faith disclosures of alleged Improper Acts, including discrimination and harassment, are protected from educational or employment repercussions through our Improper Acts Reporting Policy.

Empowering all our members to thrive at Queen's

Inclusive Queen’s offers tailored services, programs, and resources to support individuals from a range of cultures, ethnicities, spiritual affiliations, socioeconomic backgrounds, gender identities, and sexual orientations. The program’s website is a resource for students, faculty, and staff to learn about initiatives that are transforming Queen’s into an institution that empowers all members of its community.

Administration and operations

Removing barriers to education

The Queen’s University Accessibility Policy guides us in identifying, removing, and preventing barriers to persons with disabilities so we can ensure equal access to all that our university has to offer. The ³ÉÈË´óƬ Accessibility Hub is our central online resource for accessibility, providing supports as well as information on initiatives pertaining to disability and accessibility on campus, including the Building Accessibility and Campus Map that highlights accessible facilities on campus such as accessible entrances, parking lots, places to eat, and emergency phones.

[An accessible automatic door button opens a set of two wood doors.]

Creating an accessible and inclusive campus

Queen's newest residence, Endaayaan – Tkanónsote, opened in 2022 with its design guided by our goals and values. Aligning with our commitment to I-EDIAA, the residence includes a prayer room with two ablution stations, yoga and meditation room, and outdoor courtyard gathering space designed by local Indigenous artist David R. Maracle. The building was also designed to include more accessible living spaces such as barrier-free rooms, accessible entrance with elevators, accessible washer and dryers on each floor, and a Service Animal washing station.

[The Indigenous gathering space located in the courtyard of the Endaayaan – Tkanónsote residence located on Albert Street.]

Addressing systemic employment barriers

In 2022, Queen's approved a new Targeted Hiring Policy to address underrepresentation, remove systemic employment barriers, and improve opportunities, access, and diversity across campus. Targeted hiring is intended to enhance existing institutional Employment Equity Procedures, including the Queen's Equity Appointments Process, and comply with the Ontario Human Rights Code requirements.