Diversity & Inclusion

Diversity in F&WE

The Department of Forest & Wildlife Ecology (F&WE) is committed to creating a welcoming environment for all students, staff, and faculty. We are striving to make all members of F&WE, regardless of their identity, feel respected and included in our Department community and in our scientific disciplines. We are also working to provide fair and equitable opportunities to individuals belonging to historically marginalized and underrepresented backgrounds.   

Fostering an environment where everyone is welcomed, valued, and encouraged to participate is a core value of F&WE. We are dedicated to supporting and promoting each other in our collective mission of providing research, instruction, and outreach that advances conservation and management of ecosystems. We believe that diversity, in all its forms, is important to us and to our world.

F&WE Values Diversity

As scientists who study natural resources, we understand the value of diversity to the natural world. We recognize that populations of species possessing high genetic diversity are more resilient to changing environmental conditions. And we know that ecosystems possessing high species diversity are healthier, with greater productivity and increased sustainability. Furthermore, diversity of ecosystem functions enhances environmental stability and affords the world numerous ecological services, including resources used by humans. Likewise, we unequivocally believe that diversity among people brings value to our department and our fields of study, as well as to our society as a whole. Diversity in the F&WE community provides an invaluable source of creativity and strength. Simply put, F&WE values diversity – in all its various forms.

Indigenous Lands Acknowledgement

The University of Wisconsin-Madison occupies Ho-Chunk Land, a place their nation has called Teejop (Day-JOPE)  since time immemorial. In an 1832 treaty, the Ho-Chunk were forced to cede this territory. Decades of ethnic cleansing followed when both the federal and state government repeatedly, but unsuccessfully, sought to forcibly remove the Ho-Chunk from Wisconsin. 

This history of colonization informs our shared future of collaboration and innovation. Today, UW-Madison respects the inherent sovereignty of the Ho-Chunk Nation, along with the eleven other First Nations of Wisconsin.

Please take a moment to consider the many legacies of violence, displacement, migration and settlement that bring us together here today. And please join us in uncovering such truths every day. Learn more about the Department’s Mission and Values.