EP#419: Kent Johnson: Religious Diversity in Electrical Engineering

Kent Johnson, Senior Corporate Advisor at the Religious Freedom and Business Foundation joins us this week to discuss the multifaceted role of religious diversity in the workplace. Topics range from addressing challenges, fostering inclusivity, and integrating faith with mental health support. We discuss authentic expression and trust building, social media's impact, interfaith collaboration, and the intersection of religion and science. Join us for this exploration of how religious diversity is an important aspect of diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace.

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• Defining Religion Broadly: Extending beyond adherence to sects and emphasizing shared values, principles, and beliefs that individuals adhere to with ardor and faith.
• Religion as a Business Issue: Affecting employee retention and workplace satisfaction. Highlighting the importance of employees feeling seen, appreciated, and free to express their beliefs.
• Challenges in the Workplace: Fear of disruption due to religious expression and the perception that religion is irrelevant to work, or prejudice for different ideologies.
• Authenticity and Trust Building: Building trust in the workplace, emphasizing the positive impact of transparency and realness in fostering an inclusive environment.
• Religious Diversity Initiatives: Faith groups collaborating on community service projects, and inclusive worship services during religious holidays.
• Social Media and Echo Chambers: The impact of social media on amplifying echo chambers and reinforcing biases, contributing to increased polarization in society.
• Religion and Science: The intersection of religion and science, highlighting potential areas of activity and dialogue around this topic.
• Healing Through Interfaith Collaboration: The positive impact of interfaith collaboration, such as visiting each other's places of worship.
• Authority and Religion in the Workplace: The impact of an individual's position on expressing religious beliefs in the workplace is discussed.
• Wearing Symbols and Openness: Discussion on wearing religious symbols in the workplace as an invitation for questions and engagement.
• Integration with Mental Health Support: Connection between faith in the workplace and addressing mental health issues. Highlighting the issue of loneliness in the workplace.
• Avoiding Compulsion: Stressing that sharing about one's faith should not be compulsory, advocacy for an open-door policy rather than a forced one.

Relevant links:

• Religious Freedom and Business Association
• Get in touch with Kent! He’d love to hear from you.
• Check out our episode about engineering ethics with Kent: EP413 The Gray Zone with Kent Johnson

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