MDRC’s work is increasingly incorporating stronger equity-based and culturally responsive approaches into our research and technical assistance. Launched in 2018, MDRC’s Equity Collaborative was created to integrate perspectives of diversity, equity, and inclusion more fully into our work with program operators, practitioners, and research participants. Led by the Equity Collaborative, staff members across MDRC’s policy areas and centers contribute to MDRC’s goal of advancing equity by:

• developing guidance to infuse equity-informed and culturally responsive practices into all stages of MDRC’s research projects;
• bringing more empathy and humility to our approach to our work, recognizing that we will be learning along the way;
• helping amplify the voices of people inside and outside MDRC with lived experience in the social policy issues that MDRC addresses; and
• creating tools and resources that can help MDRC staff members and the broader social policy research and technical assistance fields employ stronger equity-based and culturally responsive practices.

The Equity Collaborative works to infuse the thoughtful and systematic application of culturally responsive, equity-based, and inclusive practices into all of MDRC’s research and technical assistance projects. In the spirit of sharing what we are learning, we are making publicly available the tools, resources, and guidance materials MDRC is developing. We hope that our efforts will be useful to our colleagues in the social and education policy research field, as well as to the stakeholders who shape policy, programs, and practice. As we continue to collaborate and cultivate learning, we will update this page with additional materials and reflections.