Inclusive Language Guide

Our goal at Omni is to intentionally center equity in every stage of our projects. Centering equity requires a commitment to understanding the complex nature and nuances that result from existing in a society where not just one kind of community lives, operates, and functions. A significant part of this comes from language and how we utilize language. In this guide, we provide best and emerging practices for inclusive language. We use inclusive language as a best practice for the following reasons:

Reach

To reach as many participants as possible. Inclusive language better ensures we get complete data from all community members, as individuals from non-dominant identities are more likely to participate in our research and evaluation projects when they see themselves reflected.

Data Quality

To improve data clarity. We have found that by using inclusive language, our data quality improves, whereas removing these options or using other wording can increase confusion or reduce the reliability of our findings.

Respect

To ensure that all participants feel seen, heard, and valued. Ultimately, we use inclusive language as we live in diverse communities where individuals have complex and intersectional identities and experiences. We want to better ensure that we treat all our participants with dignity and empathy.

Language is ever changing, so this guide serves as a living document that will shift and adapt alongside cultural changes and new inclusive language practices.

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