REAL WORLD ISSUES COURSE
Overcoming Diversity Opposition
Strategies to address diversity apathy, skepticism and pushback
Annelie Wambeek, Dr. Nadine Binder
OVERVIEW
Although societies are more mixed than ever, resistance to Diversity & Inclusion continues to occur around the world and across sectors. This ranges from attitudes of “Why bother?” to defensiveness to active “anti-wokeness” initiatives.
This 2-day course is designed to support you to better understand and reduce threat responses that your audiences may have to D&I initiatives, then begin to convert diversity apathy, skepticism or pushback into more constructive engagement and, ultimately, outcomes.
Despite increasing diversity in societies globally, there is a new, strong strand of resistance to initiatives aimed at Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) across sector and regions. This opposition varies, ranging from apathy (“Why bother?”) and defensiveness (“Don’t make me feel guilty.”) to corrective (“D&I has gone too far.”) and even aggressive “anti-woke” movements.
To meet and challenge this reality head-on, this 2-day course first explores the underlying reasons people disengage or resist in this area. Then, we identify practical communication and behavioural strategies that you can use to help successfully address various forms of resistance and begin to (re)engage in constructive, belonging-focused conversations.
Informed by insights from intergroup and social psychology, you will leave with practical approaches that both respect people’s diversity concerns and underlying needs so that you can begin to reduce resistance and shift their attitudes towards more constructive D&I engagement.
While the opposition you encounter is unique to your circumstances, the approaches in this course are globally relevant and adaptable across sectors. You can customise them to navigate your own cultural and organisational contexts – whether in teams, projects, classrooms, or organisation-wide.
In this course, you will learn how to help yourself and those you work with so that you/they can better:
- Identify different types of D&I opposition prevalent today as illustrated in real-world examples.
- Analyse and articulate three core underlying issues behind this resistance.
- Apply three effective communication strategies to begin to address these underlying issues.
- Start designing “belonging”-focused strategies (e.g., incentive structures) and environments that can successfully counter D&I resistance narratives.
This course format is one that uses conceptual inputs, discussion, structured case analysis, peer sharing, demonstrations of different techniques, and action-planning for your context.
This course is for you if you are an in-house or external D&I professional or trainer/multiplier/educator who helps those who
- Are implementing diversity and inclusion initiatives within their organisations or help organisations implement such initiatives in an external role;
- Offer D&I focused training to help people collaborate and/or lead in more inclusive ways;
- Work with those who express opposition to D&I, such as apathy, skepticism, or pushback.
Contact us at info@iddifferences.org if you have questions about the suitability of this course for your circumstances.
COURSE TYPE
Real World Issues
DURATION/DATES
2 days/9-10 July 2026
AUDIENCE LEVELS
Mid (6-12 years)
Advanced (13-19 years)
Senior (20+ years)
TUITION FEE
€1050 before 15 Feb
€1125 after 15 Feb
includes certificate from the University and the Institute
Annelie Wambeek
Annelie Wambeek is an independent trainer and consultant specialized in the intersection between the DEI and intercultural fields. Her professional background spans communications, sociology, international relations, and finance and her current focus is on helping clients understand and enhance inclusion and belonging in organizational settings.
Annelie is an emerging leader in the field, teaching at the University of Amsterdam and the Academy of Architecture Amsterdam. She previously worked within the finance sector in international compliance, and was the Communications Director at a foreign policy think tank in Sri Lanka.
Nadine Binder, PhD
Psychologist Dr. Nadine Binder is a certified professional Co-Active coach (CPCC), trainer, university lecturer, and consultant who supports individuals, teams, and organizations in their development, providing them with proven tools and techniques to help them realize their full potential and connect deeply and meaningfully with others. She specializes in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, intercultural communication and global leadership, and mental health awareness.
Dr. Binder holds external lecturer positions at various universities in Germany where she regularly teaches courses on diversity training, cross-cultural management, and intercultural business communication. She is the co-founder and co-host of the Globally Conscious Peacemakers (GCP) and is a partner at the Institute for Developing Across Differences (IDD).
“I cannot thank them enough for being this informative, illustrative, stimulating, inclusive and interactive.”
“I would not have missed it! It was such an insightful and moving learning experience.”
“Annelie and Nadine are knowledgeable and incredibly generous with their knowledge. They both created a safe space with empathy and clarity. The discussions they led were both thoughtful and thought-provoking.”
