ABSTRACT
An issue that many facilitators try to ignore by mentally filing it in the 'too hard to do' basket is that of diversity. To work with diversity in groups takes particular skill, sensitivity and awareness. There is no doubt, however, that diversity is a complex and challenging concept to work with and there are no easy answers. Yet there are things we can do as a facilitator to promote openness, honesty and good working relationships. A good start is to encourage people to: make sure group members have the opportunity to interact with each other in a way that helps them to discover whether some of their assumptions are inaccurate, and bear in mind that the underlying issues in working with diversity are about power, inclusion/exclusion and fear of the unknown.
