Letter from the Director

Dear friends,

A little over a year ago, demonstrations calling for racial justice and equality peaked at half a million protesters making their voice heard in nearly 550 places across the United States and even globally. This call to action was heard by the Gates Institute and its partners, donors, and stakeholders. The Institute has worked diligently to actively uncover and address racism, oppression, and discrimination within GI and the systems, institutions, and partnerships in which we operate. 

Efforts began with a Director’s Message to the community challenging the field to acknowledge the biases within the system and address them head on. The institute then required Implicit Bias and Discrimination Trainings for all GI staff and additional courses for GI’s Leadership Team and all managers. Additionally, the Crucial Conversations series was launched allowing the entire institute to speak openly about the diversity, equity and inclusion issues that exist within our organization, community, partnerships, and institutions. 

In light of key shifts in the global family planning and reproductive health landscape, the Gates Institute has completed a strategy refresh to update organizational vision and mission statements and a set of core values aimed to guide all we do. The refreshed strategy also reflects GI’s ongoing effort to bring the elements of Inclusion, Diversity, Anti-racism and Equity at the forefront of all activities within and connected to the systems, institutions, and partnerships in which the Gates Institute operates. View our refreshed strategy document here.

Learn more about what’s coming next for the Gates Institute from Advance Family Planning, Performance Monitoring for Action, The Challenge Initiative, 120 Under 40: The Next Generation of Family Planning Leaders, Demographic Dividend, and the International Conference on Family Planning. 

Oying Rimon

Jose “Oying” Rimon II