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What is the News?
NASA has released its first-ever Space Equity Action Plan.
What is the Space Equity Action Plan?
Released by: NASA
Objective: To allow the agency to track progress toward improved diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility both internally and externally.
Focus Areas: The four focus areas the plan addresses are:
– Increasing integration and utilization of contractors and businesses from underserved communities and expanding equity in NASA’s procurement process;
– Enhancing grants and cooperative agreements to advance opportunities, access and representation for underserved communities;
– Leveraging Earth Science and socioeconomic data to help mitigate environmental challenges in underserved communities;
– Advancing external civil rights compliance and expanding access to limited English proficient populations within underserved communities.
Monitoring of the Plan: An executive team, led by NASA’s deputy administrator will lead the organization’s efforts towards equity.
The space agency has also established a leadership council that will be led by the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity and will provide quarterly reports to the executive team.
Source: This post is based on the article “Explained | What is NASA’s space equity action plan?” published in The Hindu on 25th April 2022.