SOWING THE SEEDS
About 12 000 years ago, we decided we’d had enough of wandering around picking berries, chasing mammoths and getting eaten by sabre-toothed tigers and would much rather live a life that might be altogether more pleasant, and longer lasting, if we settled down in one place and grew our own food.
So we switched from nomadic, hunter-gatherer lifestyles to permanent settlements and farming which, with its reliable and predictable food supply led to the rise of villages, cities, civilizations and Elon Musks. Swings and roundabouts.
Of course, farming today with its acres of fields, huge irrigation systems and technology-rich tractors & combine harvesters is a far cry from the small plots of land and rudimentary tools of the early farmer. But, the global agriculture industry is worth over $13 trillion. So we’ve done quite well at it, by all accounts.
Most western farmers will tell you that it’s important to have a variety of crops, not just to make sure all their proverbial eggs aren’t in one basket, but also because of the different effects particular crops have on the soil. Which is why they’ll rotate crops, dedicating a field to, say, maize one year and then something else the following year which helps replace what the maize or other crops have removed.
Diversity is not, then, a new concept. It’s as old as the contour-plowed hills.
You might say though, that using vegetables as an illustration of how diversity works is a little bit of a stretch when it comes to humans, an altogether more complex and sophisticated species than plants and you’d probably be right. Having said that, I’ve met a very large sample of our species and often, the difference comes down to a hair’s breadth.
But there’s one group of farmers, the Native Americans, from whom we could really learn quite a lot when it comes to making the most of diversity.
When western farmers plant their crops of maize, beans and squash, they plant each of them in their own field. And while that may make the task of harvesting simple, they’re missing out on something that would make their overall yield greater and healthier. Reciprocity.
The Native Americans know all about reciprocity.
They refer to the crops of maize (or corn if you speak Yank), beans and squash as the “Three Sisters” and they do diversity a little differently. Instead of planting each crop in a dedicated field, they sow all three seeds together. They’re sown in such a way that the first sister, corn germinates and grows first, providing a “scaffold” for the second sister, beans to grow on.
By attaching to this platform, the bean plant avoids growing along the ground where it would be susceptible to bacteria in the soil. As well as being protected, it gets more exposure to the sunlight that it needs to thrive.
Beans are nitrogen-fixing legumes. They are able to take nitrogen from the atmosphere and release it into their soil. So in return for the safe scaffold they’ve been provided to grow on, they provide a form of fertilizer for the corn and squash.
Then the third sister, squash, grows. Squash grows low and close to the ground. This helps prevent the growth of weeds that would otherwise strangle the corn and beans and also keeps the soil moist so their roots are protected. And since squash grows better in a low-light environment, they now benefit from the canopy of shelter provided by the leaves of the bean and maize crops.
Each of the three crops gives something and gets something in return. As a result, all three grow better than they would in isolation. And while the Native Americans have known this for centuries, science and biology have recently come to the party too, demonstrating that all three when grown this way, produce more, are healthier, and can ward off danger better. There’s an overall benefit for all three crops.
And that’s the bit agencies (and other companies) would do well to bear in mind. While increasing demographic diversity looks good on an Excel spreadsheet or your credentials deck, the “just add diversity to the mix” approach doesn’t in and of itself increase effectiveness or creativity. What matters most is how your company harnesses that diversity.
To harness it, you need to create the conditions in which reciprocity flourishes - an inclusive company culture that actively embraces the varying styles of people from different identity groups and treats cultural differences among them as a source of knowledge to be learnt from, so that problems, briefs, ads, etc. can be re-conceived in novel, innovative ways. The aim should be to create an environment and culture in which each individual can benefit from their peers’ personal experience and wisdom.
We all accept that diversity is a moral imperative, but more than that, no less of a company than Apple believes that “the most innovative company must also be the most diverse.” So it’s a business imperative too. And as the Native American farmer will tell you, true diversity is a case of give and get. True diversity is greater than the sum of its parts.
