CHANGE IS OVERDUE AND IT MATTERS. BECAUSE BLACK LIVES MATTER and we need to stand up and say it, to use our platform to life up the voices of people within our communities of all races and genders and secual orientations. We need to be more diverse, more representative of our cities. WE NEED TO DO BETTER… and we acknowledge that. 

We are firm believers in the idea that the first step to fixing any problem, to spur any change is to admit there is a problem to begin with.  
As media attention shifts away from the racial problems our society continues to face, it would be easy to sweep this under the rug, to not address it because the topic no longer trends nightly, despite the ongoing protests, despite the president inciting violence and blaming it on the opposing political party and candidate.  
But there is no denying there is a problem—parts of our society are broken. We see it play out on video after video after iPhone video, news report after social media post of people in positions of authority, of power, murdering black men and women without repercussion. 
It’s a huge problem that we as a society must commit to changing. It is not going to be easy, and it is not going to be quick. But it won’t ever happen unless we take whatever steps we can now and continue to push forward, to push back, to create space and lift up the voices long silenced. 
We must do what we can with what we have. We at Sensi have a platform, and we intend to use it to lift up and amplify the voices of the people who have been most adversely affected by the prohibition of cannabis and the ongoing racist War on Drugs.  
In Sensi’s culture and values statement, we outline the virtues we wanted to grow our company upon humility, growth, giving spirit, fun-loving focus. It was not until this summer, after George Floyd and Breonna Taylor were murdered and the racial disparities in our society were in the spotlight humility, growth, giving spirit, fun-loving focus. It was not until this summer, after George Floyd and Breonna Taylor were murdered and the racial disparities in our society were in the spotlight were our blinders lifted, and we saw that what we did not say in our company’s cultural outline is perhaps more important than what is in it.   
Nowhere in the document do we discuss diversity or inclusion. That is a mistake we mad, and it is one we are changing now.  
Diversity and Inclusion is now the eighth pillar of Sensi’s culture. The specific language that will define it is currently being developed, but the gist of it is that Sensi is the sum of its communities, and we must represent the perspectives and reflect the experiences of the people within those communities.  
It’s easy to write any company’s cultural pillars off as nothing more than corporate bullshit. But at Sensi, they are more than that—they guide us as we navigate business decisions both minor and major. To not have any mention of diversity and inclusion as a part of our culture is a glaring omission that does not reflect our values. We commit to do better, and we will begin by formalizing our commitment.   
These are not new tenants for Sensi; they are expanding on and formalizing our commitment to being stewards of the communities in which we operate—our homes. We can do better, and so we must. And we will. 

5-STEP COMMITMENT TO CHANGE  

1. We want more team members of color, especially in leadership. While we have always been an equal opportunity employer because we know that working with people from a wide variety of backgrounds makes us a stronger company, Sensi will be adding a diversity and inclusion-focused leader to our core team as soon as financially possible as part of a formalized commitment to creating a diverse environment.  
2. Following the lead put forth by industry-leading publications like Cosmopolitan, we will ensure that the visual components of our content, the creators of our content, and the voices featured in our content, across all platforms, reflect the diverse and inclusive world we want to live in. This includes not just race but of gender identity, sexual orientation, body type, and ability.  
3. We will continually audit our editorial content to ensure coverage is diverse and inclusive across the board—on covers and in articles. We will make a marked effort to highlight businesses and organizations led by people of color in stories we publish across all platforms.  
4. We will develop a specific style guide to inform our writing about race, racism, and racial issues, as well as
   appropriative language— again following Cosmo’s lead.  
5. We will be holding required diversity and inclusion training all existing and new team members, with details in development.