A Conversation with Carol Chien and Madelyn Bello

The Asian and Pacific Islander Employee Resource Group (API ERG) got its start during the COVID-19 pandemic, a response to hate crimes that targeted members of the Asian community.

Carol Chien and Madelyn Bello, co-chairs of the API ERG, share their thoughts on what the API ERG could accomplish and the steps it is taking now towards that future. Carol, a Chinese-Vietnamese-American born in Hong Kong, is a program operations analyst in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Area, while Madelyn, who was raised in a Filipino-American home, is a senior Human Resources division partner supporting the Facilities Division.

Q. What is the ERG’s mission?

Madelyn: Our vision statement summarizes it pretty well: We visualize our Lab community as a place in which API members can bring their whole selves to work and be valued and receive support to reach their fullest potential; a diverse community that affirms the contributions of and supports each individual; and a community that celebrates each other and stands up for each other.

Carol: I think that sharing and raising awareness about issues facing API employees and the community at large is an important part of our mission. This includes standing in solidarity against racial inequity and discrimination in all forms, within our Lab community and beyond. Another important part of our mission is educating the Lab community about the rich and varied cultures encompassed by API heritage. We want to build an environment that provides equal respect and opportunity for all.

Q. What big challenges are you hoping to solve with your work?

Madelyn: We are the newest ERG. At the moment we are creating a foundation for an ERG that will thrive into the future. It is important to note that we started the ERG as a response to the hate incidents going on in our communities. We are addressing this issue head on. We have the challenge of doing three things at the same time: setting up an ERG, being a resource to our communities, and representing our communities to Lab management. Our first challenge is getting ourselves organized so we can do the other two things well.

Carol: Longer term, we’re looking for more engagement with Lab employees to see how we can best support them, and one another. Community-building is the foundation on which we will build our ERG.

Q. What steps are you taking today to accomplish this vision?

Carol: We are organizing events and reaching out to our community. For example, we’re creating a space for employees to discuss the ongoing violence against Asians and Pacific Islanders in the community. We have also held cultural events, including a “Thanksgiving” event that highlighted how different cultures give thanks and a Lunar New Year celebration. We are planning activities for Asian Pacific Heritage month.

Madelyn: Our steering committee also meets regularly to talk about our members’ needs, and ways we can promote visibility on the community’s achievements, issues, and needs to the Lab.

Q. Who do you partner with at the Lab to bring this vision to life?

Madelyn: We partner with other ERGs and other Asian clubs such as the Fil-Am Club and the Asian Association. For example, the API ERG and Asian Association co-marketed each other’s Lunar New Year celebrations.

Carol: We also rely on the IDEA team, which provides the resources that all the ERGs need. We lean on Janie Pinterits heavily.

Q. Who from the past, present, or future would you like to collaborate with? And on what?

Carol: We will continue to foster strong bonds with and to partner with the other ERGs at the Lab, as well as with other groups outside the Lab so that we can improve our own ERG.

Madelyn: We also hope to collaborate with Lab management on issues of importance to the community, for example on this issue of violence against Asian and Pacific Islanders in our community. We appreciate having strong support from our executive sponsor, Inder Monga, the DEI Office, and from Lab leadership.

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