By Nicole Medeiros, 2007 Summer Research Intern

I love public transportation. Riding the train allows ample time for people-watching. And, during my long commutes throughout the Bay Area, trains and buses became sanctuaries for reflection and laboratories for testing my thoughts - mostly, about my work at EJS.

From the corner-seat office of the 15th floor this past summer, I drafted letters to political representatives, and read a slew of exciting email correspondence on our staff list-serve. Most of the time, however, I delved into the world of implicit bias. Though we may not be aware of it, each of us has unconscious preferences for and biases against other races and ethnic groups. EJS has partnered with the California Teachers Association and leading social psychologists to better understand the implications of unconscious bias in education. My task: to figure out if its possible to moderate sub-conscious processes.

Fortunately, there are numerous psychologists and neuroscientists who are looking into this, and are devising innovative techniques for reducing implicit racial bias. Mental imagery, exposure to admired individuals in stigmatized communities, and counter-stereotypic computer training have proven successful in moderating an individual's implicit racial assumptions. Exciting collaborations between EJS and social-psychologists will ensure that these interventions are applied and integrated into education, health, and the law.

When I finished my daily research, left the office, and boarded the train, I spent a little more time than usual watching people -- I noticed where they sat, wondered where they were headed, and who they were meeting. What I didn't realize was that my fellow train riders were paying attention to me, too. One day, when I boarded the train with a colleague, hurriedly heading to our "Immigration and the Black Community" event at the Oakland Museum, I quickly grabbed an available seat next to an older gentlemen. As I sat down, he quizzically looked at me, and then smiled. Did I have something in my teeth, I wondered? He turned to me, nodded his head, and thanked me for sitting next to him.

It wasn't the first time that I had sat next to an older gentlemen, or for that matter, a Black man. But it mattered to him and me. "Well, you know...," he said.

And, I did. We all do. It was unspoken but mutually understood. We chatted about our commutes and he shared photos and information about his fascinating job at a local aquarium, where he is responsible for maintaining beautiful aquatic habitats.

It may appear like a chance discussion to some but to me the train ride and our mutual understanding reaffirmed the importance of EJS's research on unconscious bias. Each of us must work to re-train and re-imagine ourselves and others, so as to reach beyond the hurtful and hidden sources of our implicit biases. We must each strive to connect - so that we foster relationships and impeccable opportunities for mutual understanding and equality.