Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
“I am Mari": A children's book on a journey for inclusion
Differences and similarities
Mari is a child like any other. She loves to laugh, play and dance. But a small part was forgotten in the blueprint of Mari's body - and now everything is a little different for her. The children's book “I am Mari” tells Mari's story and how she sees the world. It pleads for people with and without disabilities to live together as a matter of course and opens our eyes to a few differences, but also to many similarities between Mari and other children.
Inclusion as a matter of the heart: André Dietz gives a voice to daughter with a genetic defect
The children's book was written by actor, author and musician André Dietz and his wife Shari. In 2016, the couple went public with their daughter Mari's genetic defect, which is very unknown and therefore very often misdiagnosed. They met with a very positive response. With “I am Mari”, the couple want to give their non-speaking daughter a voice and continue to promote the issue close to their hearts. Because: “On the whole, inclusion is often still an illusion,” says the father of four.
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The children's book was written by Stephanie Poggemöller (left) and Andrea Steiner (right) are committed to ensuring that as many BayWa colleagues as possible have the opportunity to read the book.
Mari In The Midst - On the road for real inclusion at BayWa
The Poggemöller couple, owners of the agency of the same name and long-standing business partners of BayWa, also have a child with a disability. Many people know Hanno and Stephanie Poggemöller as moderators for events, as coaches and trainers or from the Ideenschmeide. The two found themselves in Mari's story. “We immediately thought: many people should know this book. Let's send Mari on a hike!” says Hanno Poggemöller about his idea for the hiking book. He organized 1,000 books for his project, and now we can send 50 copies on their journey through the BayWa world. In this way, Mari's story should reach many people - to reduce fear of contact, create understanding and build bridges between people with and without disabilities.
The hiking book - how it works
“I am Mari” and its message should not gather dust on the bookshelf, but should be passed on to other people after reading it. Andrea Steiner, DEI representative at BayWa, ensures that as many colleagues as possible have the opportunity to read it themselves or with their children. There is also space for notes on the inside of the book. This allows readers to share their thoughts on the book with others.