Virtual Seminars Provide Training & Dialogue on Building Healthy, Equitable Communities

Copyright

2018

Published Date

04/03/2018

Published By

Community Commons

We believe in the power of storytelling and the importance of investing in the future by sharing those stories – whether they are stories of successful community ventures or lessons learned from stories of things you wish happened just a little bit differently. These are the stories of working together for the common good.  – Community Commons 

Aysha Pamukcu – ChangeLab Solutions | What are the elements of a healthy and equitable community? How do we create conditions in which all children and families can thrive?

Institutions, governments, and community leaders across the country are grappling with these essential questions. To facilitate dialogue on the issues, foster collaborative thinking, and co-create solutions, ChangeLab Solutions is launching the Building Healthy, Equitable Communities Series—a virtual space for exploring the topic of health equity across different elements of a community.

Presenters and participants will discuss how law and policy coupled with community power can catalyze new opportunities for everyone to achieve their full health potential. Roughly each month from April to October, we will release a new episode, highlighting one sector of policy that has important implications for children and families, communities, and health equity. Topics include food systems, schools, the built environment, and preemption (see schedule for a complete list). Accessible to the public at no charge, each episode is designed to provide comprehensive legal and policy context, share innovations, and offer resources and support. Participants can attend all the episodes or choose the ones that best address their needs and mission.

Each episode will include:

1. A blog post that describes and sets the real-world policy context for a specific topic area. Each post reflects on how law and policy solutions, however well intended, can sometimes miss the mark by exacerbating inequities. Each piece also provides resources that will allow participants to learn more or take action.
2. A webinar that provides inspiration, opportunities, and tools to push toward a more equitable and just world. Each webinar will showcase specific policy strategies, tools, or resources from ChangeLab Solutions and its partners, as well as on-the-ground stories and innovations from community health leaders.
3. A continued conversation session among experts from the field that opens a space for participants to shape the content. The panelists will offer unique perspectives on the theory and practice explored earlier in the episode, responding directly to audience questions as well as engaging in thought-provoking conversation with each other.

The series seeks to address a wide audience, including public health and planning practitioners, public health lawyers, school district administrators, and leaders of health-oriented organizations and coalitions. Community champions—such as teachers, parents, and youth—can also exchange valuable insights in these trainings. The aim is for participants to leave the sessions inspired and prepared to tackle challenges in their community, equipped with new stories and strategies and a holistic understanding of what it takes to build a healthy, equitable community.

For more information, download the schedule from the series webpage, follow ChangeLab Solutions on Medium, or join ChangeLab Solutions’ email list to receive updates on episodes in the series as they become available. You can also read about our first episode, Building healthy, equitable communities through equitable laws and policies, by checking out the blog post.

Aysha Pamukcu is a senior staff attorney at ChangeLab Solutions, where she leads the organization’s health equity practice and uses law and policy to help build more just and inclusive communities.