**please post widely to your networks
**apologies for cross-posting

Thanks and we hope to see you all there!

CUHI Spotlight on Urban Health Seminar Series

Community Based Participatory Research Partnerships for Health: 
Lessons Learned from the Healthy Environments Partnership

Amy J. Schulz (PhD) 
School of Public Health, University of Michigan
& Angela Reyes (MPH)
Executive Director, Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation

SUMMARY

The presenters will describe the Healthy Environments Partnership (HEP), a
community-based participatory research partnership made up of
community-based organizations, health service organizations, and academic
institutions that has been working to address disparities in cardiovascular
disease in Detroit since 2000.  Speakers will discuss the principles that
guide HEP’s work, and illustrate the processes used to assure that all
members of the partnership are engaged in all phases of the research process
(defining the research question, development of research questions and
processes, interpretation of results, dissemination of results, and
decisions about how to apply research findings to improve cardiovascular
health).  Finally, speakers will discuss lessons learned and recommendations
for conducting community based participatory research to promote health
equity.

BIO(S)

Dr. Schulz received her Ph.D. in Sociology and M.P.H. from the University of
Michigan. Her research focuses on social inequalities as they influence
aspects of the social and physical environment, and their contributions to
health disparities and health in urban communities. Current research efforts
focus on understanding social determinants of health in urban communities;
the contributions of social and environmental factors to racial and
socioeconomic disparities in cardiovascular disease, obesity and related
conditions, social aspects of community and their relationship to health,
and interventions designed to increase access to healthy foods and
environments conducive to physical activity in urban areas. In addition, she
has been involved in projects concerned with: the effects of colonization on
the health of Native Americans; community-based approaches to research and
community change; the evaluation of community partnerships for health
promotion; implementation and evaluation of community health worker
interventions, and the role of grassroots environmental groups in addressing
issues of environmental degradation and economic development. Dr. Schulz is
PI for the “Lean & Green in Motown Project” addressing physical environments
and their relationship to obesity; the “Community Approaches to
Cardiovascular Health” planning project to engage community representatives
in planning interventions for cardiovascular health, and is Co-PI for the
Promoting Healthy Eating in Detroit project.  She is Associate Director of
the Center for Research on Ethnicity, Culture and Health
<http://www.sph.umich.edu/crech/> , and Co-Director for the NIH funded
"Promoting Ethnic Diversity in Public Health". Dr. Schulz co-facilitates the
CRECH <http://www.sph.umich.edu/crech/>  NIH predoctoral seminar on racial
inequalities and health, and has taught courses on qualitative research
methods and participatory action research. Dr. Schulz's work appears in
Social Problems, American Journal of Public Health, The Journal of Health
and Social Behavior, Social Science and Medicine, Health Education and
Behavior, The Annual Review of Public Health, American Journal of Public
Health and Health Education Research, among others.

Angela G. Reyes is the founder and Executive Director of the Detroit
Hispanic Development Corporation, a community-based organization. She is a
life-long resident of Southwest Detroit, where she has been active in the
community for over 30 years. Ms. Reyes began D.H.D.C. in 1997 with the
purpose of addressing the high level of gang violence in the Southwest
Detroit community through programs designed to meet the unique needs of this
population. Over the years, D.H.D.C. has developed a wide range of
comprehensive, bilingual services that reach over 6,000 youth, adults and
families per year, and have demonstrated effectiveness in meeting the needs
of high-risk populations, building on both scientific evidence and many
years of experience in youth work, substance abuse prevention, parent
training and advocacy, HIV/AIDS prevention, workforce development, and
counseling. D.H.D.C. is also dedicated to community activism and advocating
for policy change in the areas of education, environmental justice, criminal
justice, poverty, immigration and public health. Ms. Reyes has an MPH from
the University of Michigan, and has been the recipient of several awards for
her community work. She is an international speaker on several issues,
including youth gangs, substance abuse, community activism, cultural
competency and community-based participatory research. 

University of Toronto, Galbraith Building (35 St. George) Rm. 119
February 28, 2007
2:15 – 3:30PM

Upcoming Seminars:

April 11th: Sarah E. Curtis (DPhil) - Professor of Health and Risk,
University of Durham, UK
“Variations in Adolescent Mental Health: The Significance of Social Factors
at the Individual and Area Levels”

SUMMARY
This seminar concerns social factors associated with adolescent mental
health and the findings are discussed in terms of theories about varying
individual vulnerability to health risks posed by social conditions at the
area level. This research used national survey data for young adults in
England to explore empirically the relationships between social
fragmentation in communities (measured for geographical areas), social
support experienced by individuals from their immediate social circle, and
psychosocial health of young adults, measured by the General Health
Questionnaire.

BIO
Sarah Curtis was awarded a BA in Geography from Oxford University and DPhil
in Urban and Regional Studies from the University of Kent. In 2006 she was
appointed to the Chair of Health and Risk at the University of Durham, UK.
She previously held posts at Kent University and in the Geography Department
at Queen Mary, University of London, UK, most recently as Professor in
Geography.  She has extensive research experience and has published widely
on geography of health and health care. Her research focuses especially on
why and how places are important for inequalities of health and wellbeing
and access to health care. In 2006 she is Visiting Professor at the
University of Montréal, Département de Médicine Sociale and Préventive
supported by the AnEIS programme. Her books include Health and Inequality:
Geographical Perspectives (Sage, 2004). Other experience includes: research
and consultancy for UK Health Authorities, the Health Development Agency;
the World Health Organization. Sarah Curtis served as non-executive director
of an NHS Community and Mental Health Care Trust 1995-1999. She is Senior
Editor, Medical Geography for the international journal Social Science and
Medicine.

May 2nd: Valerie Tarasuk (PhD) - Department of Nutritional Sciences,
University of Toronto
“Community Responses to the Food Needs of Homeless and Under-housed
Individuals”

Please see our website for upcoming seminar summaries and other events:
www.cuhi.utoronto.ca <http://www.cuhi.utoronto.ca/> 




Alexis Kane Speer
Centre Coordinator
Centre for Urban Health Initiatives (CUHI)
University College, Room 259
University of Toronto
15 King's College Circle
Toronto, Ontario M5S 3H7
416-978-7223
FAX: 416-946-0669


To UNSUBSCRIBE send to: [log in to unmask] the following phrase "unsubscribe click4hp" as unquoted text. To view archives or manage your subscription (and create a password) go to http://listserv.yorku.ca/archives/click4hp.html