Dear colleagues, This email includes two requests for information linked to the application of health impact assessment from the Health Impact Assessment Research Unit based at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia. Request 1: HIA and Social Exclusion through regeneration programs I am a PhD student at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia and am researching the connections between health impact assessment (HIA) and social exclusion, using neighbourhood renewal and regeneration type schemes as a foundation for my research. I am aware that HIA has been applied to such schemes internationally and am writing to ask for support from people with expertise or for any relevant contacts that the email list members may have. Within the literature it appears that minimal attention has been given to the links between HIA and social exclusion. At this point, discussion appears to be limited to the variables that define the background in which HIA is undertaken in this context and to any explicit role it may have in reducing the factors that cause social exclusion. Some key research questions that I am particularly interested in exploring include: 1. Does HIA have a role to play in reducing social exclusion and if so, what is the relationship between the two? 2. What are the appropriate components of a framework to facilitate and better guide the application of HIA to policies that focus on reducing inequalities and social exclusion, in particular regeneration and neighbourhood renewal schemes? 3. What are the perceived barriers, which may influence the application of policy-linked HIA to neighbourhood renewal and regeneration type schemes and how can they be overcome? 4. To what extent do current HIA methods incorporate a social exclusion 'lens'? 5. Are policy decision makers encouraging or facilitating the use of HIA to reduce social exclusion? I would be extremely grateful for any advice, assistance or nudges in the right direction that members may offer in locating any publications or materials of relevance or insights they would like to share with me. I may be contacted via email at [log in to unmask] or alternatively via phone on +61 3 9251 7215. I thank you in anticipation. Kind regards, Jessica McCormick PhD Candidate Request 2: HIA at community level I am currently involved in researching the role of health impact assessment at the community level as a tool for promoting health and reducing inequalities in health and am particularly interested to hear from anyone who has undertaken health impact assessments which have a strong focus on community participation and/or with an emphasis on the recognition of the health promoting potential of participation in HIA. A component of the study will be to make recommendations for suitable applications of HIA at community level in Victoria, Australia, using policies, strategies or programs at state or local government levels. I would like to collect information or make contact with members who can assist. I am particularly interested in hearing about the way HIA is being/has been used, barriers and enablers and lessons that have been learnt. I would also welcome any suggestions, ideas or referrals to relevant material or contacts from within other health fields. I may be contacted via email at [log in to unmask] Sincere thanks, Jenny-Lynn Potter For more information on the Deakin University Health Impact Assessment Research Unit please refer to http://www.deakin.edu.au/hia or contact Mary Mahoney via email at [log in to unmask] Thank you. ------------------- Problems/Questions? Send it to Listserv owner: [log in to unmask] To subscribe to the SDOH list, send the following message to [log in to unmask] SUBSCRIBE SDOH yourfirstname yourlastname To post a message to all 1040 subscribers, send it to [log in to unmask] Include in the Subject, its content, and location and date, if relevant. To unsubscribe, send the following message to [log in to unmask] SIGNOFF SDOH For a list of SDOH members, send a request to [log in to unmask] To receive messages only once a day, send the following message to [log in to unmask] SET SDOH DIGEST To view the SDOH archives, go to: http://listserv.yorku.ca/archives/sdoh.html