Whether their primary concern is regarding cultural, environmental, or social factors related to creating healthy communities, the following are links to the web sites of individuals and organizations that embody the spirit of interdiciplinary collaboration.
Health Disparities
http://www.calendow.org/
The California Endowment's mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians. With a focus on "grassroots to treetops" advocacy, this organization is dedicated to uniting the expertise of community members and policy makers to create an extensive library of studies and reports to inform health decision makers about the needs of those directly affected by health disparities. Highlights include several studies assessing the need for culturally and linguistically sensitive care among immigrants, as well as a series reports looking at the social and environmental experience of those with diabetes.
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyplaces/
A comprehensive resource for those interested in learning more about physical and social factors that affect health. Topics covered include housing, urban development, land use, transportation, industry, and social capital. As stated on the web site: "Healthy places are those designed and built to improve the quality of life for all people who live, work, worship, learn, and play within their borders -- where every person is free to make choices amid a variety of healthy, available, accessible, and affordable options." This site is a great introduction for envisioning how such options can become reality.
http://law.gsu.edu/metrogrowth/
As the sponsor of foreign study abroad programs such as the Summer Legal and Policy Study in Rio de Janeiro, the Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth undertakes to advance dialogue, academic exchanges and research relating to the challenges facing the physical and built environment in Atlanta and around the world. The Center promotes inter-disciplinary programs that involve lawyers and law students with a wide range of other professionals - land use and economic planners, business people, engineers, and government regulators.
Center for Law, Health and Society
http://law.gsu.edu/clhs/
The Center for Law, Health & Society promotes interdisciplinary education, research, and community service related to health law, policy, and ethics. The Center supports collaboration among multi-disciplinary faculty and practitioners whose research and professional work can help to improve health and the health care system. Through collaborations with academic, government, and professional partners, the Center has established exceptional interdisciplinary programs that bring together faculty, students, and practitioners of the various health-related disciplines.
http://www.ethnomed.org/
Based out of Harborview Medical Center and the University of Washington in Seattle, EthnoMed contains information about cultural beliefs, medical issues and other related issues pertinent to the health care of recent immigrants to Seattle or the US, many of whom are refugees fleeing war-torn parts of the world. A wonderful resource that brings together anthropology and clinical medicine in a practical, easy-to-use interface.
http://www.hstatweb.org
HealthSTAT is an organization dedicated to linking and empowering students from all healthcare disciplines to help underserved communities in the state of Georgia. United by a passion to address health disparities, students from medicine, nursing, public health, and a variety of undergradudate concentrations come together to engage in education, activism, and service projects to gain crucial skills and experience with key issues facing the health status of the communities they serve. Current focus areas include uninsured Georgians, HIV/AIDS prevention and policy, and childhood obesity prevention.
http://www.hartnet.org/khmer/homepage.html
Khmer Health Advocates (KHA) was founded in 1982 by a survivor of the Mahandorai (the Cambodian holocaust of the 1970s), along with three nurses who worked in Thai refugee camps. As the only Cambodian health organiztion in the United States, KHA provides care for Cambodian immigrants in Connecticut and Western Massachusetts, and advocates for the health and welfare of Mahandorai survivors across the nation. KHA is meeting the challenges of outreach to this population through a fusion of innovative artistic and technological projects, such as interactive CDs involving music and health education tools that is culturally tailored to the needs of the Cambodian community.
http://ndep.nih.gov/campaigns/PasoaPaso/Paso_a_Paso.htm
Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health, the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) is a wonderful example of collaboration between different government agencies and the communities they serve. The "Paso a Paso" ("Step by Step") campaign is a diabetes prevention effort targed mostly at the Hispanic / Latino population. Drawing on their audience's love of music and dance, NDEP created the "Movimientos" music CD to promote healthy messages and lifestyles using catchy lyrics and toe-tapping salsa and merengue rhythms. Music samples of the CD are available on the above web site.
http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/eagle/index.html
Designed especially for American Indian and Alaska Native children, The Eagle's Nest web site provides a unique storytelling approach to all those looking for alternative ways to talk about diabetes and the need for a healthy lifestyle. The Eagle, for many American Indian and Alaska Native communities, represents balance, courage, healing, strength, and wisdom. Come inside the Eagle's Nest and learn more about Native traditions and how these values can help people--both young and old--avoid the clutches of diseases such as diabetes.
http://www.milomusic.com/scottall.htm
Scott Allen is a Rhode Island based physician and singer/songwriter. He derives material for his songs from both his personal and his professional life, having lived and worked in a variety of interesting settings such as Cambodian refugee camps, the red light district of Manila, the Mississippi Delta and a state prison in Rhode Island. Scott is now a clinical professor at Brown Medical School and works at a state hospital and with Physicians for Human Rights in the Campaign Against Torture. A remarkable individual whose efforts--musically, socially, and professionally--are an inspiration for all those who believe that medicine is as much about social justice as it is about health.
http://www.smartgrowth.org/
This web page is a must-see for anyone interested in learning more about environmental issues raised by Finding Root. Not only does it contain comprehensive information on anything and everything related to sustainable community development, but it also allows people to search through its enormous repository of local, state, and federal organizations to get ideas of how communities all over the nation are coping with the challenges of urban planning. Make sure to check out the environment and public health section when visiting this site.
http://www.sweethoney.com/
Sweet Honey In The Rock is a Grammy Award-winning African American female a cappella ensemble with deep musical roots in the sacred music of the black church - spirituals, hymns, gospel - as well as jazz and blues. Six African American women join their powerful voices to speak out against oppression and exploitation of every kind. Their live concerts are an experience like no other, featuring music simultaneously interpreted in uniquely expressive American Sign Language. This ensemble is a wonderful example of the power of music to advocate for a just and humane world for all. Visit their site to learn more about them--you won't regret it!