Donors Forum

A Community Approach to Health Equity

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August 30, 2024

On August 13, 2024, The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida hosted a Donors Forum at the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, to discuss a community approach to health equity. The program opened with an introduction by Wanda Willis, the Foundation’s Vice President for Civic Leadership, followed by remarks from Dr. Andrea Barnwell Brownlee, CEO of the Cummer Museum.

The featured speaker, Dr. Gail Christopher, was then introduced by Foundation President Isaiah M. Oliver, and a panel discussion ensued between the two. Dr. Christopher is an award-winning social change agent known for her research and groundbreaking work on the social determinants of health and related public policies. She was formerly the Senior Advisor and Vice President at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), where she spearheaded the American Healing Initiative and the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation effort. Dr. Christopher chaired the Board of the Trust for America’s Health from 2012 to 2022, and she currently serves as Director of the Transforming Public Health Data Commission, which is sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. She has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including one of the 10 Most Influential Women Scholars in Health Promotion. She is the author of three books and hundreds of articles, presentations, and publications.

The discussion concluded with a question-and-answer session.

Overview of Dr. Christopher’s remarks:

Health equity is creating conditions in communities so all people have opportunities for health.
For much of the 20th century, health has been 80 percent shaped by factors in the community – which is where we live, work, play, worship, are educated, etc. For way too many communities of color, conditions are less than adequate for optimal health.
For the last 40 years or so, those of us in the field of health equity have been attempting to mobilize efforts to change policies that affect conditions in which people live and thrive.
The Truth, Healing, and Reconciliation work came out of conditions such as the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the 2008 economic crisis – when the WKKF made the decision to be a leading driver in the anti-racism movement. I agreed to be the person to lead the racial equity work. The pilot work went on for five to seven years and included four key components:
- Increasing community understanding related to the necessity of doing the work in order to change public discourse
- Funding more than 1,000 organizations who are already committed to this work
- Funding actionable research and oppositional management to address implicit bias
- Funding major civil rights organizations across all races – the program needed grantees to look like all facets of America
The work we did changed public discourse, as local community organizations realized they weren’t alone and they learned to work together.
It is important to recognize that philanthropy has always been a part of history of the Black community, as part of the collective experience. Yet, the infrastructure of philanthropy in the 20th and 21st centuries has not always historically reflected this.
In order to make sure marginalized communities are heard in the efforts, addressing core issues is key, but the lived experience within the communities is vital to the success of any work that is done.
The literal meaning of philanthropy is “love of humanity,” and it has grown from a movement historically about charity to a movement about potential.
If we want all people to lead their best lives, we have to lead with love and expand our circles of engagement. After centuries of denying the humanity of so many, it is critical to address it and move forward together.

Overview from the Q&A Session:

In order to change the needle on infant mortality, interventions in birth outcomes and protecting the lives of the mothers can and have made a difference. Also, working on changing the way nurses deal with women of color can help. CenteringPregnancy is an organization focused on group prenatal care that prioritizes and addresses the well-being of the mother. Its work has reduced infant mortality by 40 percent.
Expanding our circles of engagement is very important to working in difficult climates (politically and otherwise). Our engagement and influence is often hijacked by media moguls and public figures. If we foster connections with people whose lived experience is different than ours (perceived “others”), it can reduce bias/prejudices. Part of the work is leaning into discomfort and practicing this –through such things as healing circles – so that when tough issues/situations happen, people are prepared to have difficult conversations together.
Human beings weren’t designed to live in fear, and hatred is an anathema. Our basic need is wired up in our relationships. Most Americans want healing and unity. Environments like what is happening in Florida (book banning, parts of history not being taught) might be ripe places for interventions that can ultimately bring people together.
Every philanthropic effort should examine the mission and align it with the realities of the context – “how can I be more responsive to the needs of the community?” I recommend that leaders in philanthropy go through discernment every 3-5 years and evaluate and reflect on how they are being received. There needs to be buy-in on all decisions being made.
In regard to the influence of insurance companies on health care, there was a recent JAMA podcast about bringing in insurance companies to the evidence-making in health care so they can better understand the realities in the field.
Regarding technology and false narratives that are out there (and that have been and will be perpetuated by AI), we have to use tech to engage people in a better way. Engaging museums, curriculum projects, and the non-profit infrastructure to work through the false ideology of a “hierarchy of human value.”
Notion of “capacity-building” comes from a deficit framework – we have to be careful that we are listening to the actual community and actual need and respond to that. If we create opportunities for hearing and our first intention is for learning, then funding gets designed around what was learned – not what was assumed. One example from Native American country: we wanted to fund one community, and they said “Either fund all of us or none at all.” Our own cultural norms may not reflect or respect the community we serve. Our greatest posture is one of humility.
Ask “who’s the we” and “is what we’re doing really a reflection of lived experience.” It is important to have multiple voices in the “we.”
Example of translating data into quantifiable goals: The Health Opportunity and Equity (HOPE) Initiative was launched in 2018, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, to start a conversation about health and well-being and to document progress and motivate action to achieve greater equity. Its Data Indicator shifted from simply documenting information to asking questions about how many people it will take to achieve goals. www.hopeinitiative.org

BONUS: Tune in to episode 2 of Forever Forward, as TCF President Isaiah M. Oliver and Dr. Gail Christopher, award winning social change expert expand on the conversation about health equity.

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