Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #110579

Mansoureh Tajik, Department of Community Health and Sustainability, University of Massachusetts at Lowell, School of Public Health and Environment, 3 Solomont Way, Lowell, MA 01850, Maria Elena De León Angel, Episcopal Hispanic Ministry, 101 N. Bonner Street, Washington, NC 27889, and Max Zarate, Health Education and Promotion/Environmental Health and Safety Program, East Carolina University, 315 Allied Health Belk Building, Greenville, NC 27858, (252) 328-5597, zaratem@mail.ecu.edu.

The Hispanic population in the United States, in general, and in North Carolina, in particular, has been rapidly increasing. In North Carolina, this population increase has been more profound in counties in the eastern part of the state that have the highest concentration of African Americans. These counties, being part of the Black Belt, are also known to be some of the most socio-economically depressed areas dealing with the greatest number of environmental justice issues in the state. Therefore, building coalitions between African American and Hispanic communities based on the principles of environmental justice and community-based participatory research to address adverse public health outcomes and affect public policies with united voices is of paramount importance. Here, we aim to explore the prospects and challenges of inter-community coalition building in addressing environmental health concerns. Lessons drawn from the experiences are used to establish partnerships, promote development of sustainable programs, facilitate community-wide exchange of information, carry out collaborative projects, and encourage coalition between and among universities, African American and Hispanic communities with the ultimate goal to have an impact on public health and public policy.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in this session will be able to

1)articulate the prospects and challenges in building coalition between African American and Hispanic/Latino communities;
• list several effective programs and workshops to establish partnerships, promote development of sustainable programs, facilitate community-wide exchange of information, and carry out collaborative projects among ethnically diverse communities.

Keywords: Participatory Research, Community-Based Partnership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.