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

Abstract #117454

Sarah Shannon, Hesperian Foundation, 1919 Addison Street, Berkeley, CA 94704, 510 845 1447, sarahs@hesperian.org

This presentation will describe and discuss strategies and current organizing efforts of grassroots groups participating in the Peoples Health Movement, internationally and in the United States. Central to the organizing of this growing movement from the Global South is the understanding that health is a social, economic and political issue and that Health for All will not be achieved without challenging powerful interests and opposing corporate-led globalization so that political and economic priorities can be drastically changed. Sarah will provide examples of effective grassroots organizing efforts that address limited access to essential medicines, privatization of health and public services preventing states from fulfilling health guarantees to their citizens, corporate influences on increasingly unhealthy diets, and agricultural trade agreements which increase poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition. She will demonstrate through these examples the effectiveness and impact of grassroots health organizing as a way to address larger political and economic policies and as a means to develop and propose alternatives to corporate-driven policies. Sarah will also examine the strengths and challenges of building a global, inclusive solidarity network of groups and individuals to work together to challenge corporate-led globalization and bring about Health for All as a People's Health Movement.

Learning Objectives:

• 1) Describing the work of the People’s Health Movement to make the health of the world’s people a top priority in local, national and international policy.
• 2) Examining the effectiveness and challenges of grassroots organizing strategies in a diverse, global, and inclusive solidarity network.
• 3) Building an understanding of the how corporate-led globalization affects the health of people in the US and around the world.
• 4) Demonstrating the effectiveness of Health Organizing to address larger political and economic policies.

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.