Community Engagement Core

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The Community Engagement Core (CEC) of the Center for Indigenous Environmental Health Research (CIEHR) will oversee the translation and dissemination of knowledge obtained from research on environmental health exposures. The CEC will collaborate with American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities to develop culturally-relevant policies and assets-based programs that reinforce resilience to mitigate adverse health effects. The CEC will follow a four direction approach reflecting the holistic perspective of an indigenous process of inquiry and healing and pursue 4 specific aims that address Dialogue, Knowledge, Action, and Evaluation. The specific aims of the CEC are: 1) Dialogue: To equitably engage AI/AN stakeholders and CIEHR members for the ethical and culturally-appropriate translation and application of Center findings; 2) Knowledge: To strengthen the environmental health literacy (EHL) of AI/AN leaders, policy-makers and community members; 3) Action: To strengthen community resilience and capacity to promote environmental health in AI/AN communities on tribal lands and in urban settings; and 4) Evaluation: To assess the effectiveness of the CEC activities and contributions to the mission of the Center. The CEC will achieve the aims by utilizing long-term partnerships with tribal, rural, and urban AI/AN communities. The CEC will also build on the knowledge, lessons learned, strategies, and resources from the two established Centers located at the same institution: the Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center and Center for American Indian Resilience. All CEC strategies and activities will be informed by community-based participatory research (CBPR) principles, which have been shown to be effective in AI/AN communities. Major strategies will include: 1) guiding the development of Community Advisory Boards (CABs) for each proposed research project and pilot projects; 2) giving presentations at tribal meetings, AI/AN health events, regional forums and national conferences; 3) conducting baseline assessments of EHL, implementing EHL community interventions and testing effectiveness; 4) developing and administering CBPR training to tribal leaders, community members, and researchers; 5) identifying and implementing strategies for enhancing community assets and resilience that improve health, build community capacity, and foster policy change; and 6) conducting short, mid, and long-term evaluation of CEC activities. The CEC will collaborate with the CABs and AI/AN partners to disseminate and translate successful research outcomes to tribal leadership, local communities, regional and national AI/AN forums, and scientific audiences to reduce environmental health risks and build AI/AN resilience across the U.S.