Our seminar series features talks by researchers focused on understanding and addressing health inequities in the United States and globally.

UPCOMING SEMINARS

 

PAST SEMINARS

April 27, 2021
12:00-1:30PM
Zoom Meeting: https://ucsf.zoom.us/j/95219041880?pwd=S2luWHg3RHErVFFqYjl5dFN6WGozQT09
Meeting ID: 952 1904 1880
Passcode: 752699

Structural Racism - Deflating the "Bucky Ball"

Gilbert Gee, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Community Health Sciences
UCLA, Fielding School of Public Health

 

Racism is a fundamental driver of racial inequities. Structural and institutional racism are terms often used interchangeably, yet, the concepts are quite distinct. This presentation will illustrate the differences using the analogy of "bucky balls" and further discuss how racialized rules provide a major way to maintain the racial hierarchy across institutions. 

 

 
March 11, 2021
12:00-1:00PM
Zoom Meeting: https://ucsf.zoom.us/j/96160452241?pwd=Tmt4ZEhpcFNCMTdtNUo0UE95M2dSQT09
Meeting ID: 961 6045 2241
Passcode: 515474

Understanding and Addressing Structural Determinants of Cardiovascular Health Inequities

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Kiarri Kershaw, PhD, MPH
Associate Professor of Preventive Medicine
Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine
 

Racial residential segregation, fueled by discriminatory housing and lending practices faced by Black Americans, is an obstacle to promoting the equitable distribution of resources that optimize cardiovascular health. This talk will highlight research examining associations of racial residential segregation with cardiovascular health, and evaluate the impact of multi-level social interventions to address the downstream consequences of segregation on cardiovascular disease risk in Black people.

 

 

October 7, 2020
12:00-1:30PM
Zoom Meeting: https://ucsf.zoom.us/j/95044924835?pwd=aC9JMEtaTm5CckhyWmxDWEwyamRFdz09
Meeting ID: 950 4492 4835
Passcode: 215162

Why Data Are Not Enough to Solve Health Inequities:

Environmental Injustice, Corporate Influence and the Public’s Health

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Tracey Woodruff, PhD, MPH
Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences
University of California, San Francisco
 

Dr. Tracey Woodruff will discuss how industrial chemicals pollute air, water, food, and dust and will explore the science behind their contribution to chronic health conditions. She will illustrate how the burden of exposure disproportionately falls on vulnerable populations and contributes to health disparities, and elucidate the role of corporate influence on science in contributing to these conditions. She will discuss her experience in strategies and approaches to address these environmental injustices.

 

 

January 15, 2020
12:00-1:30PM

UCSF Mission Hall, Room 1406

On the Question of Race, Racism, and Biological Embedding:

A Critical Race Approach to Population Health and Health Inequities

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Amani Allen, PhD, MPH
Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences and Epidemiology
University of California, Berkeley
 

This talk will explore the concept of race and discuss how ontological conceptions of race impact the questions we ask, the nature of our scientific investigations, and the conclusions we draw from scientific evidence. I will discuss racism as a determinant of health and the need for conceptual rigor for advancing the study of race, racism, and embodiment in social epidemiology. Drawing on recent findings from the African American Women’s Heart & Health Study, the talk will demonstrate the use of mixed methods research and intersectional framing to examine how racism gets into the body to impact health, and conclude with a discussion of implications for how we approach population health.

 

 

December 4, 2019
12:00-1:30PM

UCSF Mission Hall, Room 1406

Uses and Misuses of DNA Methylation to Explain Health Inequalities

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David Rehkopf, ScD, MPH
Associate Professor of Medicine
Primary Care and Population Health
Stanford University
 

DNA methylation is a biological system critical for human physiological function. It is more stable over time than many biomarkers, but, unlike genotype, it is dynamic depending on the environment. Two difficult challenges for studying the impacts of social and economic factors on health are: 1) the lag time between exposure and health outcomes, and 2) the need to evaluate multiple health outcomes to understand the impacts of policy change. In this talk, I will discuss what we know about how DNA methylation may help to address these challenges, with the goal of providing the best evidence possible for understanding the impacts of policies for decreasing inequalities in health.