​

Education and Advocacy

Education and advocacy are core components of all activities at HEI. Whether through formal programs or through public education, HEI strives to bring visibility to the root causes of health inequities and to advocate for solutions that may enable people to live healthy and productive lives. We also provide resources to empower organizations and communities to speak the language of health equity and to incorporate this kind of work in their own professional and/or community-led efforts.  We stir conversations and promote debate at the national, local, and global level.  We are relentless in our belief that each one of us is part of the solution.  

As we grow, our education and advocacy work will focus primarily on the following topics:
​
Social Discrimination and Health Equity

• Increase recognition about the negative impact of social discrimination–across issues of poverty, racism, xenophobia, gender, LGBTQI+ status or others–on determining health and social outcomes
• Strengthen capacity, opportunities and processes for the development of community-driven and multisectoral solutions to address and mitigate the impact of social discrimination

​
The Role of Urban Design in Promoting Health Equity

• Heighten awareness on how the built environment intersects with issues of safety, access to healthy lifestyles, and the overall physical, mental and emotional health of our communities

• Advocate for the participation of communities and non-designers in the urban design process
• Hone the skills of community leaders and non-designers to participate in the design process, while also strengthening the ability of urban designers to engage communities

​
Community Engagement and Multisectoral Partnerships

• Advocate for the development and implementation of community-driven multisectoral interventions and policies to address key social determinants of health
• Provide opportunities for sharing results, best practices, and other information that may fuel organizational and policy change