Grant: Applied Public Health Chair - LOI

Recent research on programs and policies to support health suggests that understanding community environment is important for the success of those programs or policies. This means that the places where program and policy initiatives occur are just as important as how they are designed, how they are implemented, and the characteristics of the people they are meant to help. The social environment, the built (or physical) environment, policy decisions, and an individual's characteristics and behaviours work together to shape opportunities and barriers for individual and population health. Where a person lives, when and how they access the things they need in their daily life, and the policies that create their social, political, and economic environments all matter for his or her health. Therefore, understanding the relationships between people, policy, and place is essential for strong health promotion and public health initiatives. The purpose of the Policy, Location, and Access in Community Environments (PLACE) research program is to contribute to a better understanding of the people-policy-place relationships in chronic disease interventions and prevention initiatives. Work in the PLACE lab involves community-based participatory research, qualitative and quantitative methodologies, and GIS mapping. PLACE research activities span three areas: (1) implementing and evaluating population health program and policy interventions, including examining how those interventions impact health and health equity; and how interventions vary across settings (e.g., urban and rural); (2) improving methods for conducting research on community environments; and (3) actively partnering with communities and decision-makers to design and evaluation interventions, and to share the findings of research with others working in these areas. Students and early career researchers are important members of the PLACE team, and are mentored in these activities.