Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

This proposal, a new initiative of an existing multidisciplinary research team, aims to undertake a multi-stakeholder consultation to understand the healthcare demands of Quilombola women in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (RS), Brazil, particularly their precarious access to public healthcare. Direct descendants of formerly enslaved individuals populate Quilombola communities. They access public healthcare at a significantly lower rate than both Afro-Brazilians in general and the urban and rural poor. The goal is to conduct a consultation to prepare a future research project to understand the reasons behind this disparity. Using different consultation formats (online and in-person; conversation circles, workshops, status and information-gathering meetings, and planning sessions), the PI and collaborator will consult with state actors (state and city health policymakers, representatives of municipal and state governments, and elected city councillors and state representatives) and civil society actors (representatives of the Black Movement and Quilombola organizations, and especially women leaders of Quilombola Communities). The anticipated outcome of this proposal is a research project. The PI will rely on the consultations to craft a community-centred, participatory action research design project (Fals-Borda, 1987; Freire, 1968), which, once executed, will enable a.) state and civil society actors to implement strategies to improve health outcomes for Quilombola communities, and b.) the creation of a catalogue of best practices to address health inequities befalling populations whose life chances have been negatively impacted by an extractivist or settler colonial system and a neglectful postcolonial social order.