ABOUT US
The Black Health Education Collaborative is a community of scholars and practitioners committed to improving Black health through education and research. Our mission is to address anti-Black racism and the interlocking systems that impact the health and wellbeing of Black communities across Canada. We understand Black health and Black life as intricately connected to the places and spaces in which we live, work, love, play, worship and resist. We draw on long histories of community and academic scholarship and resistance from Black, critical race theory, queer, feminist, anti/decolonial traditions.
We will amplify Black community voices through the development of first person, story-telling resources that document the experiences in seeking, accessing and creating health supporting resources and services, experiences and resistance to anti-Black racism and promising and innovative practices to improve Black health in Canada.
We will develop a suite of educational resources for students, faculty and clinicians/practitioners in health disciplines, grounded in critical race theory. This includes:
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Developing a Black Health Primer for medical and health professional students, faculty and educators to support transformative learning on anti-Black racism and racially just practices.
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Supporting faculty and educator development in anti-racism pedagogy to facilitate the teaching of content on Black Canadian health.
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Championing continuing professional development on anti-Black racism and Black health for health professionals and clinicians as a pathway to improve patient care and community health and wellbeing.
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Establishing a virtual platform on Black Canadian Health and critical race theory for health professionals and educators to promote ongoing learning, knowledge sharing and practice development.
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Developing national learning objectives on anti-Black racism and Black health.
OUR TEAM
Leadership team
Dr. OmiSoore Dryden, co-Lead
Associate Professor
James R. Johnston (JRJ) Chair in Black Canadian Studies
Department of Community Health & Epidemiology
Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University
Dr. Onye Nnorom, co-lead
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Lead, Department of Family and Community Medicine and Black Health Theme Lead, MD Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
Associate Program Director, Public Health and Preventive Medicine Residency Program, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Clinical Consultant, Nicotine Dependence Clinic, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health;
President, Black Physicians' Association of Ontario
Ms. Sume Ndumbe-Eyoh
Director, Black Health Education Collaborative
Assistant Professor, Clinical Public Health Division
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Members
Dr. Delia Douglas
Anti-Racism Practice Lead, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences
Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management, University of Manitoba
Adjunct Professor, Department of Sociology and Criminology, University of Manitoba
Dr. Barbara-Ann Hamilton Hinch
Assistant Vice‑Provost, Equity and Inclusion
Associate Professor, School of Health and Human Performance, Dalhousie University
Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed
Associate Dean of Serving and Engaging Society
Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University
Early contributors
Ms. LLana James
PhD candidate, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
Post Doctoral Fellow, AI, Medicine & Data Justice, Queen’s University
Dr. Akwatu Khenti
Scientist, Centre for Addictions and Mental Health
Assistant Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health
University of Toronto
Dr. Roberta Timothy
Assistant Professor and Black Health Lead
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
LAND AND ANCESTRAL ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The Black Health Education Collaborative acknowledges with gratitude the Indigenous Peoples across Turtle Island who continue to thrive and resist colonial violence while striving for self-determination and decolonial futures. We live, work and play in various territories including the lands of the Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee and Mississauga’s of the Credit River; Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples, the Anishinaabe, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation; Kanien:keha’ka and Mi’kmaq.
We remember our ancestors, forcibly displanted Africans, brought to Turtle Island as a result of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade and the histories and legacies of colonialism and neo-colonialism which continue to impact African Peoples and the descendants of the Black diaspora across the world.
We recognize that racial colonial violence harm Black, Afro-Indigenous and Indigenous Peoples through both common and distinct logics and actions. We recognize our responsibility and obligations as African Peoples to be good guests on these lands. We offer thanks to our Elders and communities from whom we learn. May your wisdom inform our actions towards a more just future.