Necessary Conversations: Understanding Racism as a Barrier to Achieving Health Equity

The story of our nation is one of justice and freedom, but the unspoken truth is too many people are shut out of equal opportunities because of the color of their skin. Civil Rights laws and advocacy movements have brought racial inequities to light, but have not solved urgent problems caused by structural racism. This inequity has led to wide-scale poorer health outcomes and shorter life spans.Structural racism refers to the persistence of inequity in communities of color while others benefit from a disproportionately larger share of the nation's resources. There is indisputable evidence that the impacts of this inequity are generational. Structural racism has led to a lack of basic healthcare, education, housing, and other needs for too many in our nation.Authentic conversations about racial inequities are essential, difficult, and urgent. There are many forces that prevent people from talking about racism. Without honest reflections on race and the history of this nation, conversation and narratives often generate unproductive fear, shame, guilt, avoidance, and denial. We need to move past that to a place of healing and action. A book by RWJF's chief science officer, Dr. Alonzo Plough, shows us how.

Developing New Systems of Data to Advance a Culture of Health

Introduction: The system dynamics that are driving changes in health and health care in the United States are not well captured by standard data collection activities. We need systems of data that can inform policy and program development and reflect the increasing recognition that all aspects of people’s lives—their work, families, and communities and not just formal health and health care services—support active and healthy living. Culture of Health Action Areas: Within the Culture of Health Framework, there are four action areas that are farther upstream in the sequence of change and point to additional need for more nuanced approach to data collection: building a shared value of health; fostering collaboration to improve well-being; creating health more equitable community environments; and transforming health and health care systems. These action areas define the Culture of Health framework that we hope will spur research and strategies across sectors to improve health. Conclusion: The action framework for advancing a culture of health will guide the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s grant-making and strategic collaborations. The hope is that it will also catalyze changes in how researchers and organizations collect health related data at all levels

Cool Rationalities and Hot Air: A Rhetorical Approach to Understanding Debates on Renewable Energy

A key obstacle to the wide-scale development of renewable energy is that public acceptability of wind energy cannot be taken for granted when wind energy moves from abstract support to local implementation. Drawing on a case study of opposition to the siting of a proposed off-shore wind farm in Northern Ireland, we offer a rhetorical analysis of a series of representative documents drawn from government, media, pro- and anti-wind energy sources, which identifies and interprets a number of discourses of objection and support. The analysis indicates that the key issue in terms of the transition to a renewable energy economy has little to do with the technology itself. Understanding the different nuances of pro- and anti-wind energy discourses highlights the importance of thinking about new ways of looking at these conflicts. These include adopting a "conflict resolution" approach and "upstreaming" public involvement in the decision-making process and also the counter-productive strategy of assuming that objection is based on ignorance (which can be solved by information) or NIMBY thinking (which can be solved by moral arguments about overcoming "free riders"). (c) 2008 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.