Anga Center Community Collaborative Core

Columbia Univ New York Morningside, New York NY

Investigators

Abstract

Modified Project Summary/Abstract Section East Africa faces increasing exposure to extreme weather events (EWEs), including droughts, floods, and heatwaves, with serious implications for health and well-being. These hazards, exacerbated by existing temperature extremes and changes in precipitation in this region, disproportionately affect communities with limited resources to prepare for and respond to environmental stressors. Despite these impacts, there is a lack of research to understand how extreme weather influences the health and well-being of these communities and how best to mitigate and prevent negative impacts. The Anga Center for Community Health and Well-being addresses this gap by advancing applied research and regionally relevant solutions. Through cross-sectoral collaboration, capacity building, and fostering sustained community partnerships, the Center aims to improve health outcomes and preparedness in high-risk areas of East Africa. The Community Collaborative Core (CCC) strengthens local and regional health science and research by cooperating with community members from three East African (EA) nations (Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania) throughout the research process. The Core’s strategy for achieving this emphasizes close collaboration of individual- and organizational-level stakeholders from populations disproportionately affected by extreme weather, such as residents of informal settlements, pastoralists, and small-holder farmers. Guided by community-based participatory research (CBPR) and principles rooted in the local Ubuntu philosophy, our Community Collaborative Core team will comprise 3 community collaborative boards (CCBs) and a research team of 18 Field Managers and 36 community data collectors. These teams contribute to the study design, data collection, interpretation, and translation of findings to local action. Aligned with the broader mission of the Anga Center, the CCC promotes reciprocal learning and actionable research. By facilitating multi-directional partnerships between community members, academic institutions, government, and humanitarian sector actors, the CCC helps ensure the Center's activities are locally grounded and practically relevant. The CCC will achieve this through the following aims: facilitate multi-directional engagement among community members, researchers, and institutions (Aim 1); employ and train local field staff and data collectors to support high-quality research (Aim 2); and ensure that results are interpreted and applied in locally relevant, actionable ways (Aim 3).