Developing Reciprocal Research Partnerships with Long-Exploited Communities

Research teams increasingly include community consultants and advisory boards in their research to ensure it is more responsive to communities. Little of this work has been applied to Black people who use drugs, who are being disproportionately impacted by the overdose crisis. This presentation will discuss lessons learned from St. Louis’s CENTER Initiative, a community-academic partnership aiming to reduce overdose, confront the impact of trauma, and invest in the long-term wellbeing of Black people most impacted by addiction, drug use, and overdose. Specifically, the presentation will discuss: 1) designing and planning a community-engaged research project in collaboration with people with lived experience; 2) building broad community partnerships; and 3) developing and fostering a Community Advisory Board in a community that has been previously exploited by research and policy.
Speakers:
Dr. Devin Banks is a licensed psychologist and Assistant Professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Dr. Banks’ research examines how racism, race and culture impact substance use and its treatment and prevention with a focus on interpersonal and environmental determinants of health.
Maria Paschke is a project director and community research scientist with the CENTER Initiative at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She has over ten years’ experience in the nonprofit field in community outreach, training, evaluation, and program management.
Recording date: December 14, 2023
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