Since we wrote the report, a lot has changed in the past few months. We witnessed COVID-19 ravage our communities and lay bare the systemic inequities that perpetuate health disparities. The world watched as George Floyd was murdered in our backyard and our cities burned. We are trying to process our pain and grief in the midst of the pandemic. Yet we have also seen our communities mobilize to support one another, push for justice, and rebuild. Given all of this, we at the center have struggled with how and when to release this report. However, in reviewing the takeaways from the report, we realized the lessons we have learned from our community partners are relevant now more than ever.

We are deeply grateful for the leadership of our grantees over the past two decades; they have paved the way to ensure our communities have the resources, access and services needed to create their healthiest futures. Grantees have also had profound impact on systems change at multiple levels. The state’s investment in EHDI has resulted in outcomes that cannot be quantified in metrics alone. We also recognize EHDI is one element within a complex ecosystem that requires many entities working together in order to truly achieve health and racial equity in Minnesota.

We are pleased to share this report: “Cultivating a Health Equity Ecosystem: Lessons Learned from the Eliminating Health Disparities Initiative.” If we have learned anything from the last few months, it is that we will not see an end to structural inequities unless systems and institutions recognize their role in perpetuating inequities, share power and collaborate across sectors, and move to invest significantly more in community-driven solutions. Please join us in spreading this report widely.

We also invite you to join a webinar on Wednesday, September 16 from 1-2 pm to walk through the report and the lessons learned. Please register for the webinar on the Cultivating a Health Equity Ecosystem report webpage.

A huge thank you to our EHDI grantees past and present and the many staff and partners who worked tirelessly to put this report together.