On May 7th, the UHC was honored to host Dr. Diana Hernandez, Associate Professor of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University. Her foundational research on energy insecurity - defined as the inability to adequately meet household energy needs - has identified sociodemographic disparities, adverse consequences and promising interventions toward energy equity and justice.
In partnership with the Big Cities Health Coalition (BCHC), the Drexel Urban Health Collaborative (UHC) has released new data on the Big Cities Health Inventory (BCHI) data platform. The data platform includes more than 200,000 data points for over 125 metrics for the member cities of the BCHC. The platform now includes all available data for all metrics spanning years 2010 – 2023.
For the first time in six years, one of the Urban Health Collaborative (UHC)’s signature events, the Urban Health Symposium, gathers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – happening this year from September 4th-5th. The title of the 2025 Symposium, “Healthy Cities for the Next Decade: A Call to Action,” shapes the spirit and goals of the event – collaboration and proactivity, even through times of uncertainty.
On April 16th, the Queer Inclusion, Equity, Rights, and Health (QuIEHR) Working Group hosted the 3rd Annual Symposium on Sexual and Gender Minority Health. We hoped the symposium would serve as both a space for reflection and a rallying point, grounded in Philadelphia’s deep-rooted legacy of LGBTQ+ advocacy and positioning the city as a powerful site of ongoing resilience and collective mobilization.
