Watson, Public Health faculty receive grant to advance reproductive health

Faculty from Watson and the School of Public Health have received a $250,000 grant from the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation to organize a conference and research projects intended to address sexual and reproductive health issues in Latin America and the Caribbean.

October 26th, 2015

Faculty from Watson and the School of Public Health have received a $250,000 grant from the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation. The grant will be used, in collaboration with the International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere Region (IFFP/WHR), to organize a conference at the Watson Institute, followed by joint research projects, to address sexual and reproductive health issues in Latin America and the Caribbean.

With the support of a previous grant from the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, colleagues from Brown, Watson, and the IPPF/WHR held a workshop during which three key themes emerged: adolescent fertility and pregnancy; gender-based violence; and masculinities and men’s sexual and reproductive health. They also identified two cross-cutting themes: the role of the state and civil society, and the impact of social enterprise in contributing to high-quality, rights-based sexual and reproductive health services. 

The upcoming conference will bring together service providers from Latin America and others who are affiliated with the IPPF, researchers from Brown University, and other experts. Attendees will seek creative ways to bridge this gap between the challenges faced by advocacy organizations and practitioners on the ground and the research agendas of academics.  The goal is to craft collaborative research plans and develop actionable solutions that advance the sexual and reproductive health of the Latin America and Caribbean people.                       

The faculty involved are Nitsan Chorev, Harmon Family Professor of Sociology and International Studies; Omar Galárraga, assistant professor of health services, policy and practice; Matthew Gutmann, professor of anthropology; and Andrew Schrank, Olive C. Watson Professor of Sociology and International and Public Affairs.

-- Sarah C. Baldwin