Abt's The Intersect

Qualitative data indicate guaranteed income programs—which provide cash directly to beneficiaries—provide real stability to people in need. But, while we wait for the quantitative data to come in, the jury’s still out on how to maximize this approach. What do we still have to learn about cash transfers as a means of empowering people, and can making payments directly to households be a more effective way of providing rent subsidies? Dr. Jill Khadduri and Dr. Hannah Thomas discuss the outstanding questions in the latest episode of The Intersect.

With the Education Sciences Reform Act up for reauthorization, there’s an opportunity to revisit how we use data to promote equitable educational policies and approaches. Drs. Karen Gray-Adams and Rebecca McGill Wilkinson discuss building equity into the evaluation process—from community involvement to planning randomized control trials—to ensure we can identify the best way forward for every child.

Pollution. Lead poisoning. Community policing. Imprisonment. The challenges of environmental justice are even bigger than you may realize. Abt’s Dr. LaToria Whitehead and Dr. Jennifer Bronson discuss how systemic and structural racism has disproportionately thrust Black families into a brutal cycle linking dangerous environmental conditions, poor health, and involvement in the justice system.

In Ukraine, Russia’s invasion has destroyed infrastructure and threatens the economy. In sub-Saharan Africa, the climate crisis is stressing already-fragile health systems. In this podcast, Joan Chahenza and Nadiia Zaritska discuss how the establishment and maintenance of resilient energy systems—be they distributed or part of the grid—can incorporate GEDSI principles while serving vulnerable populations.

With reasons ranging from a lack of affordable housing to rising medical costs, more and more people over the age of 55 are experiencing homelessness. While the national data show the beginning of an alarming trend—with a 73-percent year-over-year increase in chronic homelessness among the elderly—the effects are in full bloom in Washington, DC. Abt’s Brooke Abrams talks to Miriam’s Kitchen’s April Veney and Adam Rocap—who provide supportive services in the capital—about what they’re seeing on the ground and how we can provide support and address root causes.

Summer EBT was recently authorized as a federally funded, national nutritional program for school-aged children. It’s a difficult program to implement and sustain, but it’s vital to the more than 20 million children who rely on it to support their nutrition when school isn’t in session. In this podcast, Abt’s Rene Nutter talks with Tyra Shackelford, Chickasaw Nation’s Sumer EBT administrator, about what it takes for a successful Summer EBT implementation.

Abhorrent racial disparities in America’s criminal justice system are well-documented, but less covered is the over-representation of people with disabilities. Drs. Jennifer Bronson and Hassan Enayati discuss how supports from elementary school through the hiring process can help mitigate the links between disability and employment opportunities as social determinants of justice.

Surveillance, resilience, adaptation—these activities happen at local and national levels around the globe. As the climate crisis grows—with interlocking symptoms ranging from extreme weather to higher human exposure to zoonotic diseases—how can we coordinate systems to go beyond human health to planetary health? Amanda Quintana, Adam Schaefer, and James White share their ideas in the latest episode of The Intersect.

Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) provide essential healthcare to people who are uninsured or underinsured, and the support they provide doesn’t stop there. In this podcast, Abt’s Ann Loeffler and Dr. Kimberly S.G. Chang— Family Physician and Director of Human Trafficking and Health Care Policy at Asian Health Services in Oakland, Calif., discuss the role health centers play in everything from participatory democracy to combatting racism.

To improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, government agencies called for air-tight buildings. To reduce the transmission of COVID and the impact of pollutants emitted in homes by products ranging from stoves to personal care products, scientists and engineers looked for ways to improve air circulation. As harmful particulate matter from wildfires crosses international borders, we’re reminded yet again that safeguarding air quality for public health is a balancing act that we can’t afford to get wrong. Drs. Tiffany Harris and Jonathan Dorn discuss the challenges—and possible solutions.