February 16th marked the exciting inauguration of our SDOH & Place Project as we warmly welcomed 15 fellows who are eager to embark on this transformative journey. The positive energy coming from the fellows was evident! We extend heartfelt gratitude to all who have supported us in making this fellowship a reality.

As a quick recap, our fellowship is a part-time virtual program under the provision of the Healthy Regions & Policies Lab at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Generously funded in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Fellows will learn how to develop social determinants of health (SDOH) place-based visualizations (e.g., asset map, story map, thematic map, or dashboard) based on a human-centered design (HCD) framework and participatory design principles. Fellows will additionally contribute to the SDOH & Place community toolkit's design, a core component of the SDOH & Place Project.

Day 1 was characterized by a friendly exchange as fellows introduced themselves, sharing insights into their diverse backgrounds and the projects they plan to complete. It was a foundational session, focused on cultivating a shared knowledge base around SDOH and Place, essential for the collaborative journey ahead.

Looking ahead, our focus turns to the design phase of the projects. Central to our approach is the principle of human-centered design (HCD), ensuring that the needs and perspectives of end-users remain paramount throughout the development process. By placing users at the center, we aim to create solutions that are robust and impactful within the communities they serve.

We invite you to stay tuned for further updates as our fellowship progresses.

Curious to learn more? Explore our first set of modules here.