UrbanHealth360

07/15/2025

The Science of Listening

Data is important. But data without listening? That’s numbers without nuance.

We’ve learned that real solutions in urban health don’t come from boardrooms alone. They come from street corners, clinic benches, food stalls, and family kitchens.

At UH360, we call this our Science of Listening. It’s how we ensure the systems we help design are based not just on evidence, but on lived experience.

Listening is not just a soft skill. It’s a strategic one.

07/11/2025

Meet some of the Visionaries Behind the Mission

There’s no substitute for experience. And at UH360, experience meets vision.
From former UN advisors and award-winning researchers…
To community builders, grant writers, field implementers, and policy shapers…
Our team has lived the realities they now help change.

They’ve been inside the halls of global health power — and outside them, listening to the people those systems often forget.
This is the power of our work:
Lived wisdom. Proven expertise. Collective commitment.

We’re not here to go viral. We’re here to shift systems.

07/10/2025

The Systems We Don’t See

Picture a hospital with no running water.
A maternal clinic you can’t reach because the roads are flooded.
A public health message no one can hear because they can’t read the language. These are the systems we don’t see — until they break.

Urban health isn’t just a “health sector” issue.
It’s a transport issue, an education issue, a housing issue, a climate issue.

At UrbanHealth360, we work across these invisible systems — bringing together policy, data, community insight, and leadership to close the gaps before people fall through.

Because what you can’t see can still make or break your health.

04/29/2024

Impactful work among amazing people. Dream Girls: Chef Ester, Artist Mary, Fashioner Designer, and Ann Kiamani who is now part of the program team are examples of the impact of this impactful Dreams Program.

04/27/2024

02/04/2023

Can you guess which was the only journal Nelson Mandela read on Robben Island? That's right – The Unesco Courier!
Check out the UNESCO Courier's special tribute to this brave advocate of human rights, and learn more about his extraordinary fight against in South Africa: https://on.unesco.org/2Roe4ns

02/01/2023

To provide our school with national and international visibility, we have instituted the appointment of Senior Scholars. These individuals are Dean-appointed accomplished leaders from the varied areas of academia, industry, policy and practice whose insight and expertise align with the public health mission of the School of Public Health and the University of Memphis. We welcome Dr. Rakesh Kumar, MD, Global Health Expert, India and Dr. Yonette Felicity Thomas, Founder and CEO, UrbanHealth360.

https://www.memphis.edu/publichealth/news/archive/newsletter-sph-202212.php

09/22/2022

Investing in girls' education leads to economic growth, declining child mortality and child marriage rates, and better lifetime earnings. Yet, 129 million girls remain out of school, with only 24 pc of countries reaching gender parity in upper secondary education.

By tackling the obstacles preventing girls' education – lack of menstruation facilities, funding, cultural taboos, and prejudices – we can create a better future across the global south.

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08/30/2022

Rowena Estwick - Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Strategy & Operations Manager at Guy’s & St Thomas’ Charity shares key insights on tackling health equity in diverse communities beyond superficial levels. Check out the podcast episode here:

Rowena Estwick's passion lies in understanding cities' roles in driving health equity and civil society organizations' influence in driving systemic change. She currently leads on developing national and international partnerships for the London-based Philanthropic Urban Health Foundation - Guys & S...

08/24/2022

Dr. Jane Battersby is an urban geographer working at the nexus of city governance, poverty, and food systems. With research efforts spanning over a decade, Dr. Battersby has contributed to advancing urban development discourse, placing a spotlight on the importance of integrating food systems in urban policy and planning practice. She shares some of the findings of her latest research, looking at household nutrition within low-income communities of Cape Town, South Africa. Dr. Battersby also discusses how transitioning to more “food-sensitive planning” could help make a positive change in the way healthy food is accessed and distributed, particularly for the urban poor. Catch the discussion here:

Dr. Jane Battersby shares insights from her research in lower-income communities in Cape Town, South Africa, looking at the intersection of urban governance, poverty, and food systems.

08/04/2022

Lee Balan is a mental health professional and manager of a "Clubhouse" program helping adults overcome mental health challenges. His artworks have been exhibited across the US and are inspired by his own experiences of mental illness. Catch his artwork at the virtual exhibition today. https://bit.ly/3Mh4crk.

08/02/2022

Over 91,000 Americans died from in 2020 alone. Nobody wants to be a drug addict. It doesn’t matter if you’re taking Percocet because you broke your back while mining or if you’re a high schooler who died because they got into grandma’s medicine cabinet. We need to look at and immediately.