Research In Action

Like so much over the past year, COVID-19 has altered the planning for the 11th annual Community-Driven Research Day (CDRD) event. Held annually each winter, CDRD brings together community-based organizations (CBOs) and community groups from the Philadelphia area with researchers from the following co-sponsoring institutions: Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; Drexel University; the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine; Temple University; Thomas Jefferson University; and The University of Pennsylvania.

The event’s aim is to foster connections, collaboration, and partnership between community groups and academia through community-based participatory research (CBPR), which is rooted in the involvement of community partners and research partners in all phases of research, allowing community capacity and related opportunities to be developed and sustained.

A New Approach

We are pivoting from the normal in-person face-to-face interaction during this event, and the 2021 CDRD event will be held virtually with a theme of Resilience and Action to Improve Health. While our traditional poster session is not possible, the virtual setting has allowed us to develop a new, interactive event format: Presenters from local CBOs and community groups will deliver a live, 3-minute presentation in two separate sessions about their organization and research questions of interest. In these breakout sessions, presenters will also have the opportunity to meet faculty, staff, and students from the sponsoring institutions and learn about their research interests.

Using this innovative approach we anticipate that participants will have the opportunity to ask very targeted questions, and a moderator will help guide the discussion so that it’s relevant to all involved. Presenters will leave the event having the opportunity to meet with a variety of faculty and students from the sponsoring institutions who have a keen interest in partnering with community-based organizations, while non-presenting participants will have the opportunity to request in advance which break-out sessions they would like to attend, ensuring that their time is spent conversing with organizations that have similar interests and research goals.

Additionally, we are excited to announce that the keynote speaker for CDRD will be Barbara Israel, DrPh of the University of Michigan's School of Public Health and the Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center. Dr. Israel is a world-renowned CBPR researcher with extensive experience conducting CBPR in collaboration with partners in diverse communities, and will be able to provide real world examples of successful community-academic partnerships.

Pilot Grant Funding Opportunity

Following the event, all CDRD presenters will have the opportunity to apply for pilot grant funds in partnership with a faculty member, student (with a faculty mentor), or postdoctoral fellow from a sponsoring institution. If selected, the funds can be used to support a one-year pilot research project that builds and maintains respectful, trusting and mutually beneficial relationships between academic and community partners, utilizing a CBPR approach.

CDRD Details & Additional Information

The 11th Annual CDRD will be held virtually on Thursday, February 11, 2021 from 10am-12:30pm EST. Registration is now open for both presenters and attendees. For additional information and to register, click here.

Access and share the CDRD flyer

Read a prior blog post about the origins of CDRD and past successful partnerships