Honored to be selected as a presenter for the Challenging Norms: 3rd Annual Conference – Uplifting Equity and Justice to Transform the Landscape of Health Sciences Education. I presented CRAVE!—my arts-based health equity initiative that blends community storytelling, theater, and public health research to address chronic disease and cancer disparities in underserved communities. Grateful to be part of a movement shifting how health education is taught and shared!

— Monifa Maat, Creator of CRAVE!

Our program's foundation is strengthened by Monifa Maat's role as a certified “Community Scientist” and her extensive collaborations. She has fostered a close partnership with Columbia University's Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC) and its Community Outreach and Engagement (COE) office. This collaboration ensures our approaches are informed by rigorous research and directly address community needs.

A key aspect of this partnership is involvement with the Community Science Institute (CSI) program, which educates community members about cancer clinical trials and increases access to research. CRAVE! has been specifically revised to incorporate CSI's messages, serving as an effective outreach tool to engage audiences and advocate for self-informed health choices. This deep connection to evidence-based community health initiatives ensures our program's strategies are both impactful and sustainable.