The University of Louisville and its partners have launched a new $1.5 million innovation challenge centered on tackling pressing problems in health equity.“So, food access, maternal and child health, and nonemergency medical transportation, which is getting people access to healthcare,” said Ben-Reno Weber, deputy director for the UofL Health Equity Innovation Hub. “We really are looking for innovators, particularly with lived experiences of the problems themselves, and we wrap them around with the services they need to market and scale.”The Reconstruct Challenge has a goal of closing health equity gaps in the Louisville region. The program, led by UofL’s Health Equity Innovation Hub, is in partnership with Render, an innovation studio, with funding from the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Office of Health Equity and the private operating foundation, Access Ventures.They will award 15 winners, a $100,000 grant to pilot their solutions to these issues. Each of the winners will participate in a 12- to 18-month proof-of-concept phase where they will work with community partners and UofL researchers.Applications are now open, and you can find it here.As for eligibility, if you work in the health equity space and are an incorporated U.S.-based company, you qualify. But be prepared to move to Louisville or southern Indiana and work alongside people who have experienced inequities.“That’s important because we can’t be prescriptive, we can’t tell people what they need, we have to ask people who experience these problems that we know exist,” said Gabriell Gassaway, director of research for the UofL Health Equity Innovation Hub.This year marks the 3rd iteration of the Reconstruct Challenge. In years past the initiative focused on finding solutions to homelessness and the affordable housing gap. Program officials say that based on past winners, they’re seeing the success of this initiative in the community.“We’ve distributed over $3 million in funding, made over 100 affordable housing units accessible, and gave over $50M in food benefits to struggling families, and that’s in our region alone,” said Rebecca Rice, with Render. “We believe at Render that you don’t have to choose between making money and making an impact in your community; that’s something we want to continue through the Reconstruct Challenge.”Officials hope the program continues to evoke more change and growth. They believe the recipe for success for this year’s challenge will be the collaboration of the community, academic research, entrepreneurs, and industry.But the organization measures its true impact by the lives and communities that are transformed.“We think we’ve touched about 100,000 lives and I think that’s pretty great,” said Rice. “It’s not just a big showcase and then everyone goes home, we’ll be measuring the impact in the years to come.”Applications for the Reconstruct Challenge close on Aug. 10. Click here to apply. Program officials will host an informational webinar on Thursday, July 27.
The University of Louisville and its partners have launched a new $1.5 million innovation challenge centered on tackling pressing problems in health equity.
“So, food access, maternal and child health, and nonemergency medical transportation, which is getting people access to healthcare,” said Ben-Reno Weber, deputy director for the UofL Health Equity Innovation Hub. “We really are looking for innovators, particularly with lived experiences of the problems themselves, and we wrap them around with the services they need to market and scale.”
The Reconstruct Challenge has a goal of closing health equity gaps in the Louisville region. The program, led by UofL’s Health Equity Innovation Hub, is in partnership with Render, an innovation studio, with funding from the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Office of Health Equity and the private operating foundation, Access Ventures.
They will award 15 winners, a $100,000 grant to pilot their solutions to these issues. Each of the winners will participate in a 12- to 18-month proof-of-concept phase where they will work with community partners and UofL researchers.
Applications are now open, and you can find it here.
As for eligibility, if you work in the health equity space and are an incorporated U.S.-based company, you qualify. But be prepared to move to Louisville or southern Indiana and work alongside people who have experienced inequities.
“That’s important because we can’t be prescriptive, we can’t tell people what they need, we have to ask people who experience these problems that we know exist,” said Gabriell Gassaway, director of research for the UofL Health Equity Innovation Hub.
This year marks the 3rd iteration of the Reconstruct Challenge. In years past the initiative focused on finding solutions to homelessness and the affordable housing gap. Program officials say that based on past winners, they’re seeing the success of this initiative in the community.
“We’ve distributed over $3 million in funding, made over 100 affordable housing units accessible, and gave over $50M in food benefits to struggling families, and that’s in our region alone,” said Rebecca Rice, with Render. “We believe at Render that you don’t have to choose between making money and making an impact in your community; that’s something we want to continue through the Reconstruct Challenge.”
Officials hope the program continues to evoke more change and growth. They believe the recipe for success for this year’s challenge will be the collaboration of the community, academic research, entrepreneurs, and industry.
But the organization measures its true impact by the lives and communities that are transformed.
“We think we’ve touched about 100,000 lives and I think that’s pretty great,” said Rice. “It’s not just a big showcase and then everyone goes home, we’ll be measuring the impact in the years to come.”
Applications for the Reconstruct Challenge close on Aug. 10. Click here to apply.
Program officials will host an informational webinar on Thursday, July 27.
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