Building a Stronger Community
Our Goal
UAB’s proud history of partnership with Alabama’s LGBTQ communities is the foundation of the Center for the Study of Sexual and Gender Health. By meaningfully engaging with and empowering LGBTQ community members locally and nationally, including collaborations with established and well-respected service organizations, the Center is building the local expertise needed to navigate the complex and evolving landscape of research and programs in the region. We also sponsor academic and social events to connect people and expand personal and professional networks across the South.
Current Collaborations
We are working with AIDS Alabama to create a community-academic partnership that engages stakeholders to develop hyper-local, place-based outreach strategies to increase the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among racially/ethnically diverse LGBTQ communities.
We are working with Birmingham AIDS Outreach to develop a harm reduction intervention for people engaging in sex work in Alabama. This project is grounded in syndemics theory and implementation science frameworks to directly address the needs of an underserved population through our community-academic partnership.
We are working with Five Horizons Health Services to explore social connectedness among Black gay and bisexual men aged 40 and older, looking at difference between California and Alabama through a personal social network approach to inform the creation of an intervention addressing loneliness and social isolation.
Community Events
Upcoming Events
No upcoming events currently scheduled. Please check back soon!
Past Events
SGM Health Research Regional Workshop in the Deep South
Date: April 8-10, 2024
Co-hosted with the NIH SGMRO, this workshop helped to increase understanding of the NIH structure and processes, develop mentoring relationships within the extramural research community, enhance capacity to conduct SGM research, and provide opportunities to interact with NIH staff, community members, and established researchers in SGM health.
Building Bridges Between Implementation and Governance: PrEP and COVID-19 Projects in Brazil
Date: October 23, 2023
Inês Dourado, MD, MPH, PhD and Laio Magno, MSc, PhD delivered a seminar about two large scale projects in Brazil as part of the UAB Department of Epidemiology’s weekly seminar series.
2023 Pop Up
Date: October 22, 2023
In collaboration with our community partners – AIDS Alabama, Birmingham AIDS Outreach, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, HICA, and the Human Rights Campaign – we had great beats from our very best DJs, delicious eats from our tasty food trucks, and storytelling by Barry McNealy about Bayard Rustin.
Fun Home Talk Back with UAB Theater Department
Date: October 13, 2023
We collaborated with UAB’s Theater Department in the College of Arts and Sciences to do a “talk back” following their performance of Fun Home. Based on Alison Bechdel’s memoir, the musical tells her story as she grapples with her relationship with her gay father, who died by suicide only months after Alison herself came out.
Dr. Lisa Bowleg
Date: April 17-19, 2023
Keynote speech and two-day workshop with Dr. Lisa Bowleg, Founder, President, and Co-Director of Programs at the Intersectionality Training Institute
Dr. Karen Parker
Date: February 12-15, 2023
Director of the NIH Sexual and Gender Minority Research Office
Dr. Sofia Gruskin
Date: October 21, 2022
Director of the University of Southern California Institute on Inequalities in Global Health
2022 Pop-Up
