Mark Edberg, Ph.D., M.A. Associate Professor, Department of Prevention and Community Health, with secondary appointments in the Department of Anthropology and Elliott School of International Affairs.
Dr. Edberg is currently principal investigator (PI) and director of the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health (Avance Center), an exploratory research center on health disparities with recent funding from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIH), and current funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- addressing the co-occurrence of substance abuse, youth violence, and sexual risk, and engaging in obesity prevention.. He is also founder and director of the Center on Social Well-Being and Development (CSWD), under which there is currently a working relationship with UNICEF, and current/recent projects in Ghana, Indonesia, South Africa, Jamaica, Belize, and a U.S. immigrant community.
A cultural anthropologist with a focus on public health (domestic and global), Professor Edberg is particularly knowledgeable about how poverty and marginalization intersect with key health issues, such as HIV/AIDS, substance use and youth violence. A researcher and consultant with strong interests in theory and in developing and evaluating prevention programs, Dr. Edberg says, "It has been my goal to contribute whatever I can to bridging the gap between the public health approach to these challenges and the ways in which affected populations understand and frame their relationship to a specific issue." He has done field or project work in urban North America, Mexico, Panama, Central America, Jamaica and elsewhere in the Caribbean, South Africa, Ethiopia, Ghana and other countries. He retains a strong interest in immigrant and refugee populations, collaborating closely with organizations and residents in the Hispanic/Latino and Southeast Asian communities.
Professor Edberg is trained in qualitative research methods as well as mixed methods approaches, and has experience in program design, implementation and evaluation, community participatory research methods, social marketing, mass media and public information, all essential tools to avoid the cultural roadblocks that sometimes impede effective public health efforts. As well, he is a working musician and founder of The Furies, a modern rock band that plays original music in the DC area (www.furiesmusic.com), and its recent offshoot, the Black Shag Sherpas (www.blackshagsherpas.com).