Community Partners

Our community partners are integral to many of our research projects. By working with these established community organizations, we can develop studies with real relevance to real-world problems that volunteers feel comfortable participating in.

• Common Threads: Cooking Up Health is a culinary medicine course for health professionals and students developed by faculty from the Osher Center for Integrative Health at Northwestern University, in partnership with the nonprofit community organization Common Threads. Together, we are passionate about promoting health and preventing disease through nutritious and delicious food to combat the obesity and chronic disease crisis by educating future healthcare professionals and at-risk children and families.
• Cultivate Collective: Cultivate Collective's vision originated in 2013 in response to decades of systemic inequities facing Chicago's southwest side. They have developed an evidence-based community model where education, wellness, sustainability and economic vitality work in harmony to drive meaningful, multi-generational impact. We have partnered with them to help build sustainable and equitable futures within our community and establish continued progress for future generations.
• Roots & Wings: This charitable foundation supports integrative and wellness programs that increase emotional, physical and spiritual well-being during continuous oncology treatment for metastatic breast cancer (MBC). The Osher Clinic supports this goal by offering acupuncture and massage therapy to MBC patients to improve their quality of life.
• Asociación Latina de Asistencia y Prevención del Cáncer de Mama (ALAS-Wings) / Latina Association for Breast Cancer: ALAS-Wings conducted a 12-week Spanish-language yoga research study, Estoy Lista, with women diagnosed with breast cancer and their care providers. They are also currently working with Osher Center on a Spanish-language mindfulness pilot study focused on Latinx cancer survivors using the Wakeful app, funded by the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.
• Above and Beyond: The vision of Above and Beyond is to build an individualized treatment experience that is available to anyone in need regardless of their economic status. This substance abuse recovery center in Garfield Park is a longstanding partner with whom we have been developing and testing a mindful garden intervention called GROW.
• Universidad Popular: Joins us in the Health Literacy Initiative (HEALIN), including movement classes, healthy cooking, monthly seminars and annual fairs, to respond to health issues facing Latino communities in the Chicago area
• Imerman Angels: Works with us to recruit teens and young adults with cancer for a randomized controlled trial comparing mindfulness meditation and yoga.