Action for Health in the Americas (AHA) is the North American counterpart of Educación Popular En Salud (EPES), based in Chile. EPES has been supporting sustainable community-based public health initiatives among the poor in Chile since 1982. AHA was founded in 2006 to ensure that supporters in the U.S. received regular updates on the work of EPES and could make tax-deductible donations that would immediately support the work of EPES.
AHA board members are all volunteers who have all been involved with EPES at some point over the last several decades and bring a variety of healthcare, non-profit, academic, religious, and other experiences. Members include:
- President: Christina Mills, MD FRCPC, Past president, Canadian Public Health Association*
- Vice President: Melanie Nelson, Learning ZoneXpress*
- Treasurer: Denise Johnson, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church*
- Secretary: Meghan Ochal, MPH, Public Health Analyst
Members:
- Sonia Covarrubias, EPES Foundation
- Sheila Dauer, PhD, Women’s Human Rights Advocate
- Roberta Gianfortoni, Harvard School of Public Health (retired)*
- Betsy Grob, Early Childhood Consultant and Editor
- Carol Larkin, Prince of Peace Lutheran Church*
- Julie Strong, Educational Consultant
- Rev. Dr. Dale A. Young, Lutheran Pastor, ELCA*
AHA also has an advisory board to provide additional guidance and support to AHA. Members include:
- Karen Anderson, MEd, MPH, ELCA Global Mission personnel in Chile*
- Fabiola Letelier, Chilean human rights lawyer
- Julia Paley, PhD, Author of Marketing Democracy: Power and Social Movements in Post-Dictatorship Chile*
- Susan Weissert, Board Member, Hesperian Health Guides*
*Affiliation for identification purposes only.
Action for Health in the Americas 