The Walter N. Ridley Distinguished Annual Lecture: Eduardo Esteban Bustamante
2025 at the Intersection of DEI and Public Health
- - EST
- Holloway Hall, Bavaro 116
February 27, 2025, 4 PM – 5:30 PM, with a reception starting at 5:30 PM
Ridley Lecture Overview
Since 2023, 14 bills have been signed into law to restrict DEI offices/staff, training, statements, and identity-based hiring practices in the United States. In response, 213 college campuses in 33 states have made changes to offices, jobs, trainings, diversity statements, and other DEI-related activities. Driving these laws are arguments and objections to DEI that have gone largely unaddressed in scientific circles. This lecture examines the role of DEI in health science with an emphasis on synergies, tensions, and controversies throughout. With concrete outcomes and established models, health behavior research provides an informative lens for addressing anti-DEI objections (e.g., meritocracy, opportunity cost, mission drift) and maximizing the value of DEI initiatives in higher education and beyond.
Bio
Eduardo Esteban Bustamante is an Associate Professor of Kinesiology and Nutrition at University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) where he directs the UIC Healthy Kids Lab (HKL). The UIC HKL works with parks, schools, and out-of-school time providers to develop and disseminate health promotion interventions among children and families in underserved communities. Dr. Bustamante has received multiple awards for teaching and community engagement and has a special focus on the influence of health behaviors on children’s mental health. His findings have been published in high-level scientific journals and funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Heising-Simons Foundation, and the Chicago Partnership for Health Promotion. Over two decades, he has participated in and operated a dozen DEI initiatives and written extensively about the role of DEI in public health promotion efforts. Currently, Dr. Bustamante is a Trustee of the American College of Sports Medicine and the President-Elect of the North American Society for Pediatric Exercise Medicine.
Event Information
Event Sponsor
- Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Event Type
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Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion