Unlocking Local Solutions: Using Participatory Systems Science to Understand and Address Societal Changes with Dr. Brita Roy

Dr. Brita Roy utilizes participatory systems science to explore and address complex public health and social challenges. Her work focuses on employing innovative methods, such as group model building, to engage diverse, multi-stakeholder groups in collaborative efforts to systematically map community-level factors that drive and result from these challenges. Using insights gathered from these systems maps, she collaborates with stakeholders to identify context-specific interventions and conducts pragmatic trials to evaluate their effectiveness. By fostering inclusive dialogue and co-creation, Dr. Roy has applied these approaches to pressing issues such as gun violence, incarceration, and health-related social needs across various communities and populations within the United States. Her work exemplifies the transformative potential of participatory engagement and systems-based intervention design in addressing real-world public health and social complexities.