Sustaining Community Engagement in Genomics Research: A Workshop (NASEM)

A planning committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) held a public workshop to examine how researchers could more meaningfully engage and sustain interactions with historically underrepresented communities in research to foster their participation in genomics and precision health studies. All of Us leaders are provide their expertise to the committee and in the workshop. 

The workshop included presentations and discussions to:

• Understand limitations, both logistical (e.g., funding) and structural (e.g., past harms, lack of trustworthiness), to sustained community outreach and discuss possible solutions to those obstacles.
• Examine opportunities for researcher trainings related to sustained community outreach and engagement in genomics research. 
• Discuss community engagement methods for genomics research with foundations, societies, patient groups, and other organizations about lessons learned from how they fund, engage, form, and measure success of partnerships with communities, other foundations/organizations, and researchers.
• Explore how community engagement methods for genomics research might differ when working with various underrepresented communities (e.g. LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, racially minoritized groups, indigenous populations, women, geographically isolated groups).