We are the Community Action Research in Gerontology Lab at UCSF.
We are social scientists who investigate social justice issues that impact the quality of life of community-dwelling older adults, people living with dementia, and caregivers.
OUR VISION
At the intersection of health+aging, we envision more inclusive, supportive, and equitable environments where older adults from marginalized communities can thrive with dignity and joy.
OUR MISSION
Through community-engaged and interdisciplinary collaborative research, education, and public service, CARING Lab works to advance health equity in aging.
OUR VALUES
Partnerships
We collaborate with community partners during all phases of research projects to advance health equity in aging. We build trusting relationships through constant communication, mutual commitments, and shared values.
Responsive Learning
We foster co-learning and capacity-building among all partners toward health equity in aging. We assess successes and obstacles in an iterative process to ensure continual learning and quality improvements throughout all phases of research projects.
Elevate Voices
We seek to elevate and amplify the voices and lived experiences of marginalized older adults and their caregivers. We recognize the intersectionality of social identities, honor differences, and seek to bring cultural humility to our work to bring groups from the margins to the center. We speak up and stand alongside our partners as allies to advocate for change toward health equity in aging.
Micro to Macro Analyses
We seek to address locally relevant health situtions that emerge from and are affected by social and political determinants of health. We are committed to addressing structural inequities, power imbalances, and cumulative disadvantages to improve health equity in aging.
Critical Gerontology
We use a critical gerontological lens to the study of health and aging. This includes thinking beyond biomedical models and functional aspects of aging to reveal its political formulations as well as social and spatial effects.
Emancipatory Sciences
We are committed to building knowledges of anti-oppression, and ecouraging activist-scholar approaches to research, policy, and practice. We seek to foster a critical imagination and advance praxis that promotes healing and the reality of a just society.