Public Health Beyond Borders (PHBB), a nonprofit organization founded by UMD students, won the prize for “Most Collaborative'' project in the 2021-2022 Universitas 21 (U21) RISE Showcase & Awards.
The project is one of five chosen to receive a $2,000 award, selected from a showcase of 20 projects that were nominated from across U21’s international network of 27 prominent research universities.
Public Health Beyond Borders (PHBB) empowers families and communities, both locally and globally, to achieve their best health through health education workshops and advocacy. Started in 2012 as Public Health Without Borders, PHBB’s mission is to reduce health disparities around the world and increase awareness about good health practices, while providing undergraduate and graduate students with opportunities for responsible global development work through faculty-mentored international trips. PHBB recently incorporated as a 503(c) national nonprofit that is working to establish chapters at universities across the country.
“I am so proud of what Public Health Beyond Borders has accomplished and congratulate them on this well-deserved recognition,” said School of Public Health Dean Boris D. Lushniak. “Public health is a team effort, so it is fitting that they are being recognized for the ‘Most Collaborative’ project by U21.”
Since the organization formed, approximately 1,000 undergraduate and graduate students have worked on 13 international partnerships, delivering 39 community-based interventions, and reaching nearly 3,000 children and community members. Current PHBB projects are located in Peru, Sierra Leone, India, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Prince George’s County, Maryland. The funding and support gained from the U21 RISE Showcase & Awards will help PHBB scale the impact of its global reach.
U21’s RISE (Real Impact on Society & Environment) highlights student achievement in sustainability and social innovation and is designed to accelerate the scale and impact of student-led projects by connecting them with a network of experts in academia and industry.
The Office of International Affairs (OIA) and the Do Good Institute (DGI) host a campus-wide contest each year to select the UMD representative(s) for RISE. PHBB received an additional $1,000 in funding from OIA and DGI for winning this year’s campus competition and created a video to pitch their project in the RISE Showcase.
Cali Moore, Do Good Institute program coordinator, said, "Public Health Beyond Borders has done incredible work in the last few years with their partners around the world and here in Prince George's County. They work closely with students, faculty, and community leaders to create thoughtful and sustainable community-centered projects. We are so proud of their selection as ‘Most Collaborative’ and think the honor is well deserved!"
This is the third consecutive year a UMD-nominated project has won a prize in the final round of the U21 RISE Showcase & Awards. FundEd, an organization that seeks to bridge gaps in the educational, tuition and after-school needs of identified underprivileged children from lower-kindergarten through eighth grade in India through direct cash transfers and technology, won “Most Collaborative” in 2021; and ROOTS Africa, a nonprofit organization that works with agriculture students in Africa and the U.S. to increase crop yields and socioeconomic conditions for farming communities in Africa, was selected as the winner for “Most Innovative” in the international network’s first RISE Showcase and Awards in 2020.