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Accompanied by African drums played by the Drummers from Home, Drs. OmiSoore Dryden and Barb Hamilton-Hinch officially launched the opening of the Black Health Researchers’ Hub (BHRH, the Hub), and a new chapter in Black health research.

Located in the Collaborative Health Education Building, the Black Health Researchers’ Hub (BHRH, the Hub) is the first space of its kind at Dalhousie University. The Hub is a dedicated, community-centered environment designed to support, connect, and amplify Black scholarship across the Faculties of Medicine, Dentistry, Health, and beyond.

The Hub is stewarded and co-led by Dr. Dryden (Tier 1 Canada Research Chair [CRC–CIHR], Black Health Studies) and Dr. Hamilton-Hinch.

As all speakers emphasized at the Hub official opening, this is more than the unveiling of a physical space.

“A door is being opened today, yes,” Dr. Dryden reflected. “But this is not simply the opening of a space. It is the opening of an institutional commitment.”

From vision to structure

The Hub was initiated as a strategic priority by Dr. Dryden during her tenure as the James R. Johnston Chair in Black Canadian Studies in the Faculty of Medicine. What began as a vision has been realized through years of persistence and collaboration across Dal’s three health faculties; a shared purpose made tangible.

The Black Health Researchers’ Hub marks an intentional shift; moving away from conversations about equity and toward the creation of structures that make equity a reality.

“Black people have always built structure under constraint,” said Dr. Dryden. “We have created knowledge systems, mentorship networks, and health advocacy movements without institutional support. The Black Health Researchers’ Hub recognizes what we have done and are doing and creates supportive conditions for it to grow. It reflects a university choosing to invest more intentionally in Black-led research and to build alongside us in a sustained way.”

Drs. OmiSoore Dryden (at podium) and Barb Hamilton-Hinch (Photo: Dal/B. Bottomley).

For generations, Black researchers have fostered mentorship, scholarship, and community often without dedicated institutional space or formal structural support. With the opening of the Hub, that longstanding gap is being addressed.

A Space designed with community in mind

The Hub has been intentionally designed as a place where academic research and community engagement intersect. It is a gathering point for undergraduate, graduate students and trainees seeking mentorship, for visiting scholars advancing collaborative work, and for community partners engaging in knowledge exchange all happening within a culturally safe and affirming environment.

"This research hub stands as a powerful testament to the trailblazers who fought tirelessly for our representation, said BSc (Medical Sciences) student Evelyn Wedderburn. “For us as students, it provides an invaluable space for true collaboration; an environment where we can safely share our lived experiences and work alongside one another. Feeling culturally acknowledged and secure is absolutely essential to our growth as Black students, and the opening of this space is a monumental step toward that reality.”

Evelyn Wedderburn (Photo: Dal/B. Bottomley).

The Hub’s governance structure is equally intentional. Grounded in Africentric, Black feminist, and queer principles, the formal framework guiding the Hub ensures accountability to the scholars and communities it serves.

The Hub is rotational and collaborative by design. It does not belong to one faculty or department. It is shared, collective and purpose-built to strengthen connection rather than silo it.

“For African Nova Scotian and Black researchers, having dedicated space matters,” Dr. Dryden noted. “It reduces isolation, supports collaboration, and creates room to mentor the next generation. But the impact doesn’t stop at provincial borders. This Hub positions Nova Scotia as part of a wider ecosystem of Black health scholarship, one that is national, diasporic, and growing.”

For doctoral candidate (PhD in Health), Timi Idris the impact is already clear.

“The opening of the Hub feels like infrastructure for our imagination,” Idris shared. “As a doctoral candidate, I am used to navigating spaces where Black health is treated as a niche or an afterthought. This Hub signals something different, that our work is central, rigorous, and necessary. It means I no longer have to study my community from the margins; I get to do it in community.”

Timi Idris, (Photo: Dal/B. Bottomley).

Building a broader ecosystem

The Hub will serve as a connection point within a growing network of Black-led initiatives. It will collaborate with projects such as the Healthy Populations Institute’s “People of African Descent” initiative, the Black Physicians of Nova Scotia, and the Black Health Education Collaborative which now has a permanent office within the space.

Together, these efforts aim to reduce isolation for Black scholars, deepen relationships with African Nova Scotian and broader Black communities and government, and position Dalhousie as a site for community-aligned, accountable Black health research.

Dr. Barb Hamilton-Hinch emphasized the symbolic and practical significance of the Hub.

“The Black Health Researchers Hub (The Hub) sends a message to Black students, Black researchers, and the community. YOU MATTER,” she said. “This space is a place where you can come, learn, grow and engage. The history and contributions of people of African descent in health is not known. The racism and discrimination and testing that has been done on Black bodies is not known. We hope to create a space where people feel safe to explore some of these challenges and to inform others.”

She also pointed to the importance of strengthening Canadian research capacity.

“We have depended too long on research from the US about people of African descent. We are excited to be able to contribute to that paucity of research in Canada — and what a better place than to do it than at Dalhousie University. Dalhousie has been the first in so many ways to show its commitment to supporting African Nova Scotian and other people of Black African descent.”

Toward more just health systems

Ultimately, the Hub’s purpose extends to scholarship and beyond. By strengthening mentorship pathways, supporting Black-led research, and embedding community accountability into institutional structures, it seeks to improve health outcomes and address inequities that have disproportionately affected Black communities. It is, at its core, about creating conditions for transformation.

“the Hub represents not just support, but possibility — the possibility of research that is bold, community-rooted, and unafraid to reimagine what health equity can look like,” said Timi Idris.

The Black Health Researchers’ Hub is much more than rooms within a building. It is a commitment rooted in collaboration, accountability, and the belief that equitable health systems must be built with intention.

Dr. Dryden is Director, Black Studies Research Institute and Professor, School of Nursing (Faculty of Health). Dr. Hamilton-Hinch is Assistant Vice Provost Equity and Inclusion, Office of Equity and Inclusion and Professor, School of Health and Human Performance (Faculty of Health).