Six Global Trends in Health Equity

No matter where we are in the world, we all want the opportunity to live our fullest life possible. 

We all want to live in a community where our loved ones have access to healthy foods, inviting green spaces, and safe affordable housing. A community where we engage, support, and maintain the health of our caregivers and grandparents.

But we don’t all have the same opportunities to make those dreams come true. Across the U.S., people separated by only a short drive or a few subway stops may have life expectancy gaps of up to 20 years. Discrimination and racism limit opportunities for many of us in jobs, education, lending, housing and the legal system. This is not inevitable; it is not the result of “poor decisions” or “bad genes” or even poverty. This is the result of unfair laws and policies that value some people more than others. 

A different future is possible. Many places around the world are addressing their own structural inequities and working toward repairing, solving, and sustaining changes to move them closer to health equity.  What can we learn from community leaders, policymakers, and health practitioners abroad that might help our communities in the U.S. thrive? 

To begin answering these questions, RWJF partnered with global experts to identify emerging health equity trends around the world and to find what other countries are doing to address them. 

The trends highlighted in this report—and the ways countries are grappling with them—demonstrate that collective power and community wisdom can help transform institutions, systems, and social practices that obstruct equal opportunity for good health.

The role of climate change and artificial intelligence will be evident in all trends, as these two factors are impacting the health equity landscape now and will continue to do so for years to come.

Solutions from Around the World

The examples spotlighted in these trends are more than isolated illustrations; they are embers of inspiration for different choices we could make.

Communities around the world have taken steps to anchor health equity within institutions, systems, and social practices that have previously obstructed equal opportunity. We see sweeping policy solutions that have fundamentally altered cities’ or countries’ approaches to social determinants of health.

We can learn a great deal when we open ourselves to ideas and experiences from outside our borders with respect and enthusiasm for how they might help us address our own challenges.