Project RISHI @ UCLA
Our Projects
Project RISHI at UCLA is committed to creating lasting change through our diverse campaigns and programs. While we maintain a clear mission, we employ a broad range of strategies to address critical issues within the South Asian community, including water sanitation, healthcare, and women's and community empowerment.
Learn more about our initiatives and get involved yourself.
Health Advocacy
About Our Team
Through our health advocacy initiatives in Tamil Nadu, the HA team collaborates with local partners to advance community well-being by addressing substance abuse, non-communicable diseases, and dental hygiene.
Past Projects
Past Projects
Through its work in Tamil Nadu, the Health Advocacy team has focused on building health education and gathering community input in both of RISHI's partner villages. In Attrambakkam, the team developed dental health modules using a training-of-trainers (ToT) model, paired with a dental kit distribution, and conducted a needs assessment alongside primary health center (PHC) visits to understand the scope of the community's health priorities. In Vadamanapakkam, the team laid the groundwork for the TTK substance abuse awareness program, identifying that local teachers will need to attend a training in Chennai, and carried out its own needs assessment to define where Health Advocacy can be most useful. Earlier reproductive health work, including the 2024 Anahat workshops and Women's Festival, is now carried forward by the Women's Empowerment team.
Ongoing Projects
Looking ahead, the Health Advocacy team plans to deepen its work in both villages. In Vadamanapakkam, the team hopes to expand its dental and oral hygiene modules, assess whether the ToT model can be implemented there, and move the TTK program forward in partnership with school leadership and teachers. It is also exploring nutrition and diet education, including diet and portion control posters and modules and nutritional kits for maternal and prenatal care, along with antimicrobial resistance modules and wellness camps focused on nutrition, mental health, and government health schemes. The team would also like to bring in specialized doctors, such as pediatric, dental, and orthopedic providers and a mental health therapist. In Attrambakkam, the team will follow up on the dental modules to support their upkeep and improvement, assess substance abuse needs and how they intersect with dental health, and focus on helping families enroll in health schemes based on eligibility, disability, age, gender, and occupation, while also looking at nutrition and antimicrobial resistance needs. Health Advocacy will collaborate with the Women's Empowerment team on RISHI Clinic posters and modules and with E.C.E. on a scheme enrollment camp. To work more broadly, the team is reaching out to NGOs to pilot camps and to UCLA global health faculty and TAs, and it hopes to explore local work in underserved areas of Los Angeles on topics like dental health and substance abuse. Modules will be intentionally designed to be culturally relevant, built around India trip experiences and local stakeholders.