On June 5 and 6, 2025, the UChicago Center for Chronic Disease Research and Policy in partnership with the University of Chicago Office of Research and the Cancer Center, hosted Chicago CARE (Collecting and Aligning Research to Achieve Health Equity), one of 18 symposia across the United States to identify problems and strategize together on solutions to achieve health equity.

Over two days, researchers, policymakers, and leaders from foundations and community organizations convened over presentations, panels, and breakout sessions, with overarching goals of discussing current funding streams and healthcare outcomes impacting Chicago communities, developing a research plan focused on disease prevention and equitable investments, launching working groups to create policy recommendations to enhance research, clinical practice, and patient care across Chicagoland, and designing a philanthropic plan to bridge federal and state gaps and promote cross-sector partnerships.

The findings from Chicago CARE will be incorporated into an action plan to guide the Collective to Strengthen Pathways for Health Research, an alliance of the Doris Duke Foundation, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, Burroughs Wellcome Fund, Dana Foundation, Donaghue Foundation, Prebys Foundation, Robertson Foundation, Susan G. Komen, and additional philanthropic partners, in their next steps to unite resources for research to improve disease treatment and prevention.