Episode #418 How Community-Led Initiatives Drive Health Equity, With Robyn Bussey
- Laura Hollabaugh
- 7 days ago
- 4 min read
On This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
In this inspiring episode, Dr. Huntley welcomes Robyn Bussey, a self-described "health equitist" and Health Equity Director at the Partnership for Southern Equity (PSE). With deep roots in rural Georgia and a passion for amplifying the voices of marginalized communities, Robyn shares her personal journey from growing up as the daughter of a beloved rural public health nurse to leading innovative, community-driven health equity initiatives across the American South.
Robyn provides listeners with practical insights on building community trust, supporting maternal and reproductive health, and navigating today’s complex public health landscape, especially in regions facing systemic barriers, hospital closures, and heightened political pressure. Through her work with the Just Health Academy and PSE, Robyn demonstrates what’s possible when organizations and individuals come together to center communities and drive sustainable change from within.
Discover actionable strategies for advocating health equity, building community capacity, and finding purpose and resilience. Even when the odds seem stacked against them.
Meet Robyn Bussey
Robyn N. Bussey is the Just Health Director at the Partnership for Southern Equity, where she leads bold, equity-driven work to advance health justice across the South. In this role, she supports communities, organizations, and advocates working to understand and take action on the deep connections between racial equity and health. Her focus spans climate and health, access to care, and reproductive justice, all through a lens of equity and community power.
Before joining the Partnership for Southern Equity, Robyn served as the Community Health Strategist at ARCHI, the Atlanta Regional Collaborative for Health Improvement, and as a Senior Research Associate at the Georgia Health Policy Center at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University. Rooted in the belief that racism, not race, is the fundamental barrier to health equity, Robyn is passionate about dismantling systemic injustice and amplifying the voices of Black and Brown communities across the South. Her career includes leading health improvement initiatives across metro Atlanta and designing programs that address the root causes of health and social inequities.
Robyn brings her voice and vision to coalitions, panels, and publications focused on health equity, climate justice, food access, and housing. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Florida A&M University and dual Master’s degrees in Business Administration and Health Administration from Georgia State University. A proud daughter of Waycross, Georgia, Robyn now lives in East Point with her son, and brings both her lived and learned experience to every conversation she joins about justice, community, and collective well-being.
Listen To This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
Conversation Highlights
Building Trust Is Essential: Lasting public health impact starts with genuine relationships and trust, as modeled by Robyn’s mother, a lifelong public health nurse who was a pillar in her small Georgia town.
Health Equity Means Everyone: Robyn’s approach centers on making quality health and well-being accessible to all, regardless of background, race, reading level, or identity.
Focus on Marginalized Communities: The work is deliberately centered on Black women, rural residents, low-income families, LGBTQ+ individuals, and others typically excluded from mainstream health conversations.
Community Power & Capacity Building: Through PSE’s Just Health Academy, local residents and advocates receive training and tools to become effective health equity champions and to co-design solutions with real, lasting impact.
Maternal Health and Reproductive Justice Are Front and Center: Addressing rural hospital closures, advocating for Black maternal health, and protecting reproductive rights are critical issue areas for Robyn and her team.
Collaboration Over Competition: Rather than duplicating efforts, Robyn focuses on amplifying the work of partner organizations, connecting communities to resources, and fostering regional collaboration.
Flexibility and Persistence Matter: The path to public health is not always linear. Robyn’s unconventional background in biology and business underscores that anyone with passion and dedication can make a difference.
Redefining ‘Wins’ in Public Health: Small victories like building new relationships or guiding one new community initiative, are worth celebrating and are steppingstones to transformative change.
“In community work, you have to rethink what you consider to be a ‘win’. Sometimes what may not look like much is actually huge for the people you serve.” — Robyn Bussey
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DrCHHuntley LLC is a public health consulting firm that specializes in epidemiology consulting, supporting large nonprofit organizations in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, and Florida that serve Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). We also provide nationwide public health consulting and epidemiology consulting support to BIPOC organizations across the United States.