Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in his 1963 letter from Birmingham Jail: “Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.”

At Kansas Health Foundation, we know that the health of one affects the health of all, and we are committed to eliminating the inequities that cause the greatest health disparities in our state.

Throughout 2025, we will highlight our Building Power and Equity Partners (BPEP) working to advance racial equity and address health disparities in Kansas.

Social Determinants of Health

When we talk about “health disparities,” we’re referring to preventable health differences directly related to the unequal distribution of social, political, economic, and environmental resources (CDC.gov). Factors like income, location and education shape these social determinants of health.

Consider health insurance. If you have affordable healthcare through your job, you’re more likely to get regular screenings that prevent health problems before they occur. If your job doesn’t offer affordable healthcare, you’re less likely to be able to access these preventative screenings. Access to jobs that provide affordable healthcare is a health disparity.

Kansas won’t lead the nation in health by making healthy people healthier. A healthy Kansas requires addressing systemic inequities that prevent Kansans from accessing the resources they need to live full and healthy lives.

The Work of Our Partners

And that’s the work of our BPEP initiative –  the largest single investment focused on racial equity in KHF’s history. Thirty organizations are working with and in communities of color to change the systems that prevent access to nutritious foods, financial resources, affordable housing and more.

For example, Common Ground Producers and Growers, a mobile market on a mission to build a better tomorrow – where food is a policy issue and not a profit issue – serves communities directly affected by food insecurity and in areas deemed food deserts.

Another of our partners focuses on building economic equality. Black Entrepreneurs of the Flint Hills works to bridge the racial wealth gap by increasing the net worth of black families and individuals through entrepreneurship, ownership, and by becoming employers to create positive economic growth.

Hope Community Development Corporation aims to help low-to-moderate-income residents break the cycle of poverty by administering affordable housing programs and services.

These are just three of the 30 BPEP organizations empowering people across Kansas to address social determinants of health.

Focused on justice and equality in education, housing, wages and more, Dr. King’s vision for a more equitable and just America continues beyond the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s into the present day.

Our BPEP partners contribute to this vision by advancing racial and health equity in their communities. Throughout 2025, we will be featuring each of them so you can learn more about their missions and vision for the future of Kansas.

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Read more BPEP stories here.