Expertise is not limited to individuals with direct professional experience on a given topic (e.g., academic researchers or government officials) but also encompasses community-based organizations and individuals. Community experts have a higher degree of on-the-ground relevance on environmental cancer issues. Since expert knowledge is necessary for priority-setting, fostering equitable partnerships with community members is crucial.

The lived experience of community members is especially important in identifying a response to an environmental health threat. For instance, epidemiological data can uncover there is (x) number of environmental carcinogens impacting air quality in a community. Still, that information alone can only inform an intervention strategy with community expertise. Residents know what environmental concerns plague their everyday lives; these are authentic experiences that may or may not be borne out by analysis of empirical data. Obtaining inclusive expert knowledge provides additional detail and context to the problems to be solved and is particularly useful in developing interventions (the focus of Module 4).

Use experts in your cancer coalitions and other key partners to support prioritizing targets for environmental carcinogen risk reduction in your state plan. The toolkit’s Resources section for Module 2 outlines a comprehensive list of organizations with crucial content expertise and other key partners to consider inviting into your coalition.