How Right To Health Action built Replicable Tactics for a Nationwide Health Movement (Mini Case Study)

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There’s incredible power in uniting thousands of experts, health workers, and activists behind strategic health activism and community organizing. It’s this power that helped Jonathan Shaffer, Co-Founder and Organizer for Right to Health Action (R2H), build a grassroots movement in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. For this mini case study, we sat down with members of R2H to learn more about the critical role that strategy and tactics play in their overall efforts.

Abstract

If there’s an organization out there that embodies the strategies and tactics pillar of Ganz’s framework for community organizing, it’s Right to Health Action (R2H). They might show up at the headquarters of a big pharma on the day of a shareholder earnings call, for example, pushing wheelbarrows full of cash. They might hound campaigning politicians about vaccine access. They’re serious about correcting healthcare inequities and unafraid to use powerful and creative strategies to get there. In this case study, we chat with key members of R2H about how they’ve organized and equipped their grassroots movement in the name of breaking the cycle of deadly pandemics.

About Right to Health Action (R2H)

Right to Health Action (R2H) was founded during lockdown in March 2020 by academics, health workers, and global health veterans, brought together by our anger in facing yet another pandemic, once more being made worse by irresponsible government leaders. Since then, it has grown by tens of thousands of COVID survivors and people who lost loved ones in all 50 states to a pandemic that could have been prevented. What has happened will dominate the political landscape for millions of people for years to come. We are the people who will not “get over it” until we have won the changes we need to stop the present pandemic, mark what has happened, support the survivors, and stop the sequel. 

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How Right To Health Action built Replicable Tactics for a Nationwide Health Movement

Explore Further

Brief about Jonathan Shaffer, Ph.D.

Jonathan (Jon) Shaffer, Ph.D. is a sociologist, educator, and public health scholar whose work bridges activism, global health, and social movements. Currently Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Vermont, he combines rigorous research with hands-on organizing—from grassroots campaigns to global policy engagement—to explore how knowledge and power intersect across health systems locally and globally.

Academic Background

Education and Degrees

  • Ph.D. in Sociology, Boston University (dissertation on global public health demonstration projects in Finland and Sierra Leone)
  • B.Sc. in Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, with a minor in Global Health

Areas of Specialization

Jon’s work focuses on:

  • Sociology of global health and social movements
  • Science and technology studies (STS)
  • Epistemic politics in public health organizations

Professional Experience

Academic Positions Held

  • Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Vermont
  • Former Hecht‑Levi Fellow at Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics and Oxford’s Wellcome Centre

Research Focus and Contributions

Jon’s current research critically examines how global health organizations construct scientific knowledge and define “model” interventions—highlighting the politics and inequalities embedded in these practices. His work illustrates a deep engagement with both local experience and elite expertise.

Publications and Thought Leadership

Notable Works and Articles

  • “Knowledge, boundaries, and bodies” — a piece joining medical sociology with STS
  • Contributions to the Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission
  • Article on disciplinary engagement in global health research, analyzing contributions of anthropology, economics, political science, and sociology

Influence in Sociology and Global Health

His publications are widely cited and bridge academic theory with practical interventions. These works critique dominant epistemic frameworks and elevate subaltern health justice movements.

Personal and Professional Affiliations

Memberships and Collaborations

  • Formerly led PIH Engage at Partners In Health, GlobeMed, and the Boston Network for International Development
  • Affiliated with the American Sociological Association; reviewer for top sociology and global health journals

Community Engagement

Jon remains active in grassroots circles, organizing campaigns for the right to health and integrating activist praxis into his teaching and research. He trains health professionals and community leaders, emphasizing public narrative and constituency-building.

Summary

  • A scholar-activist merging sociology, global health, and organizing
  • Builds bridges between academic institutions and grassroots campaigns
  • Influential through research, publications, and institutional leadership in social justice
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