Desmond Upton Patton, PhD, MSW, discusses the groundbreaking mission of SAFELab, a research initiative he leads as part of his work in the School of Social Policy and Practice and the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Patton’s research — which is supported by grant funding from the Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education — helps to uncover new ways to support youth in navigating grief and violence on social media, engages members of the most impacted communities as experts in this work, and promotes joy and healing to create safe, thriving neighborhoods.
