The Center for Research on Genomics and Global Health (CRGGH) aims to facilitate a global understanding of the relationship between human genetic variation and population differences in disease distribution, with the ultimate goal of informing health disparities. Investigators in the CRGGH will develop genetic epidemiology models that will explore the patterns and determinants of common complex diseases in populations in the United States and other human populations around the world. The establishment of the CRGGH, a trans-National Institutes of Health (NIH) effort, brings about an opportunity for it to be a leader in public awareness regarding how genomics is informing health and human history.