Presentation given by Genoveva Islas-Hooker at the Session: "Raising A Healthier Valley: The Future Is Now" at the Great Valley Center's Annual Conference on May 6, 2010 in Modesto, CA.
Valley Up: Creating Healthier Communities in California’s Central Valley
1. Valley Up: Creating Healthier
Communities in California’s
Central Valley
Presented by:
Genoveva Islas-Hooker, MPH
Regional Program Coordinator, CCROPP
Great Valley Center Annual Conference
2. California’s Central Valley
Central California
stretches almost 300
miles.
It’s home to more than
3.8 million residents. The
population is expected to
more than double 2050.
Our families represent
over 70 ethnicities and
speak over 105 languages
making it one of the most
culturally diverse areas in
California and the nation.
3. Poverty in Central California
Annual unemployment rate is
almost 2x greater than the
unemployment rate for
California.
21.7% of our population live
below 100% of the FPL, the
average rate in California is
15.5%
More than 1 in 4 of our
children live in a household
whose income is below 100%
of the FPL.
4. The Paradox
Within our valley lies one of the
largest and richest agricultural
regions in the world.
Families still struggle to put
food on their tables.
"It's ironic that those who till the soil,
cultivate and harvest the fruits,
vegetables, and other foods that
fill your tables with abundance
have nothing left for themselves."
-Cesar Chavez
5. Overweight & Obesity
1 out of 3 children, <12 years of
age, are overweight and obese
17.2% of adolescents, ages 12-17,
are overweight and obese
64.3% of adults, ages 18-64, are
overweight and obese
62.9% of adults age 65 and over
are overweight and obese
Source UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, 2003; 2007; 2009
7. Working Together
Grassroots Community Members, including youth
Community Based Organizations including Fresno Metro
Ministries, Kern County Network for Children, Livingston Medical
Group, Community Partnership for Families of San Joaquin, Ceres
Partnership for Healthy Children and Tulare County Nutrition
Collaborative
Public Health Departments in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera,
Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tulare counties
California State University, Fresno
9. Our Approach
We believe that in order for community members to eat healthier and
be active they need the environmental context and policy support to
practice these behaviors.
10. Assessment
How easy is it to eat healthy?
How easy is it to be physically active?
Challenges
Limited access to healthy foods.
• Cost, availability and convenience of fast food, distance/transportation
Limited opportunities for physical activity.
• Safety, air quality, heat, closed green space, no park or limited use
parks, loose dogs
12. Access to Healthy Food
Maximizing EBT & WIC at
Alternative Food Outlets
Merced and Atwater Flea
Markets
Ceres Farmers Market
Madera Farmers Market
Kern County Department
of Public Health farmers
market
13. Access to Healthy Food
School Farm Markets/Stands
Farmers Market at
Burroughs Elementary
School
Pixley Elementary School
Fruit and Vegetable Stand
14. Access to Healthy Food
Small Store Conversion
Youth in Kettleman City
transformed their only
small store , the Hla Hla
Market. Good quality
affordable produce is now
available.
15. Opportunities for Physical Activity
Making Parks Safer
Stiern Park,
Bakersfield, CA
• Greenfield Walking
Group
• Cesar Chavez Youth
Leadership
Program
16. Opportunities for Physical Activity
Improving Park Amenities
Pixley Park
Pixley, CA
• Soccer Goal Posts
• Youth rebuilt park
arbor
17. Opportunities for Physical Activity
Built Environment
Inclusion of health elements in
general plans
• Include accommodations
for complete streets;
walking, biking, etc…
18. Institutional Change
Worksite Wellness
Policies center around the
• Healthier food choices
(removal of unhealthy
items from vending
machines)
• Promotion of increased
physical activity
• Promotion of breast-
feeding
19. Unexpected Successes
San Joaquin Valley voice &
identity influencing/informing
statewide & national work in the
field.
Grassroots Community
Leadership (Assets not liabilities)
Increase Community Cohesion
Immigrant Integration
Increased Civic Participation
20. Some Lessons Learned
Obesity Prevention through policy and environmental change:
is intensive and takes time – don’t rush it.
necessitates relationship building across stakeholders – find your
allies, transform your opposition.
requires a deep level of community engagement – kitchen table
work by candlelight
grassroots leadership development is fundamental to sustainability.
requires educating decision makers and persuading them to act -
grassroots advocacy & mobilization.
should be community driven- they are the experts!
21. Social Determinants of Health
The social determinants of health are the conditions in which people
are born, grow, live, work and age, including the health system.
These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power
and resources at global, national and local levels, which are
themselves influenced by policy choices.
– Commission on Social Determinates of Health
22.
23. For more information…
Genoveva Islas-Hooker, MPH
Regional Program Coordinator
1625 E. Shaw Avenue, Suite 106
Fresno, CA 93710
gislas@csufresno.edu
p: 559.228.2142
f: 559.228.2149
visit us at www.ccropp.org
Good Morning, I am Genoveva Islas-Hooker. I am the regional program coordinator for the Central California Regional Obesity Prevention Program
It’t my honor to be here to talk with you about CCROPP. The slides on this page are of our School farm stand in Pixley, the Greenfield Walking Group and the Farmer’s Market at Buroughs elementary.
Rural areas are remarkably poorer than these averages reveal….and many are primarily Latino.
In order to be successful CCROPP must work in context to the issues specific to our region.
Poverty
Food Insecurity
Transportation
Diverse Cultures and Languages
Limited Resources
Urban and Rural needs
In 2003, the percent of overweight and obese Valley teens was 15.2%. This is 3 times greater than the national objective of 5%.
In 2003, the percent of overweight and obese Valley adults was 63.4%. This is more than 4 times higher than the national objective of 15%.
In 2003, the percent of overweight and obese Valley teens was 15.2%. This is 3 times greater than the national objective of 5%.
In 2003, the percent of overweight and obese Valley adults was 63.4%. This is more than 4 times higher than the national objective of 15%.
Large scale situational inducement
2008 zoning ordinance change
Fresno City Ordinance on Farmer’s Markets revision now permits farmers markets in neighborhoods.
Merced and Atwater Flea Markets (combined there are more than 6,000 visitors per weekend)
Ceres Farmers Market
Madera Farmers Market (has the highest WIC redemption rate in the state)
Kern County Department of Public Health farmers market (first market to be certified on public health department grounds)
Farmers Market at Burroughs (first ever to open on Fresno Unified school grounds)
Pixley Fruit and Vegetable Stand
Greenfield Walking Group transformed it’s now safer and more accessible for residents to enjoy recreational activities
Cesar Chavez Leadership Program youth documented Stiern Park challenges, wrote a grant for new play equipment and received healthier, safer playground
Youth rebuilt park arbor to make their local park more inviting and more accessible
CCROPP sites have built partnerships with city and county planning departments
CCROPP partners inform key stakeholders about the role public health plays in the built environment
Inclusion of health elements in general plans
Restricting fast food businesses
Residential development to remain walkable/bikeable
George: Networking with peer cbo&apos;s and PH departments / technical experts / web / topical conferences / CA Convergence /
Mathilda:
The goal is to share a common understanding of what CCROPP as a policy and environmental change intervention, occurring in a natural environment entails in terms of its implementation and program impact expectations. It reports and draws on the experience of CCROPP Phase I.
It includes
The soft complex systems theory as its theory base
An intervention model that involved several iterative steps
c) An evaluation approach which emphasizes both process and short-term outcomes It also suggests process and short-terms outcome measures and starts a discussion on levels of change.
It demonstrates community driven approaches, need to understand local institutions and suggests that several local conditions may have shaped program implementation at each site.
Improve Daily Living Conditions
Tackle the Inequitable Distribution of Power, Money and Resources
Equity and Justice
Promoting the sales and consumption of more fruits and vegetables is linked to economic development for our region – green jobs.
Increasing healthy food outlets and access to physical activity space is linked to greater community safety, increase community cohesion and community ownership.
Designing communities for walking/biking and not driving supports air quality improvement and abates climate change.
The social determinants of health are mostly responsible for health inequities - the unfair and avoidable differences in health status seen within and between countries.
for me, the most striking thing in our research, is that the inequalities in health and quality of life we observe through mortality data, chis, systematic observation....
the communities at greatest risk for obesity face a compilation of health challenges: infrastructure, housing, air, water, rec potential, job prospects, unfair marketing etc.....and a consistent pattern of worse health outcomes...
white, affluent, suburban neighborhoods dont....the solution isnt to build more of these suburban neighborhoods....but in recognizing that building them is a major contirbutor to the poor health elsewhere
our poor overall health performance compared to CA and nation: about how we live and how we get care......
may 26 event Place Matters: SJV Regional Equity Forum
basically, i think we have been making the same case....so its hard to think what to say