National Health and Livability Summit

Step Into Action

The outcome of the National Health and Livability Summit is a call to action for the park and recreation community, public health officials, and concerned non-governmental organizations to collaborate in the effort to improve health and livability.  "Step Into Action" provides a framework for this to happen.  Click here to view the publication.

Oak Lawn Park District is Making Waves

The following is a great example of how partnership, programming and persistence can pay off in the fight against obesity. From the Illinois Park and Recreation Association’s Weblog:

"In 2004, the Oak Lawn Park District began addressing the issue of obesity. To better serve the residents, the park director developed a healthy living program for the staff. Her philosophy was to lead by example. This “healthy living club” met once per month to discuss health, wellness, fitness and proper nutrition. The park district staff has since carried over these ideas into the seasonal programs offered by the Oak Lawn Park District.

The park district even revised the mission statement to reflect this new philosophy: Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for all ages, abilities, and ethnic backgrounds by offering a variety of leisure services that will promote physical and mental wellness.

With the rise in childhood obesity, the Oak Lawn Park District has been actively working for several years to combat this epidemic. Specific youth health and fitness programs have been implemented incorporating the message of proper nutrition and exercise throughout already established programs.

We recently partnered with Advocate Hope Children’s Hospital to develop a youth health and fitness program called Hope for Fitness. This program was specifically designed to promote a healthy lifestyle. Participants sign-up for this program though the hospital where they go through an orientation. Each 8-week session meets at the Oak Lawn Park District’s Oak View Center for a 2-hour class (1 day per week). The first hour is spent with the parents & participants and Hope Hospital staff, which include a nutritionist, counselor, dietician and a physician. The second hour is spent with a park district fitness instructor.

The Oak Lawn Park District offers a variety of fitness programs for all ages and abilities as well as programs specifically designed for children. Two of these programs are Silly Willy Workout and Parent and Child Workout. Silly Willy Workout is geared for children ages 3-5 and helps develop an early interest in fitness. Children learn the fundamentals of fitness through hopping, jumping and galloping. The Parent and Child Workout program is geared for children ages 7 and up with a parent and focuses on toning and aerobic workouts.

In addition to regular fitness programs, this summer we will be offering two new programs - Commit To Be Fit Health and Fitness Camp and Making W.A.V.E.S.

The Commit To Be Fit Health and Fitness Camp is a 5-week camp that is designed, for youths ages 10 -17, to develop life-long healthy habits. Participants learn about proper nutrition and exercise. Each participant will also receive a fitness band, jump rope and education handouts.

Making W.A.V.E.S. (Weight, Attitude, Visualize, Energetic, Stay) is a one-hour class that is half educational & fun workshops and half water aerobics class for kids. Participants will learn and participate in healthy ways to lose Weight, change their Attitude on fitness, Visualize a healthy lifestyle, learn ways to become more Energetic and Stay fit & healthy.

Healthy living is a life long commitment and the Oak Lawn Park District administration and staff prides themselves in their commitment to enhance the quality of life for all the residents of Oak Lawn."

Mayor Franklin Stresses Equality of Access to Parks

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin speaks at the National Health and Livability Summit on the importance of providing the "haves" and the "have nots" with access to parks, recreation, and opportunities for physical activity.

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Mayor Franklin Supports "Integrated Transportation Planning"

At the National Health and Livability Summit, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin speaks about the struggle to relieve traffic congestion while encouraging citizens to get out of their cars and connect with the outdoors.


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Atlanta's Mayor Franklin Goes "2 for 1"

At the Keynote Luncheon for the National Health and Livability Summit, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin cited a well-known Harvard University study on the benefits of exercise and gets a great reaction from the 375 park, recreation, and public health officials in attendance.


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Partnerships: A Strategic Vision

When looking to create effective partnerships--whether it be with municipal government, national nonprofit groups, or local businesses--St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman says that it's crucial to understand the expectations and roles of all parties involved.

It's advice that Coleman and his city followed when creating their six-point strategic plan to position St. Paul as a leader in providing quality education, healthy living, thriving commerce, and other goals.

There is, Coleman contends, a "direct correlation between healthy communities and healthy lifestyles."

The mayor delivered his address during the "Keys to Successful Partnerships: Uncommon Alliances to Advance a Common Agenda" session at the National Health and Livability Summit on Thursday morning.

Listen below to his remarks:


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Special Presentation to Prepare Advocates for Taking Action

This special video presentation was created as part of a series that will educate park and recreation advocates on the key factors in advancing the health and livability agenda.


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Ad Council's Shrek / Play Ad

Check out this very cool ad created for the Ad Council's efforts to support the HealthierUS.gov campaign. It's designed to encourage kids to get outside and play an hour a day.


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Indy Gets It

Across the country, more and more cities are turning to parks, recreation and open space as a way to simultaneously emphasize livability and stimulate economic activity. It’s a lesson that the city of Indianapolis, the host of the 2007 NRPA Congress & Exposition, followed when announcing plans for its proposed Cultural Trail, a six-mile linear park that will run through the heart of the city, commandeering existing traffic lanes to connect its five cultural districts.

Public art and interpretive signage will pepper the trail. Officials are hoping that it will go a long way in helping Indianapolis to distinguish itself from other metropolitan areas, and make the city a draw for tourists and new residents and businesses alike.

Brian Payne, president of the Indianapolis Foundation, a leading partner on the project, says the trail is the element that could finally put his city on the map.

“It’s the tipping point,” says Payne. “It’s why people will extend their conventions for a few days or take a three-day trip to Indianapolis. We think the Cultural Trail will be the closer, the piece that will connect everything.”

The concept of connectivity, says Payne, is what makes the Cultural Trail such a unique concept. “Cities that are still concerned with simply laying down a number of miles are missing the point,” says Payne. “It’s the interesting and useful things you connect to that make a huge difference in a community. It’s what makes a city an exciting place to live in or visit, and what differentiates it from other cities.”

When completed (in fall 2008, if all goes as planned), the Cultural Trail will become the downtown hub for the city’s entire greenway master plan, a network that will not only allow visitors access to the vibrant Indianapolis arts and cultural scene, but that will also become an integral part of the city’s appeal to business and the nation’s mobile workforce.

Billie Jean King Praises Tennis in Parks

The tennis legend, who will be the keynote speaker at the 2007 NRPA Congress, is a leader in advancing the availability of tennis facilities and training opportunities in public parks. In this video segment, she tells the crowd gathered at the U.S. Open about her experiences.


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Outside the Box

It's not just an obesity epidemic, says Helen Mahan, it's an epidemic of physical activity.

Mahan is a project officer at Active Living by Design, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that works to increase physical activity through community design, policy, and communication. Our environment, she says, supports sedentary lifestyles.

Basically, the theory is that we carry out our lives in a series of boxes: from the home box to the car box to the work box to the car box (again) and back to the home box. In between boxes, we experience little to no physical activity.

The solution, says Mahan, is to integrate chances for physical activity into daily routines by building neighborhoods with sidewalks, providing access to walkable downtowns, and linking trails and greenways to areas of interest.

We had an opportunity to catch up with Mahan after her session, "Designing Public Spaces for Active and Healthy Living," at the National Health and Livability Summit and ask her a few questions. Listen to what she had to say below:

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Public schools and parks departments set sail on new program

Dr. Jayne Greenberg, District Director of Physical Education and Health Literacy for the Miami-Dade County Public Schools, talked briefly with NRPA's field agent, Matt White of the Illinois Park & Recreation Association.

She explained how the public schools can effectively work together with the parks and recreation departments to expand physical education programs.

Her "Anchors Away" program is a program that impacts students with disabilities - teaching them to sail, kayak and snorkel in the Miami-area waterways.


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Vending Sense

Think about the number of children and teens you see running through your parks and recreation centers on a daily basis. Now take a second to consider the fare that you’re offering in your vending machines. Does “partially hydrogenated” come to mind?

If so, it’s probably high time to make a change. Offer kids healthy snacks as a viable substitute to junk food, and they’ll eat healthier.

OK, well, maybe it’s not as simple as that. But providing an alternative to salty, fatty chips and sugary drinks is a good place to start.

Christine Lafontant, a recreation program manager with San Diego County Parks and Recreation, addressed this topic during her session today at the National Health and Livability Summit.

Done correctly, Lafontant defends, food and beverage contract strategies and concession management practices can support healthy eating while still allowing agencies to meet revenue goals. We had an opportunity to ask Lafontant a few questions about what her agency has done right. Listen below:

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