GOVERNMENT

Tools, Tips and How To...

• Research, Data & Reports
• Programs & Organizations
• Policies in Action
• Additional Resources

Research, Data & Reports

Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health
Dr. Marion Nestle's book exposes the relationship between government and the food industry. Dr. Nestle discusses the food industry's political and marketing strategies that influence what we know and what we eat. Strategic Alliance's inaugural events featured Dr. Nestle and the release of Food Politics in Oakland and Los Angeles, CA.

An Epidemic: Overweight and Unfit Children in California Legislative Districts
Describing prevalence of overweight and unfit children in California by State legislative district, along with individualized fact sheets for each district, and a series of policy recommendations developed by a national scientific advisory panel.

Obesity as A Public Health Issue: A look at Solutions
The Harvard Forums on Health, a project of Harvard University's Interfaculty Program for Health Systems Improvement, commissioned Lake Snell Perry & Associates (LSPA) to conduct a national poll to explore the public's knowledge about obesity as a public health issue and their opinions about various policy options to fight obesity in adults and children.

Statewide Transit-Oriented Development Study: Factors for Success in California
Produced by the California Department of Transportation, this study describes the current state of transit in California and identifies current successes, barriers to full-scale implementation of transit-oriented infrastructure and delineates future directions.

Transportation and Food: The Importance of Access
In this policy brief the Community Food Security Coalition describes the link between transportation and food access and discusses ways that transportation and food policies and advocates can converge to address issues of improved access to food.

Transportation and Health
A fact sheet of the Surface Transportation Policy Project, this document succinctly describes links between our current transportation infrastructure, obesity, asthma and safety.

Heart Check: Assessing Worksite Support for a Heart Healthy Lifestyle Version 4.1 x
The New York State Department of Health Healthy Heart Program developed an interview/survey instrument to assess barriers and opportunities to a heart healthy lifestyle in the workplace environment. The site offers technical assistance and free copies of an adapted version of the tool.

Strategies for Action: Integrating Nutrition and Physical Activity Promotion to Reach Low-Income Californians
The Strategies for Action report describes the results of a planning process, initiated by the Cancer Prevention and Nutrition Section (CPNS) of the State of California Department of Health Services, to integrate physical activity promotion into existing efforts to improve eating habits among California families with low incomes. The executive summary briefly summarizes the seven sections of the report.

Programs & Organizations

Executive Summary of the California WIC Program Strategic Plan for 2001 through 2004

Leadership for Active Living
This national initiative works with government leaders, policy makers and local leaders to create and promote active living communities. Active living communities encourage residents to be more physically active through pedestrian and bicycle oriented design and planning.

Local Government Commission
The Local Government Commission (LGC) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership organization that provides inspiration, technical assistance, and networking to local elected officials and other dedicated community leaders who are working to create healthy, walkable, and resource-efficient communities.

WIC Walks the Talk
A physical activity promotion campaign for WIC program staff and participants, which is designed to "change community norms" in California's 650 local WIC sites. California WIC Association kicked off this innovative program at its Annual Conference by inviting all of its employees to join in and count their steps. As a group, they add up their steps using pedometers, or step counters, provided by the organization to "walk around the world." Kit (hard copy or on the web) materials include step counters, registration and tracking forms, background and ongoing encouragement. California WIC has walked around the world four times since April 2003!

Worksite Wellness for Tompkins County, New York
This website provides excellent information and ideas, including a step-by-step guide for starting a worksite wellness program.

Policy Issues

California WIC FLASH
Bi-weekly policy and practice updates for the wider WIC and nutrition community. To receive, contact Karen at kfarley@calwic.org.

Commercial Alert's Childhood Obesity Agenda for States, Municipalities, and School Boards
A platform that calls for banning the sale and marketing of junk food in schools.

Harnessing WIC's Success to Prevent Childhood Obesity
A reauthorization white paper prepared by California WIC Association.

Local Government Commission Restricting Television Advertising to Children
Other countries have worked to restrict and limit television marketing and advertising to children. Prevention Institute highlights some of these efforts in this brief, one of a series written for the Center for Health Improvement Nutrition Policy Profiles.

Take Charge Challenge -- New Mexico Department of Health Physical Activity Policy
CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion highlights four policies in their State-Based Physical Activity Directory, one of which is the Take Charge Challenge that encourages physical activity among State employees. The policy currently allows employees to use up to three one-half-hour periods of work-time to participate in the fitness activity of their choice.

TEA-21: Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
Provides funds to states that can then pass on grants to locales to make safety improvements. TEA-21 funds have been a source of $30-55 million each year, according to the California Office of Traffic Safety. Traffic safety and road improvements can make roads more safe and walkable and encourage activity.

WIC Reauthorization Toolkit
Everything you need to learn about the process, the proposals, the players, and the key obesity prevention issues, all in easy format, hard copy or on the web.

Updating Nutrition Education in the Food Stamp Program: A Farm Bill Opportunity

This Prevention Institute report, commissioned by the California Association of Nutrition and Activity Providers, educates policymakers about the need to update federal approaches to nutrition education to address nutrition and activity environments.

Additional Resources

Policy Link's Equitable Development Toolkit
Economic development and equity are at the heart of many issues concerning food access and neighborhood well-being. Policy Link offers an extensive on-line reference describing specific tactics and policies for strengthening a community's economic base, structuring development and creating policies that link people to key destinations.

REACH (Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) 2010
The REACH 2010 demonstration project is led primarily by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to target six priority health areas: infant mortality, breast and cervical cancer screening and management, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, child and/or adult immunization levels and HIV/AIDS.

Understanding Nutrition: A Primer on Programs and Policies in California
This is one in a series of primers offered to assist practitioners and policy leaders in advancing their basic knowledge of complex social service systems. This Primer offers a statistical profile of the weight, dietary practices, and physical activity of Californians, a review of the relevant federal and state governmental structures and laws, a description of the programs supporting nutrition and community food security, and a review of the key policy issues.