Alameda County, California experiences severe disparities in health outcomes and related disparities in education, poverty level, and housing. The depth of these disparities was first documented in the Alameda County Health Status Report (CHSR) 2000, and reiterated in the subsequent 2003 and 2006 Status Reports. Data from the CHSRs have sparked debate among residents and policy makers, and guided the Alameda County Public Health Department leadership to accelerate conversations about broadening the department's efforts to work more closely with community partners to address the social conditions that create health inequities. Funding for this report was provided by Public Health Foundation.

In California, the West Modesto King Kennedy Neighborhood Collaborative has facilitated a partnership between Heifer International and Project UpLift, an after-school mentoring program.

The Double Up Food Bucks Project encourages low income consumers to use their federal food assistance benefits to purchase fresh produce at farmers markets in Detroit and across the State of Michigan, as well as at participating gas stations, convenience stores, and other participating outlets in Detroit.

A parent-led walking group serves as the resident task force to the Get Moving Kern coalition and is reversing barriers to healthy eating and safe walking in their rural, predominantly Latino community of Kern County, California.

This citywide department pays special attention to achieving equity across geographic and economic boundaries while working to create an integrated network of pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure that promotes safe physical activity for residents throughout Seattle, Washington.

With a membership base of over 2,000, Community Farm Alliance spearheads policies to support family farming in rural Kentucky and creates access to healthy fresh fruits and vegetables among urban, West Louisville's primarily African American residents through a blend of programs and policies.

Hurricane Katrina was a recent memory when food scarcity became a frightening reality for many residents who already lacked easy access to healthy foods before the disaster. A food mapping effort started out as a short-term response to residents' need to get access to soup kitchens, grocery stores, or food pantries and now has become a tool for understanding

In the predominantly Latino city of Chula Vista, California, the local school district has opened its green space to the youth soccer league through a successful joint use agreement.

In an effort to improve health outcomes for children, youth, and families, the City of Salinas joined together with the Violent Injury Prevention Coalition (VIPC) and their foundation, Partners for Peace, to launch a community collaborative planning process. The resulting framework, Cultivating Peace in Salinas, focuses primarily on reducing youth violence but also addresses overall community well being.

Improving community environments requires a comprehensive approach that creates bridges across sectors. Over a period of roughly two years, stakeholders in the western unincorporated area of Alameda County (also called "The Eden Area") came together to identify, discuss, and debate the most important issues facing their communities and to develop a collective vision of livable communities and a prioritized set of actions.

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