Healthy Places Coalition
November 2012 Digest

The Healthy Places Coalition advances public health involvement
in land use and transportation planning to ensure that all neighborhoods in
California promote the opportunity to live a healthy life.

Opportunities for Action

Let’s Get Healthy California Task Force Releases Draft 10 Year Roadmap to Improve CA’s Health: Opportunity for Feedback
Over the past several months, the Let’s Get Healthy California Task Force has been engaged in a process to gather best practices and strategies in support of the development of a 10 year ‘roadmap’ for health in California that improves quality, controls costs, promotes individual health, and advances health equity. We strongly encourage you to review the report and participate in the feedback process on November 13th (information here) to ensure that a final draft prioritizes community-based approaches to prevention and equity.

SGC’s Urban Greening Grant Open, Technical Workshops Available
On behalf of the Strategic Growth Council (SGC) the California Natural Resources Agency will be administering the last of three rounds of a competitive grant program for urban greening projects and plans. The Urban Greening Grant program is completing a series of technical workshops to help potential applicants prepare for the upcoming round of funding for urban greening projects and plans.
Richmond Workshop- November 13th; Anaheim,- November 15th; all workshops take place from 10:00am to 1:00pm. Click here for more details and locations.

Resources

“We Can’t Drill or Drive Our Way to Health,” Nation of Change
A recent article in Nation of Change by Prevention Institute’s Jeremy Cantor and Sandra Viera relays the opportunity for advocates across the country to push hard for large chunks of $100 billion in new transportation money available through MAP 21 to be used to promote walking, bicycling, and mass transit. “We can no longer afford to rely on short-sighted solutions--it’s time to invest in transportation solutions that meet our social, physical and economic bottom lines.” Read the full article here.

California’s K-12 Educational Infrastructure Investments: Leveraging the State’s Role for Quality School Facilities in Sustainable Communities.
The Center for Cities & Schools’ new resource provides an analysis of the state’s K-12 infrastructure policies, regulations, and funding patterns and outlines recommendations to support educational outcomes that also maximizes the use of existing public infrastructure, promotes effective management and oversight. This report lays out a vision, policy framework, and implementation plan to equitably and efficiently improve learning environments for California’s 6 million students. Find it here.
 
Losing Ground: The Struggle of Moderate-Income Households to Afford the Rising Costs of Housing and Transportation
In this new report, the Center for Housing Policy and CNT have partnered again to gauge the housing and transportation cost burdens of moderate income households living in the 25 largest metro areas at the end of the decade. Many policymakers and practitioners have recognized that placing lower-cost housing in areas located far from job centers and public transit may not provide a truly “affordable” housing solution. Download the report here.