Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Coalition

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Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging
Coalition

• Cathy Liles, M.P.H.
• School of Rural Public Health,
• Texas AM Health Science Center
• Tuesday, August 5, 2008

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Why Build a Coalition?

• Create synergy
• Share resources
• Work toward common goals
• Create alliances among those who might not
  normally work together
• Increase communication among groups
• To plan and launch community-wide initiatives
• To create long-term, permanent social change.

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Steps in Building a Community Coalition

• Identify need and determine focus What do we
  want to do?
• Identify benefits of collaboration Why do we
  want to do it?
• Identify Key Partners and stakeholders Who
  should be at the table?
• Identify a Champion/s, community partners Who
  has passion for this idea?
• Bring everyone together When and where should we
  meet?

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Steps in Building a Community Coalition

• Define purpose and direction
• Commit to unifying mission
• Define roles
• Share leadership
• Ensure communication
• Identify vision and goals
• Be flexible

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Green Gray Success

• Implementing smart growth principles improves
  community health
• Implementing active aging strategies improves
  community health
• What synergies could develop if we married these
  two concepts?
• What benefits could accrue by partnering to
  integrate these concepts?

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Baby Steps

• A small group of people interested in this idea
  held an organizational meeting to see if might be
  beneficial to formally bring a group together for
  a coalition
• EPA announces Building Healthy Communities
  recognition award program
• We said, Think Globally, Act Locally!
• The small group began planning

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Identify Key Partners

• Planning Sector
• National Governmental
• Regional Planning
• County Governmental
• City Governmental
• City Council
• Planning
• Economic Development
• Developers
• Academic
• Architecture Urban Planning

• Aging Sector
• Local AAA
• Non-profit Agencies
• Elder Aid
• BVCAA
• AARP
• Academic
• SRPH
• Kinesiology
• Service Providers
• Retirement Communities
• Assisted Living

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Identify Key Partners

• Health Sector
• Brazos Valley Health Partnership
• County Public Health
• Regional Public Health
• Hospitals
• Geriatricians
• Faith Community
• Academic
• Blinn Nursing School
• TAMHSC Medical School

• Activity Sector
• Regional Governmental
• Senior Games
• City Governmental
• Parks and Recreation
• Senior Centers
• Commercial
• Gyms
• Academic
• Parks and Recreation
• Kinesioligy
• SRPH

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Feed Them and They Will Come
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Key Issues

• Regional or local?
• Limit to aging population?
• Goals?
• Rural participation?
• Senior voices in planning?
• Showcase successes?
• Add transportation sector?

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Involve Partners

• Leadership
• Meeting space
• Work groups
• Refreshments
• Presentations
• Projects
• Planning
• Communication

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Identify an Opportunity for Quick Success

• Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging
  National Recognition Program
• What is the National Recognition Program for
  Communities that Combine Smart Growth and Active
  Aging? The principal goal of the Building Healthy
  Communities for Active Aging Award program is to
  raise awareness across the nation about healthy
  synergies that can be achieved by communities
  combining Smart Growth and Active Aging concepts.
  
• Awards will be presented to communities that
  demonstrate the best and most inclusive overall
  approach to implementing smart growth and active
  aging at the neighborhood, tribe, municipality,
  county, and/or regional levels.
• Two types of awards will be madethe Commitment
  Award and the Achievement Award. The Commitment
  Award recognizes communities that have developed
  and begun to initiate a specific plan to
  implement smart growth and active aging
  principles. The Achievement Award will be given
  for overall excellence in building healthy
  communities for active aging.
• Who can apply for an award? Applicants must be
  public-sector entities in the United States and
  coordinate with their local Area Agency on Aging.
  Public-sector entities include all levels of
  elected governments, from city councils to state
  legislatures and their subdivisions such as
  planning departments and other executive branch
  divisions. Applications are due September 12,
  2008.

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Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging
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Commitment Award for Excellence in Building
Healthy Communities for Active Aging in the
Brazos Valley, TX

• The Brazos Valley Building Healthy Communities
  Coalition (BVHCC) was formed in 2007. Our first
  accomplishment was the successful receipt of the
  Excellence in Building Healthy Communities for
  Active Aging Award from the United States
  Environmental Protection Agency. As the central
  planning unit for regional activities and a
  partner in the coalition, the Brazos Valley
  Council of Governments was designated as the
  applicant organization. The application featured
  five programs/projects in our area which
  demonstrate our involvement in and commitment to
  Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging.

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Brazos Valley Health Status Assessment

• The Brazos Valley Health Partnership, consisting
  of non-profit organizations, academic
  institutions, regional health care
  representatives, local governmental
  representatives, and key community stakeholders,
  carried out the regional assessment. This group
  is dedicated to improving health status and
  access to care in the Brazos Valley through
  collaboration of services and creation of local
  partnerships.

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Brazos Valley Area Agency on Aging
Transportation Program

• BVAAA Transportation Program has consists of a
  region wide door-to-door service provided by
  qualified senior volunteers in their personal
  vehicles, a taxi program utilizing rented
  vehicles and a combination of volunteer and paid
  drivers and five volunteer driven vans in the
  rural counties

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Active Options Physical Activity Census

• The Physical Activity Census identified physical
  activity programs available for seniors in the
  six rural counties. Brazos Valley Health
  Partnership members assisted in identifying key
  community stakeholders and programs for the
  survey. The program listing is accessible on the
  web. http//activeoptions.org/

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Wolf Pen Creek Park

• Developed by the City of College Station, the
  park design balances the interrelationships
  between drainage, erosion control, and recreation
  along a local creek. The park offers a variety of
  outdoor recreation experiences for all ages
  including walking trails, picnicking, and an
  amphitheater for entertainment and community
  events.

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Downtown Bryan Revitalization

• project aims to create a vibrant historic
  business district and accentuate the uniqueness
  and diversity of the community while maintaining
  the historic integrity of the past amidst a
  multi-use business/residential environment. An
  integral element of the project is the
  partnership between the municipality, private
  businesses and property owners.

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Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging

• Achievement Award Winners
• Atlanta Regional Commission, Georgia
• City of Kirkland, Washington
• Commitment Award Winners
• Brazos Valley Council of Governments, Texas
• Carver County Public Health Division and Carver
  County Health Partnership, Minnesota
• City of Rogers, Arkansas
• Queen Anne's County Housing Authority, Maryland
• Town of Scarborough, Maine

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Celebrate Success!
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Media Alert

• Media Alert Brazos Valley Wins EPA Award
• What Brazos Valley Building Healthy Communities
  Coalition (BVBHCC) Celebration
• When February 13, 2008 from 330-500pm
• Where LaSalle Hotel (Brazos Room) in Downtown
  Bryan at 120 South Main Street 
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys ( EPA)
  Aging Initiative is spearheading a national award
  which recognizes communities for their
  outstanding comprehensive approaches to
  implementing principles of smart growth, as well
  as strategies that support active aging. Two
  types of

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Vision and Mission

• Vision Every Brazos Valley community ensures the
  opportunity to enjoy healthy active living.
• Mission The mission of Brazos Valley Building
  Healthy Communities Coalition is to engage local
  and regional decision makers to partner, plan,
  and propose integrated strategies for healthy
  living.
• Tagline Building a Healthy Brazos Valley

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Plan for the Future

• Leadership
• Goals
• Short term
• Long term
• Focus
• Building enthusiasm
• Maintaining momentum

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Community Garden Project
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Community Gardens provide an opportunity to
incorporate Smart Growth principles at the
neighborhood level
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Identify Key Partners

• State Extension Service
• Master Gardeners
• Junior Master Gardeners
• County Governments
• Parks
• Trails
• RSVP
• City Governments
• Parks and Recreation
• Planning

• Law Enforcement
• NET (Neighborhood Enforcement Team)
• Crime prevention
• Community Service
• Neighborhood Watch
• Local Farmers Market
• Retirement Communities

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Identify Key Partners

• Schools
• Faith Community
• Neighborhood Associations
• Brazos Valley Obesity Prevention Network
• Commercial
• Funders

• BVHP
• Academic
• SRPH
• Horticulture
• Architecture
• Parks and recreation
• Kinesiology
• Student Volunteers

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Small Group Planning Meeting for Community Garden

• Agenda
• Welcome
• Introductions
• How and where the Idea/Opportunity came up
• General community concerns regarding promoting
  healthy environments
• Summary of Dr Lees class Questions
• North Carolina Model
• Questions
• Roles and Responsibilities
• Action Plan
• Recommendation (if any) to present to BVHCC

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Bittle Lane Park

• Project Summary
• LAND601 Landscape Architectural Design Theory
  (2-Week Studio Project)
• Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban
  Planning
• Texas AM University Fall Semester 2007

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Lessons Learned

• Amazing enthusiasm for project
• Incredible resources to support Community Gardens
  in our region
• Start small
• There have been and continue to be community
  gardens in the region
• We need to learn from our mistakes and take
  advantages of learnings from successful gardens
• Safety concerns are important

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Lessons Learned

• Get buy in and commitment from the
  local/neighborhood  folks before beginning
• Find local champions
• Develop a protocol rather than one big project
• Think in terms of intergenerational projects
• Develop a model that can be in the rural areas as
  well as the peri-urban areas
• Plan for sustainability from the beginning
• The time seems to be right!

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www.LNActiveAging.org
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Go Texan Certified Retirement Community

• Application Section
• A . Client information
• B. Chief elected official
• C. Local contact person
• D. Web search criteria
• E. Population information

F. Payment exact population x .25 cents or
5,000.00 (whichever is the higher amount) G.
Chief elected official signature H. Checklist for
Go Texan Certified Retirement Community
program application
 Texas Department of Agriculture  Rural Economic
Development Division  P.O. Box 12401  Austin,
Texas 78711
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• We can do more working together than any of us
  can alone !