CONTACT: Alycia Santilli 203-785-7651 or alycia.santilli@yale.edu
Michael Greenwood 203-737-5151 or michael.greenwood@yale.edu
For Immediate Release: July 7, 2009
MEDIA ADVISORY
Local Youth to Create Health Map of New Haven Neighborhoods
Press conference Monday, July 13, at 11 a.m. in City Hall
New Haven, Conn. — In an effort to battle chronic diseases in New Haven, teens and young adults of the city program “Youth@Work” will fan out in six neighborhoods this month, outfitted with hand-held computers and video cameras, to map what is healthy—and unhealthy—in the Elm City.
The so-called “asset mapping,” which begins July 13 and continues into August, will kick off with a press conference on July 13th, 11 a.m., in City Hall. This is the first phase of a larger, long-term research project spearheaded locally by CARE: Community Alliance for Research and Engagement at Yale University, to reverse chronic disease trends and promote a healthier city. The mapping project will pinpoint healthy neighborhood resources—such as parks, certain food vendors, clinics and fitness centers—as well as unhealthy features: fast food restaurants, tobacco vendors and polluted sites.
The New Haven neighborhoods that will be mapped include Dixwell, West River/Dwight, Fair Haven, Hill North, Newhallville and West Rock. Participants from Youth@Work, which provides seasonal and year-round employment, will create an interactive map that will be posted online along with a short film about the project.
Once the health map is complete, city residents in the same six neighborhoods will be surveyed about their exisiting health and health habits. This information will be coordinated with the map and the data will be used to develop policy proposals and programs designed to curb obesity, smoking and other chronic disease risk factors.
“I believe that knowledge is power. Policymakers and funders are often moved by evidence, and this project will provide compelling new information to support our call to improve the health of New Haven residents by addressing chronic disease disparities,“ said Jeanette Ickovics, CARE’s director and a professor of public health at Yale.
The Youth@Work participants are affiliated with The Color of Words (TCOW), a youth organization that focuses on literacy and multi-media education. “The mapping project provides a unique venue for the involvement of TCOW youth, linking documentary film making and new technology with action for social change,” said TCOW Director Magalis Martinez.
This New Haven project is part of a larger initiative known as Community Interventions for Health (CIH). CIH seeks to further scientific knowledge about the effectiveness of community interventions to reduce chronic diseases by identifying neighborhood assets, interviewing residents and developing and implementing policies to improve health in neighborhoods, schools, work sites and health care centers. In addition to New Haven (the first U.S. city to participate in the program), cities in Mexico, India, China and the United Kingdom are taking part in the initiative.
Michael Greenwood 203-737-5151 or michael.greenwood@yale.edu
For Immediate Release: July 7, 2009
MEDIA ADVISORY
Local Youth to Create Health Map of New Haven Neighborhoods
Press conference Monday, July 13, at 11 a.m. in City Hall
New Haven, Conn. — In an effort to battle chronic diseases in New Haven, teens and young adults of the city program “Youth@Work” will fan out in six neighborhoods this month, outfitted with hand-held computers and video cameras, to map what is healthy—and unhealthy—in the Elm City.
The so-called “asset mapping,” which begins July 13 and continues into August, will kick off with a press conference on July 13th, 11 a.m., in City Hall. This is the first phase of a larger, long-term research project spearheaded locally by CARE: Community Alliance for Research and Engagement at Yale University, to reverse chronic disease trends and promote a healthier city. The mapping project will pinpoint healthy neighborhood resources—such as parks, certain food vendors, clinics and fitness centers—as well as unhealthy features: fast food restaurants, tobacco vendors and polluted sites.
The New Haven neighborhoods that will be mapped include Dixwell, West River/Dwight, Fair Haven, Hill North, Newhallville and West Rock. Participants from Youth@Work, which provides seasonal and year-round employment, will create an interactive map that will be posted online along with a short film about the project.
Once the health map is complete, city residents in the same six neighborhoods will be surveyed about their exisiting health and health habits. This information will be coordinated with the map and the data will be used to develop policy proposals and programs designed to curb obesity, smoking and other chronic disease risk factors.
“I believe that knowledge is power. Policymakers and funders are often moved by evidence, and this project will provide compelling new information to support our call to improve the health of New Haven residents by addressing chronic disease disparities,“ said Jeanette Ickovics, CARE’s director and a professor of public health at Yale.
The Youth@Work participants are affiliated with The Color of Words (TCOW), a youth organization that focuses on literacy and multi-media education. “The mapping project provides a unique venue for the involvement of TCOW youth, linking documentary film making and new technology with action for social change,” said TCOW Director Magalis Martinez.
This New Haven project is part of a larger initiative known as Community Interventions for Health (CIH). CIH seeks to further scientific knowledge about the effectiveness of community interventions to reduce chronic diseases by identifying neighborhood assets, interviewing residents and developing and implementing policies to improve health in neighborhoods, schools, work sites and health care centers. In addition to New Haven (the first U.S. city to participate in the program), cities in Mexico, India, China and the United Kingdom are taking part in the initiative.
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