Healthy People, Healthy Communities
In each county of the state, Purdue Extension educators bring together the expertise and resources of Purdue to address the needs of Indiana’s families. With the critical need to improve the health of Hoosiers, Purdue Extension is lending its support through a new effort called Healthy People, Healthy Communities.
Extension educators are partnering with community groups to create coalitions to identify and address local issues concerning health and well being. The initiative started in 2005 to help communities develop a policy that promotes student health and addresses the growing problem of childhood obesity. By the beginning of 2008, Extension educators were involved in 54 Healthy People, Healthy Communities coalitions.
Each coalition is tackling concerns specific to its community. In cases where such coalitions already exist, Purdue Extension is offering to provide educational resources about healthy lifestyles. Examples of Purdue Extension programs that could help these efforts include:
- Nutrition programs
- School wellness plans
- Parenting and youth programs
- Landscaping and environmental expertise
- Economic and community development resources
- Help in locating and attracting funding opportunities
"Yesterday, I met with officials at the National Institutes of Health. I told them about the relationship the Indiana State Department of Health has with Purdue Extension and they have been discussing the need to get the Extension offices across the nation involved with the USDA and other programs they are developing. I told them that I thought Purdue might be interested in being the model for the nation on this one as well."