Clark County Public Health was awarded a $300,000 grant that it will put toward improving physical activity and nutrition.
The Local Strategies for Physical Activity and Nutrition grant will focus on “nutrition guidelines, breastfeeding-friendly environments, nutrition and active play policies in early childhood settings, and physical activity-friendly built environments,” according to a Public Health news release.
Clark County was one of four communities selected by the Washington State Department of Health for the funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant, which will distribute $60,000 annually to Public Health for up to five years.
“It’s continuing some of the work we’ve done to create healthier environments,” said Melissa Martin, program manager for Public Health’s chronic disease prevention program.
Public Health will use grant funds to help employers make their businesses more breastfeeding friendly by providing room dividers, breast pumps and miniature refrigerators for milk storage. The funds will also help support the Clark County Breastfeeding Coalition. To learn more about the coalition, visit www.clark.wa.gov/public-health/clark-county-breastfeeding-coalition.
Employers interested in improving their workplaces for breastfeeding mothers, can contact Public Health at 564-397-7312 or email Yasmina Aknin, Public Health’s healthy communities program coordinator, at Yasmina.Aknin@clark.wa.gov to see if they’re eligible for resources and to learn more.
Grant funds will also be used to increase healthy eating among youth. One example is Public Health helping organizations offer healthy eating options at concession stands during youth sporting events. The grant should also bolster opportunities for healthy eating and active learning at early learning centers in the years to come.
“Knowledge is one thing but being able to reduce barriers to physical activity and nutrition is a role that feels really critical,” Martin said.
Public Health will also use grant funds to continue its work to make the area more accessible for pedestrians, bicyclists and people with limited mobility.
Aknin said it’s important to look “at more of the environmental factors, some of the barriers that people encounter when bicycling or walking.”
Both Aknin and Martin said the funds and resources from the grant should be spread equitably across ethnicity and income levels.
“There’s an equity lens to this work,” Martin said. “We’re trying to make sure different populations are served with these funds. … Different zip codes have different opportunities.”
