National Health Outreach and Engagement Conference 2024

Evelyn Whitmer, Rosie Stewart, Jen Parlin, Margine Bawden, Hope Wilson, Cynthia Aspengren, (* not in attendance) *Kate Speirs, *Ashley Wright, *Traci Armstrong Florian, *Cathy Martinez.
The Building Healthy Communities Project is an innovative community program situated within underrepresented rural communities in Cochise County, Arizona that bridges communication and working barriers between local leadership, citizens, agencies, and local agricultural producers working to mitigate the Social Determinants of Health. This project increased the community's capacity for healthy change through leadership and collaboration. The Leadership Academy from this project empowered community members to mobilize and take positive action with the completion of a community project. Healthy Community Committees were formed and obtained their 501(c)3 status, food pantries were expanded, gardens/garden towers were established, the food bank increased fresh produce by 42%, the Superintendent of Schools for the county prioritized healthy food in the schools and her report to the governor’s office. A network analysis conducted showed that there was an increase in both the number and strength of cross-sector partnerships in all the strategies implemented in this project. We will share how to make simple changes in your community with community engagement and Collective Impact to move the needle on health.