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In this article:
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| Join a Coalition |
| Invite Us to Speak |
| Join Geaux Shop Healthy |
| Grow a Row to Share |
| Host a Walk Audit |
| Start a StoryWalk |
| Host a Play Street |
| Become a Stencil Site |
| Start a Youth Coalition |
Join your local Healthy Communities coalition or appoint a liaisons to help make decisions about programming and projects in your community. Find your parish coalition on our homepage, or email us at healthycommunities@agcenter.lsu.edu to learn how to form a coalition.
Put us on the agenda at your next meeting or invite us to speak at your next conference. We would love to tell you all about our coalitions, programs, successes, research, and lessons learned.
Geaux Shop Healthy (GSH) is a healthy retail program that aims to increase the supply and demand of healthy foods in Louisiana communities. The LSU AgCenter Healthy Communities program developed GSH by adapting research-based healthy retail programs from other universities to fit our unique state. The purpose of Geaux Shop Healthy is simple: to promote healthy items in local stores and encourage shoppers to purchase these items.
Grow a Row to Share connects home gardeners and local farmers with charitable food organizations like food pantries. Growers donate their extra garden bounty to help provide fresh, nutritious produce to their neighbors who are experiencing hunger and food insecurity. The pilot for this program launched in northeast Louisiana in March 2022. The Healthy Communities team hopes to make this program available statewide before the end of 2022.
In a walk audit, a group of people identify barriers to getting safely from one place to another by foot, bike, or wheelchair. In addition to providing several walk audit assessment forms, the LSU AgCenter Healthy Communities program can offer technical assistance and expertise from physical activity specialists and extension agents in eligible parishes. Contact us to learn how we can support a walk audit in your community.
A StoryWalk® is an outdoor reading experience where pages from a children’s book are placed on outdoor signage along a walking route or trail. StoryWalks® promote literacy, encourage physical activity, and bring people to locations where StoryWalks® are installed. Contact us today to find out how we can help you bring StoryWalks® to your community!
Play Streets are popup play events that take place in temporarily closed streets, open fields, or parking lots for a specified time period (around 3-5 hours). Play Streets offer physical activity opportunities for children in under-resourced communities that lack safe parks and playgrounds by creating a safe, publicly accessible space for children, adolescents, and families to engage in active play. Contact us to learn how we can support Play Streets in your community!
The LSU AgCenter uses stencils to create colorful, painted play spaces that provide no-cost opportunities for physical activity. Stencils promote exercise while also enhancing community spaces with a playful element. Stencils can be placed on concrete at schools, child care centers, libraries, parks, community centers, and other public areas. Contact us to find out if your site is eligible for stenciling.
Healthy Young People Empowerment (HYPE) is a youth leadership program that trains teens to advocate for health in their community. HYPE focuses on improving physical activity and healthy eating through policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) change projects. Youth are encouraged to use the skills they learn to become lifelong advocates for their community. Contact us to learn more about bringing HYPE to your parish.
The LSU AgCenter and the LSU College of Agriculture