Commit to Health rebranded to focus on unique community member needs
As one of NRPA’s core pillars, our health and well-being efforts aim to create healthy, connected and thriving communities. Park and recreation professionals serve as stewards of Community Wellness Hubs — trusted gathering places that connect community members to essential programs, services and spaces that advance health equity and improve quality of life. NRPA supports park and recreation professionals in implementing community-driven solutions that address critical public health issues and improve the conditions where people live, learn, play and grow.
For decades, NRPA has championed health and well-being through the work of park and recreation professionals as key parts of the healthy food access and nutrition security space. As one the leading providers of meals through the federal nutrition programs, parks and recreation is uniquely suited to meet community members’ nutrition needs.
But food access and nutrition security are about more than physically serving and receiving food. Each of the seven dimensions of well-being plays a part in this space, meeting community members where they are and providing what they need to feel sustained.
Food access and nutrition security means having consistent and equitable access to healthy, safe and affordable foods essential to optimal health and well-being. This requires a multi-layered approach of supporting behavior, environment and policy strategies to effect systems-level change. Evidence-based nutrition education is a leading strategy for behavior change and can offer a key entry point to systems change. To advance food access and nutrition security, park and recreation agencies can offer nutrition education that honors community and culture, understands how stress and adversity affect human health and behavior, and recognizes structural inequities that create barriers for people to eat nutritious foods.
That’s why NRPA is excited to present a refresh of our Healthy Food Access and Nutrition Security webpage. Formerly branded as Commit to Health, this space encompasses stories of the impact of food access strategies across systems, provides resources to support culturally relevant and informed nutrition education on the local level, and highlights the role that parks and recreation and their partners play in addressing food access and nutrition security.
We wanted to provide content that allows park and recreation professionals to provide what their community needs, rather than offering a prescriptive approach to talking about food and nutrition. We hope your programs continue to be culturally relevant, community-informed, and sustaining across all seven dimensions of well-being. We’re here to support you in the work!
Maureen Neumann (she/her) is Senior Program Manager at NRPA.