Growing healthy food is an activity in which all ages can participate, and gardening is great exercise. You’ll be able to grow fresh fruits, veggies, and herbs to add to your meals.
Organize community events in the garden to educate and encourage neighborhood participation. Celebrate the year’s harvest with a community potluck.
Walking has many health benefits such as weight loss, lowering blood pressure, reducing stress, and more. Start with short distances within the neighborhood or a nearby walking trail or park. The shared activity helps participants stick with it and stay motivated, and walking with your neighbors helps build a stronger sense of community!
Speak up and suggest healthy bake sales, sporting event snacks, and party food. Promote drinking water and suggest limiting sugary drinks. Check out the Rethink Your Drink Toolkit for some great ideas on how you can promote drinking water.
Find out what your community needs to be healthier. Perhaps it’s a new playground, bike path, or sidewalks. Get others to help.
Want to make your neighborhood or community more walkable? Contact the Arkansas Coalition for Obesity Prevention to learn about walkability audits.
Organize a clean-up of a neighborhood park; speak out for sidewalks and safer streets. Talk with your aldermen, city council, or mayor about the things you think could improve the walkability and safety of your community.
Help others be healthier by sharing your knowledge, passion, and encouragement. Educate and build awareness of the importance of healthy eating and physical activity by adding information and activities about nutrition and physical activity to community events and health fairs.
Invite experts from your local hospital or health unit to talk at your event.
Champion wellness as a priority and gather others who will help mobilize resources and sustain activities. Consider identifying a Wellness Champion and establishing a Wellness Council.
Check out our resources page to learn more. The Community Toolbox: A Model for Getting Started is also a great tool to develop a plan.
Before making a plan you need to know where you’re starting from and establish a baseline to measure your success. This information will also help if you plan to seek funding to support your projects.
What will help improve the quality of life for your community members? What will make it more desirable to industry? Survey your community to find out what their priorities are. Working closely with residents throughout the process will ensure they have a sense of ownership and pride in the improvement projects.
Identify several community-wide activities or events that address your community’s priorities, choose one, and get started. Some examples:
Want to learn more about HAA or get involved with one of the nine priority areas? Send us your contact information and we’ll be in touch.
