The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #52477

Julie A. Becker, PhD, MPH, Center for Public Health, Temple University, 2534 Swain Street, Philadelphia, PA 19130, 215-763-0754, jbecker@astro.temple.edu

Using neighborhoods to improve the health of its residents has long been used as an organizing principle. But expanding this premise to tackle issues that affect community development is the underpinning of the Livable Neighborhood Program sponsored by the Empowerment Institute (formerly Global Action Plan). The program is designed to empower citizens within their neighborhoods using the strategy of "clear incentive, immediate reward," incorporating a structured format that links grassroots effort with government services and civic and business leadership. The Livable Neighborhood Program consists of four topic areas: health and safety, beautification and greening, resource sharing and neighborhood building. Each topic area has an assessment to gauge the livability of that aspect of the neighborhood and 8-10 carefully crafted actions. The program also includes an easy to use meeting format and planning guide for taking the actions. Neighbors form teams of 5-8 households and meet seven times over a 4 month period to carry out the actions they choose. Within Philadelphia, 17 neighborhood block-based teams formed, with a 60% recruitment rate amongst all neighbors approached to participate. A total of 46 neighborhood improvement actions have been proposed with 26 of these projects completed to date. Partnerships have been formed with the city of Philadelphia, the state of Pennsylvania, EPA and the University of Pennsylvania. The Livable Neighborhood Program should help to improve the physical and social environments of participants while augmenting the sense of community within these neighborhoods.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to (
• describe how neighbors can work together to improve their communities through specific actions; (
• identify ways to utilize a set of developed tools to enhance community participation in physical and social nvironmental projects.

Keywords: Community Health Programs, Environmental Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.