Moving the Needle Toward Social Justice in Public Health: Foundation Supported Community Interventions

The Colorado Health Foundation plays a pivotal role in leading efforts to make Colorado the healthiest state in the nation. This vision includes ensuring that all people have adequate and affordable coverage, access to quality, integrated primary health care, and the opportunity to eat healthy meals and be physically active on a daily basis. The Foundation focuses resources on the underserved people of Colorado because they have less opportunity to be healthy than people with adequate resources. To move the needle in health coverage, health care, and healthy living, the Foundation invests in nonprofit organizations, advocates for policy change, communicates, educates, and leads.

As part of these efforts, the Foundation funds two interventions that attempt to alleviate social injustice by responding to community needs and targeting the underserved: LiveWell Colorado and Healthy Schools. LiveWell Colorado aims to reduce obesity by implementing programs that work for specific communities – what works in Southern Colorado will not work in Denver neighborhoods for example - and addressing policy change that will incent healthier lifestyles.

Because Children's Health receives a D+ in the Colorado Health Report Card, the Foundation invests considerable resources in Healthy Schools which comprises healthy meals, physical activity, health education, parent education, school based health centers and policy change. Working with schools that have a high percentage of kids receiving free or reduced lunch, the Foundation aims to encourage kids to teach their parents to live healthier lives (much like littering, seat belts, smoking, and recycling).