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https://www.civiced.org/project-citizen/what-is-public-policy

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Specifically, public policy has a number of key attributes:

Policy is made in response to some sort of issue or problem that requires attention.

Policy is what the government chooses to do (actual) or not do (implied) about a particular issue or problem.

Policy might take the form of law, or regulation, or the set of all the laws and regulations that govern a particular issue or problem.

Policy is made on behalf of the "public."

Policy is oriented toward a goal or desired state, such as the solution of a problem.

Policy is ultimately made by governments, even if the ideas come from outside government or through the interaction of government and the public.

Policymaking is part of an ongoing process that does not always have a clear beginning or end, since decisions about who will benefit from policies and who will bear any burden resulting from the policy are continually reassessed, revisited and revised.

No doubt, there are many problems in our communities that need to be solved. Some problems may readily be dealt with by actions taken in the private sphere (individuals and families) or by our civil society (social, economic, or political associations or organizations).
Public policy problems are those that must be addressed by laws and regulations adopted by government. Your first task in ProCitizen is to firmly establish that the problem you want to work on is, in fact, one which requires government involvement to reach a solution.

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Specifically, public policy has a number of key attributes: Policy is made in response to some sort of issue or problem that requires attention. Policy is what the government chooses to do (actual) or not do (implied) about a particular issue or problem.

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The Framers of the U.S. Constitution believed that citizens were expected to be well informed and promote the common good. They recognized that only the people themselves could truly guarantee the success or failure of the American system of representative government. That is why active citizenship…

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Getting health care for your child can be complicated. Many doctors only offer appointments during the school day, and their offices might be far from school. To see the doctor, your child might have to miss school and you might have to leave work - which isn't always an option.

School-based health centers make going to the doctor as simple as walking down the hall.

Staffed by health care workers like nurses and doctors, school-based health centers provide a range of services to meet kids' and teens' health care needs. Services can include check-ups, lab tests, prescriptions, counseling, and regular visits for problems like asthma and diabetes.

About 2,300 school-based health clinics operate in 49 states and Washington D.C., serving more than 2 million students in preschool through 12th grade. Centers usually are inside a school building or right next door. Some school-based health centers serve more than one school or even a whole school district.

Most school-based health centers are run by a local health care group, such as a community health center, hospital, or health department. A few are run by the school district itself. Centers often get money from charities and the government so they can give care to families who cannot afford to pay.

You can find out if your child's school has a health center by contacting your child's teacher or the school office. Most school-based health centers also let parents know about their services by sending details when the student enrolls through school newsletters or websites or at parent-teacher events like back-to-school nights.

Why Have Health Centers at Schools?

When students aren't feeling well, they have a harder time learning. They may miss class a lot - and when they are in class, they might have trouble paying attention. Giving kids and teens access to health care at school puts them in a better position to learn.

Students who use school-based health centers benefit in many ways. They spend more time in class because they tend to be sick less often and don't have to take as much time off school to get to appointments. According to data from the School-Based Health Alliance, school-based health centers:

help students do better in school

increase high school graduation rates

decrease school discipline cases

Studies show that teens, who might resist going to a doctor, are more willing to get help for problems like depression and weight issues at a school-based health center. This might be because they see the health center's staff at school each day, which helps build trust.

What Services Do They Offer?

Services at school-based health centers vary based on local needs. Some have one or two health professionals who offer basic care and check-ups. Others offer a complete range of services, including mental health care. Centers may even have nurse practitioners, medical students, doctors, social workers, drug counselors, or dietitians on staff.

Services can include:

Besides one-on-one care, some school-based health centers lead small-group and classroom activities, like lessons on active lifestyles.

Most school-based health centers are open whenever school is in session. They often have rules to keep kids from visiting during core classes unless it's an emergency. Some are also open after school, at night, or on weekends. As well as serving students, they may provide care to family members, such as younger siblings.

Although a student can get many health care needs met at a school-based health center, it is not meant to replace the child's regular doctor. If your child already has a doctor outside school, the health center will work with that doctor to offer consistent care. For kids and teens who don't have a regular doctor, school-based health centers can offer care during the school year and link students to a doctor or other health center when school isn't in session.

How Do Health Centers Keep Parents Informed?

School-based health centers work hard to keep parents in the loop about their children's health. You might be invited to participate in your child's appointments via phone, email, or computer - or even in person, if your schedule allows. Between appointments, centers follow up with parents and guardians in a range of ways, such as written letters, phone calls, notes on secure websites, or even home visits.

And of course, school-based health centers only provide care to children with parents' written permission. Most often, you will have the option to sign a permission form at the beginning of each school year saying that your child can get treatment at the school-based health center. Or you can give your consent on a visit-by-visit basis.

How Much Do Services Cost?

Many school-based health centers offer care on a sliding scale based on family income. Depending on the center and your situation, care could be free. Most also accept health insurance, such as Medicaid, a state-run child health insurance plan (CHIP), or private health insurance. Your school-based health center or insurance provider can give you more information.

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Getting health care for your child can be complicated. Many doctors only offer appointments during the school day, and their offices might be far from school. To see the doctor, your child might have to miss school and you might have to leave work - which isn't always an option.

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Author/Byline: Brandon Hansen /For the Statesman

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Hunger Coalition serving the community in a variety of ways, Statesman-Examiner (Colville, WA), October 12, 2022, pA2

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The Northeast Washington Hunger Coalition is continuing to innovate with their programs in Stevens, Ferry and Pend Oreille Counties with the goal of addressing root causes of hunger in area communities.

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Ensuring Every Child in America Has Access to Healthy School Meals, BG News, The: Bowling Green State University (OH), October 11, 2022

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(StatePoint) Starting in early 2020, every child in the United States became eligible for school meals at no cost, regardless of family income level -- no forms, no questions asked. That policy, along with other interventions, including increased Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women,…

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Photo Credit: Sustainable Food Waste Symposium, 2012

Food waste is a growing problem both in the United States and across the globe. In North America alone anywhere from 30-40% of perfectly edible food ends up in the trash each year. To put it in perspective that is almost 20 pounds of food per person, per month! While the fact that most ends up in our landfills is bad enough, what's worse is that over 48 million Americans, including 15.3 million kids, live in households that do not have sufficient food! Now, concerned citizens are trying to raise awareness of the issue with some innovative ideas.

In New York's Westchester County, students at 18 schools participate in a program called We Future Cycle. Started by Anna Giordano and Ashley Welde in 2014, it teaches kids to recycle, compost, and most importantly curb food waste in an easy and efficient manner.

Photo Credit: Takeapart.com

Lunch areas at the participating schools are equipped with three clearly marked bins - compost, recycle and share. While the first two are self-explanatory and common in schools, the third is rare. This is the bin where kids can toss their unwanted drinks, fruits, and even untouched sandwiches. Items in the container are available for any student that wants them. Whatever remains at the end of the day is donated to the local soup kitchen or food bank. Giordano says the three bins have helped reduce the number of trash bags generated at the mid-day meal from an average of 22 to just 2!

To ensure kids adopt similar habits at home the non-profit has created extensive curriculum to educate families about the importance of sorting waste into the proper streams of recycling, composting, trash and food to donate They also urge parents to have open conversations with their kids about food choices and what they will or will not eat at school.

Photo Credit: Salvage Supper Club

But, as we are all aware, kids are not the only ones that waste food - Adults are equally bad, if not worse! To combat that, Brooklyn-based Josh Treuhaft founded Salvage Supperclub in 2014. The sporadically organized dinners promise patrons a scrumptious multi-course meal for a mere $50 USD per person. Though that may not sound like much of a plan to save waste, it is, because the delicious food is made from perfectly edible and safe ingredients that are past their prime and, therefore, headed for the compost or trash bin.

The other catch? Customers have to eat their gourmet meals inside a dumpster! The venue, of course, is totally clean and hygienic. It is just a symbolic gesture to demonstrate the enormous amount of food people thoughtlessly trash on a regular basis.

Photo Credit: Imgur.com

Treuhaft who recently made his West Coast debut with a dumpster dining night in Berkeley, CA, says every meal salvages almost 2 pounds of food (per person) that otherwise would have ended up in the trash. In addition to helping people rethink their actions, one dumpster meal at a time, Treuhaft also helps them do good by donating a portion of the proceeds to non-profits dedicated to combating food waste. It is no wonder that hundreds of people are clamoring to dine at the his dumpster supper clubs.

Resources: wsj.com,wefuturecycle.com,takeapart.com,endfoodwastenow.com,greenschoolalliance.com

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Innovative Ideas To Curb Food Waste Range From Sharing To Dumpster Dining

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Food waste is a growing problem both in the United States and across the globe. In North America alone anywhere from 30-40% of perfectly edible food ends up in the trash each year. To put it in perspective that is almost 20 pounds of food per person, per month!

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Poverty is a complex issue that can stem from a variety of reasons that are too difficult for young children to understand. But even though issues surrounding hunger and homelessness are complicated, it's important to talk to kids about poverty.

If you are a parent who doesn't often worry about putting food on the table or having a warm place for your child to go to sleep, wrapping your arms around this conversation may be quite difficult.

But without a clear explanation, kids may not understand why some kids get free lunch at school or why there's a homeless person asking for money. And they may make inaccurate assumptions about people living below the poverty line.

Why You Should Talk About Poverty

At some point, your child will notice that some people don't have as much money as others, and he's likely to have some questions about it.

It's estimated that one in five children in the United States lives in poverty. Many of those children have working parents, but low wages and unstable work leave them living below the poverty line.

There's a good chance some of your child's classmates struggle with issues like food insecurity and homelessness.

You might be tempted to say to your child, "Eat your broccoli. There are starving children in other parts of the world who would love to eat that." But talking about people who live on another continent may be too far removed from your child's world for him to grasp. There are plenty of people struggling with poverty much closer to home. Talking about real-life situations in your community may help him gain a better understanding of what poverty is.

Children living in poverty may experience lifelong consequences. Poverty affects families in the following ways:

Educational problems - Children living in poverty have more trouble learning and they are less likely to further their education.

Behavioral problems - Poverty affects a child's social and emotional development. Children growing up in poverty are more likely to exhibit behavioral problems.

Physical health problems - Child poverty is linked to higher rates of asthma, obesity, language development problems, and an increased risk of injury.

Mental health problems - The toxic stress associated with poverty increases the risk of several psychiatric disorders.

Reduced overall well-being - Studies show poverty is the biggest threat to children's well-being and it can have lifelong consequences.

Holding conversations about poverty can be an opportunity to educate your child as well as a time to foster compassion for others. When your child understands a little more about why some people live differently, he may have more empathy for people who experience poverty.

Look for Opportunities to Address the Subject

Rather than bring up the subject of poverty out of the blue, look for opportunities to bring it up naturally. Then, you can talk about it more concretely.

When there's a Thanksgiving food drive at school, talk to your child about why you're donating canned goods. Or, when there's a gift drive over the holidays, explain that some families may not have enough money to buy presents.

Be Prepared for Tough Questions

At some point, your child will notice that his peers or people in the community are living in poverty. Be prepared for questions such as:

Why does Anna wear the same dress to school every day?

How come that woman is asking people for money?

Why isn't that man wearing any shoes?

Why does Zack say he gets free lunch at school?

When your child asks questions, it's a sign he's ready for more information. It's important to give him age appropriate answers.

Give Simple Explanations to Elementary School Children

Kids don't understand money or economics. A commercial about child hunger may spur innocent questions like, "Why don't their parents go to the grocery store and buy them more food?"

Between the ages of 5 and 8, kids are ready to learn simple explanations about poverty. Try saying something like, "Some people aren't able to earn enough money to buy food or a home to live in."

At this age, you don't need to give lengthy explanations about the factors that may prevent someone from earning a livable wage. Conversations about disabilities, substance abuse, and a poor economy can wait until the tween or teen years.

Talk to Tweens and Teens About the Underlying Causes

Tweens and teens have the ability to begin understanding some of the reasons why poverty exists. Talk about the factors that contribute to poverty, such as:

The income gap between rich and poor people

Lack of jobs that pay adequate wages

Lack of education

High costs of healthcare and childcare

Substance abuse and mental illness

Disabilities

Divorce

Generational poverty

In addition to talking about the causes of poverty, discuss the effects. Provide a simple explanation of the government services and the resources put into place to help people, but also talk about how difficult it can be for people to get out of poverty.

Pay Attention to the Messages You Send

The things you do, as well as the things you don't do, will send your child messages about people living in poverty. For example, if you walk past a panhandler without making eye contact, your child may assume homeless people are beneath you, so it's important to explain why you don't give strangers on the street cash.

Say something like, "I don't give people money because sometimes I prefer to buy them food." Or, explain that you donate money to programs that help homeless people have food to eat and shelter to stay in.

It's also important to avoid sending a message that implies hard work always prevents poverty. If you say things like, "I work hard so we can live in a nice house," your child may conclude people living in poverty must be lazy.

Get Your Child Involved in Helping

Donating cash to a charity may not teach your child much about helping others. But, involving him first-hand in helping people in need could help him gain a better understanding of how he can address poverty.

Get your child involved in donating some of his toys or unused clothing to others. Ask him to choose which items to give and talk about how it can help other children whose parents may not be able to buy toys or clothing. Bring your child with you to the store to buy food for a food drive. Ask him to pick out canned or dry goods that you could give to families who may not be able to afford food.

When children see that they can take steps to make a difference, they may feel inspired to perform more acts of kindness in the future.

Discuss the Safeguards You Have in Place

Talking about poverty may cause your child to become a little anxious. He may worry that you will run out of food or that you might be homeless someday. So it's important to talk about any safeguards you might have in place.

If you have a friend or relative who might help you if you were down on your luck, say something like, "We could always live with Grandma if we didn't have our own home." Or explain that there are government programs in place that help people who can't afford food.

Of course, as an adult, you know that even the best safeguards are not foolproof. You may never have to confront a turn in luck that leaves your family in great need, but we all face that possibility.

The best thing you can do for your kids is assure them that you're always there to love and protect them.

Remind them that regardless of where your circumstances take you as a family, you'll figure out how to endure and make it through. Sharing anything beyond that, especially with young children, may be too much for them to handle.

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Educating Your Child About Issues Like Hunger and Homelessness

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Poverty is a complex issue that can stem from a variety of reasons that are too difficult for young children to understand. But even though issues surrounding hunger and homelessness are complicated, it's important to talk to kids about poverty.

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Syracuse has the second-highest percentage of families in the nation getting by on less than $10,000 a year, according to new data from the Census Bureau.

The city also ranks 10th in the country for the highest percentage of families living on less than $35,000 a year.

The percentages translate into more than 3,700 families making less than $10,000 and more than 11,000 earning less than $35,000.

The dismal income numbers are more signs of the city's ongoing battle with poverty and additional reminders that families across Syracuse are struggling on a daily basis.

The table at right shows U.S. places ranked by highest percentage of families making under $10,000 and $35,000 a year.

The new numbers come from a fresh batch of census estimates released recently.

The numbers track income levels for families across the country in multiple brackets. The latest estimates include data for places with populations of at least 65,000.

Other Upstate New York cities appear on both lists. Rochester is No. 14 for families making less than $10,000 and No. 20 for those making less than $35,000. Buffalo is No. 18 for families making less than $10,000 and No. 22 for families making less than $35,000.

Syracuse has struggled with high poverty for years. The latest numbers from the census revealed that the situation has improved in recent years, but the city's poverty rates are still among the worst in the country.

The poverty line for a family of four with two children in 2021 was $27,479.

Thousands of families in the city earn less than that every year.

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New numbers show the city's ranking in family income Thousands of families get by on, Post-Standard, The (Syracuse, NY), October 9, 2022, p016

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Syracuse has the second-highest percentage of families in the nation getting by on less than $10,000 a year, according to new data from the Census Bureau. The city also ranks 10th in the country for the highest percentage of families living on less than $35,000 a year.

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Resource Guide.  CLICK on NEWSPAPERS.   (pswd:    pglib)

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Resource Guide.  CLICK on NEWSPAPERS.   (pswd:    pglib)

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LibGuides: ESM - Pine Grove Middle School: Students

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Please enter the password provided by your instructor or the library to access this content. Need the password? Contact the library or your instructor. Have the password but are having trouble? Please see the password FAQ.

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Wondering how to get everyone involved? OCRRA offers many FREE tools to get your school on the recycling bandwagon. Our newest tool is the School Recycling Pledge! This 2 x 3 foot…

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Green Schools - NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation

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Schools across New York are recycling, reducing waste, saving energy, conserving resources, preventing runoff pollution and working to eliminate toxic materials. In addition to the long-range benefits of good environmental stewardship, green policies help schools provide healthier surroundings for t…

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ILSR prepared this Guide to Composting Onsite at Schools to introduce the basics of onsite composting at K-12 schools that have been equipped with 2- and 3-bin composting systems. These systems work well for schools with gardens. Learn why composting is important, the basic ingredients needed to produce good compost, steps to get started, and how to troubleshoot should problems arise. ILSR advocates for a diverse and distributed infrastructure for food waste recovery and composting. Schools can be the foundation for locally based composting, helping to build the culture of composting know-how and practice within a community.

The 24-page guide is divided into six sections:

What & Why Compost: What is compost and composting? Why should we compost?

Composting Basics: Learn what materials to compost and the importance of air, water, and size.

5 Steps to Get Started: Clarify team and method, secure tools, collect ingredients, make a recipe, build a pile.

Health & Safety Considerations: Practice good hygiene and protect against airborne fungi.

Troubleshooting: Odors? Nothing happening? Learn tips for dealing with challenges.

Using Finished Compost: Compost can be incorporated into garden planting beds or used as a mulch.

ILSR is working on a companion report, The ABCs of Composting Onsite at K-12 Schools . If you are composting onsite at your school (whether a simple worm bin in a classroom or a $10,000 in-vessel system) and would like to be included in our report, please email us at composting4community@ilsr.org .

ILSR Related Resources and Links

Fighting Food Waste and Employing Youth in Baltimore (Aug. 2018)
ILSR Trains Teen Leaders on the Basics of Composting (July 2018)
ILSR Launches Composting Demonstration Site in Maryland High School (March 2018)
NSR School Composting Project Spotlight: Elsie Whitlow Stokes Public Charter School , DC (Sept. 2015)
Growing Local Fertility: A Guide to Community Composting (April 2014)

Other School Guides

Vermont Dept. of Environmental Conservation: Universal Recycling for Schools
Connecticut Dept. of Energy and Environmental Protection:School Composting - A Manual for Connecticut Schools
Maine Dept. of Environmental Protection:10 Steps to Starting a Successful School Composting Operation
Central Vermont Solid Waste Management District:Do the Rot Thing - A Teacher's Guide to Compost Activities
NC State Extension: Vermicomposting for Schools
Western Australia Waste Authority: Composting at School
Highfields Center for Composting (VT) (now defunct): On‐Site Composting for Schools Planning and Implementing a Program for Success
Devon Community Composting Network (UK): Step-by-step guide to setting up a composting system at school
Northeast Resource Recovery Association (NE USA): On-Site Composting
Lane County (OR): On Site Composting at Schools

Curricula on Soil and/or Compost

The Soil Story Curriculum by Kiss the Ground
Life Lab Composting Lessons and Video Resources
Rhonda Sherman'sVermicomposting: A 5th Grade School Enrichment Curriculum
Alameda County (CA): StopWaste Curriculum and Videos
The Soil Science Society of America: K-12 Soil Science Teacher Resources
Vermont Dept. Environmental Conservation: School Composting - An Introduction (K-5 Teacher's Guide)
Vermont Dept. Environmental Conservation: School Composting - An Introduction (6-12 Teacher's Guide)

School Programs (Sample!)

Chittenden Solid Waste District (VT): Outreach & Education, School Programs & Activities
DC Public Schools: Food & Garden Waste - Schools
Alameda County (CA): Stop Waste at School
Seven Generations Ahead (IL): Zero Waste Schools
Eco-Cycle (CO): Green Star Schools® Program
Chicago Public Schools: Commercial Composting & Recycling Program and Composting in Chicago Public Schools: A Go-Green Guide
Mass. Dept. of Environmental Protection: Recycling & Composting for Kids, Teachers & Schools
Seattle Public Schools (WA): Composting & Recycling
Santa Cruz County (CA): School Composting
Portland Public Schools (ME): Cafeteria Recycling/Composting
Charleston County School District (SC): Composting Program
Greenwich Public Schools (CT): Green Schools & Composting - Eastern Middle School

Other

US Composting Council website on resources for (March/April 2018) Composting for Teachers and Students
Cornell Waste Management Institute: Composting in Schools website
BioCycle: Building Community Composting In Bushwick, Brooklyn (March/April 2017)
BioCycle: K-12 School Food Recovery Roadmap
World Wildlife Fund: Food Waste Warrior Toolkit
Public Health Law Center: Reducing Food Waste in Out-of-School Time - Best Practices
U.S. EPA: A Guide to Conducting Student Food Waste Audits - A Resource for Schools

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ILSR Guide to Composting Onsite at Schools

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ILSR prepared this Guide to Composting Onsite at Schools to introduce the basics of onsite composting at K-12 schools that have been equipped with 2- and 3-bin composting systems. These systems work well for schools with gardens. Learn why composting is important, the basic ingredients needed to produce good compost, steps to get started, and how to troubleshoot should problems arise.

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Byline: Christopher Dawson, CNN

(CNN) -- According to FDA estimates, the United States wastes 30 to 40% of its food. That's hard to swallow when you consider that one in 10 US households faced food insecurity in 2018.

That means roughly 14 million families are struggling to put meals on the table while approximately 30 million tons of food are trashed.

Sending food to the dump carries a steep environmental cost as well. Landfills, filled more with discarded food than any other single item, account for one-third of all US methane gas emissions.

So NGOs and nonprofits are tackling the problems of food waste and food insecurity by launching food-rescue programs. And you can help, too.

Rescuing 41 million pounds of food a year

For 29 years Forgotten Harvest, a nonprofit in Detroit, has been rescuing food destined for landfills and redirecting it to the hungry.

Forgotten Harvest CEO Kirk Mayes says it's taken that long to develop the logistics for his program, which now rescues and delivers 130,000 pounds of food a day.

"This operation is set up so that our fleet of about 27 trucks and our drivers can leave our warehouse in the morning and go to about 12 to 14 different stops ... for our donations." Mayes says. Drivers collect food from local bakers and butchers and national chains, he says. "And then these drivers redistribute the food to three to four community partners on a daily basis."

A rotating army of 16,000 volunteers makes this daily event happen.

"At our warehouse, our volunteers are working with commodities that are coming off of our farm and from other commodity partners like the food manufacturers and other farms and donations," Mayes says. "All this (food) is inspected, sorted and set to go out."

The result? Last year Forgotten Harvest redistributed 41 million pounds of food, Mayes says. That's 41 million pounds that filled stomachs instead of landfills.

"We see a lot of work in front of us, with what is one in six people vulnerable for food insecurity in southeast Michigan," he says. "We're all working towards our one mission -- to make sure that we can rescue as much food as possible and get it into the hands of people in need."

The federal government has set a goal to cut food waste in half by 2030. To reach that objective, the USDA and the EPA are working with communities and businesses.

They are also providing tips and guides for people to reduce the amount of food they waste:

Support food-rescue programs like Forgotten Harvest. Sustainable America provides this directory to find organizations in your area.

Help organize food-rescue efforts in your community. The Food Donation Connection offers online training and resources to implement programs for communities and businesses. K-12 Food Rescue provides step-by-step instructions to start a food-rescue program at schools. Donate unused food. This EPA guide provides instructions and resources on how and where to donate unused food, leftovers from events and surplus food inventory. You can also find local food banks with this search tool from Feeding America.

Reduce food waste at home. This EPA guide and toolkit helps reduce food waste in homes. It also provides planning, prep, storage and thriftiness tips to help families and individuals get the most out of the food they buy.Compost in your backyard. Food scraps and yard waste, which make up about 30% of our trash, can be composted instead. The USDA's Backyard Conservation tip sheet explains how to get started with composting. Additional guides, including ways to start a composting program at local schools, can be found here.

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This charity is feeding the hungry and helping the planet by rescuing millions of pounds of leftover food.

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Byline: Christopher Dawson, CNN (CNN) -- According to FDA estimates, the United States wastes 30 to 40% of its food. That's hard to swallow when you consider that one in 10 US households faced food insecurity in 2018. That means roughly 14 million families are struggling to put meals on the table while approximately 30 million tons of food are trashed.

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Byline: Leah Asmelash, CNN

(CNN) -- If nothing else, 2020 has shown just how important healthcare workers and public health experts are. So, in an effort to show their support, TikTok is donating $10 million to 10 colleges serving underrepresented students.

The video social network website made the announcement Wednesday, saying that each school would receive $1 million to support both undergraduate and graduate scholarships for students pursuing careers in medicine, public health or other health-related fields.

The ten schools benefiting are Xavier University of Louisiana, Tougaloo College, North Carolina Central University, North Carolina A&T University, South Carolina State University, Laredo College, University of South Dakota, Florida A&M University, Delaware State University and Virginia Union University.

In a statement, TikTok said the gifts would help "ensure the success of future Black, Latinx, and Indigenous health heroes."

"We believe investing in the next generation of Black, Latinx, and Indigenous doctors, nurses, pediatricians, surgeons, and other essential health care workers is one of the best ways to invest in the future of America," the statement said.

The gift comes as colleges across the country suffer financially due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This year in particular -- due to an ongoing racial reckoning in the US -- has also seen many philanthropists give to historically Black colleges and universities.

Back in June, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and his wife donated $40 million to Morehouse College, $40 million to Spelman College and $40 million to the United Negro College Fund.

Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, formerly married to Jeff Bezos and now the richest woman in the world, donated millions to multiple HBCUs in July. For Howard University, Xavier University of Louisiana, Hampton University and Tuskegee University, it was at the time the largest donation in the institutions' histories.

Source Citation

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TikTok is giving 10 colleges $10 million to boost minorities in healthcare.

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Byline: Leah Asmelash, CNN (CNN) -- If nothing else, 2020 has shown just how important healthcare workers and public health experts are. So, in an effort to show their support, TikTok is donating $10 million to 10 colleges serving underrepresented students.

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11 Young Activists Leading the Way for LGBTQ+ Equality

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At LEARNBLUE we are Inspiring INDIVIDUAL ACTIONs against Global Issues we see as a threat to our future, such as Global Warming, Inequalities. #ItBeginsWithUs

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Changing the world isn't easy in the best of times, never mind in the second year of a global pandemic. Still, young people have gone against the odds, making positive change and spreading joy while they do it. In Teen Vogue's annual 21 Under 21 list, we're honoring some of the outstanding young people who are shaping the future - whether it's by influencing policy, breaking barriers, or simply daring to imagine a bolder future for themselves and those around them.

From the Afghan Girls Robotics Team fleeing Taliban-controlled Afghanistan to continue innovating, to Semhar Solomon's Black Lives Matter activism through art, to Taylor Cassidy's TikTok education, it's clear that young people aren't accepting the status quo. Instead, when they see a problem, they fix it. Inequality? They address it. Systemic failure? Well, they change the system.

And, in a time when the world around us can seem overwhelming and negative, some of these young people's spark lies in their sheer ability to create joy: Lizzy Howell is dancing her way to success, Jordan Reeves is making disability representation sparkle, and Zaila Avant-garde is spelling toward a more inclusive future.

So, adults take note: If it seems like cynically accepting the norm is your only option, Teen Vogue's 21 Under 21 have a lesson we could all stand to learn - that change isn't just possible, it's within reach.

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Teen Vogue's 21 Under 21 2021: The Young People Shaping Tomorrow

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Changing the world isn't easy in the best of times, never mind in the second year of a global pandemic. Still, young people have gone against the odds, making positive change and spreading joy while they do it.

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Alice Paredes loves to dance but she doesn't have time for it anymore. Even though the 17-year-old from Lima, Peru, was a 4-time national champion in marinera, a traditional folk dance, she's got other priorities on her mind.

"Like saving the world, for instance," she says.

Well, maybe not the world - but certainly her community. When Alice was 15, she founded her own nonprofit organization called ConexEDU. Its goal is to help kids in rural areas get the funds they need to pursue a good education.

In July, Alice joined nearly 3,000 girl activists in 102 countries for the annual leadership summit hosted by Girl Up, a U.N. Foundation campaign to promote the rights of adolescent girls around the world. At this year's two-day virtual event, girls attended workshops on topics such as sexual and reproductive rights, health and justice and cyberbullying - and panels with inspiring women like Oscar-winning filmmaker Chloé Zhao and WNBA champion Candace Parker.

NPR spoke to Alice and three other Girl Up leaders - Natalia Perez Morales, 17, from Los Angeles; Sriya Chippalthurty, 17, from Houston; and Liliana Talino, 16, from Luanda, Angola - about their activism, their role models - and what they do for fun. The interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
What issue do you care most about? And how have you helped girls and women in your community?
Alice: I'm most passionate about solving gender inequality in education. In 2020, I met Angelina, a sixth grader who lived in a rural area about 3 hours outside of Lima. She was the best student in her grade and dreamed of being a health-care worker, but her family couldn't afford to buy her the technology she needed to take virtual classes [during the pandemic]. So my foundation raised about $500 to buy her a smartphone and a year of mobile data so she could attend online classes and do her homework.

Sriya: I care a lot about period poverty [the lack of access to menstrual products and education] and reproductive rights. During the height of the pandemic, I helped organize a campaign to provide feminine products to women in homeless shelters. I could see the smiles on the faces of people as we were serving them.

Natalia: I'm passionate about immigration reform. I am currently working on a letter-writing campaign advocating for immigrant women who [say they] have been sexually assaulted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.

Liliana: There are so many problems in my community, but Angola's hunger crisis takes priority. People are dying from hunger [ 1.58 million people are experiencing food insecurity due to droughts and poor harvests]. Last year, I helped raise donations to help feed 35 families in Angola. We fed so many kids and made them happy, and that was really special.
Tell me about a woman you look up to for inspiration.
Liliana: Tabata Amaral. She is a Brazilian politician and she's really awesome. [When she was in high school], she represented Brazil in the International Science Olympiads in chemistry, astronomy and astrophysics - and then went to Harvard and became a politician [where she is currently a federal deputy for the Brazilian Socialist Party].

Alice: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. She's a Nigerian author who has a book called We Should All Be Feminists. She says feminism isn't just a woman's fight. Men and women and everybody else have to join forces to fight inequality.

Sriya: Emma Watson. I was a huge Harry Potter fan growing up, and then I found out that Watson was a U.N. Goodwill Ambassador and promoted education for girls in Zambia. She has a huge platform and uses that to promote causes she cares about.
What else do you do to relax and have fun?
Natalia: I love music, especially Alicia Keys and R&B. I also like watching crime documentaries.

Sriya: I also love R&B - and Lana Del Ray. Sometimes on a rainy day when I need a boost of energy, I listen to throwbacks from like 2012, Katy Perry.

Alice: I like gardening and reading self-help books. I also love dogs. I have three of them, two are strays that I rescued. Spending time with them brings a lot of love to my life.
The theme of this year's summit was "We're Not Waiting, Change is Now." The idea, according Girl Up, is that there's more at stake now for gender rights than ever before. Do you feel a sense of urgency to make a change in your community?
Liliana: Waiting is not an option! If I see a problem in my community and I do not do something to help make it better, I feel like nothing is going to get better.

Alice: For change to happen everywhere, it must start somewhere. Everything we start doing now, no matter how small, will eventually compound into bigger change.

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What these teen girls do - and don't - have time for might surprise and inspire you

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Alice Paredes loves to dance but she doesn't have time for it anymore. Even though the 17-year-old from Lima, Peru, was a 4-time national champion in marinera, a traditional folk dance, she's got other priorities on her mind. "Like saving the world, for instance," she says.

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Quality Sexual Health Education

Advocates works to ensure all students receive quality sexual health education and sexual health services in a safe and welcoming environment.

Advocates works with local education agencies through our Sexual Health Education and Sexual Health Services programs.

quote

Advocates has been funded by CDC-DASH's PS18-1807 to provide technical assistance and capacity building support to 28 local education agencies (LEAs) across the United States. Advocates has been funded to support two strategies: Sexual Health Education (SHE) and Sexual Health Services (SHS).

Sexual Health Education

We assist local education agencies (LEAs) to increase their capacity to implement sexual health education (SHE). The CDC defines SHE as a systematic approach informed by research and practices that emphasize planned, sequential learning across grade levels. SHE uses learning objectives, lessons, materials, and assessments that are medically accurate and age-developmentally-appropriate to help adolescents acquire the knowledge and skills to prevent HIV, other STDs, and unintended pregnancy.

We support LEAs in three domains to address SHE:

1. Strengthen staff capacity

2. Increase student access to programs and services

3. Engage parent and community partners

Sexual Health Services

We assist local education agencies (LEAs) to increase their capacity to support student access to key sexual health services (SHS). This includes specific services like testing for STDs, HIV testing, contraception, and condom provision. As well, we support LEAs in creating adolescent-friendly clinical environments at their School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs) and creating referral systems for accessing SHS in the community.

We support LEAs in three domains to address SHS:

Strengthen staff capacity

Increase student access to programs and services

Engage parent and community partners

Advocates for Youth will provide the following to all local education agencies and their partners:

Resource Materials

Technical Assistance by Telephone and Email

Online Training Modules

School Health Equity Listserv

Interactive Webinars

Ongoing Support and Leadership Coaching

Resources, Technical Assistance, and Training can be tailored based on interest and need.

Advocates looks forward to working with all LEAs to develop in-depth partnerships to support their SHE and SHS activities.

For more information please contact:

Daniella Thorne, DrPH, MPH, CHES
Associate Director, Sexual Health Education
Pronouns: She/Her
202-419-3420 x 153

Sexual Health Services
Mary Beth Szydlowski
Associate Director, Healthy & Supportive Schools
Pronouns: she/her
202.419.3420 x 128

Caitlin Viccora, MSPHPronouns: she/her

Program Manager, Healthy & Supportive Schools

202.419.3420 ext.169
This content was made possible by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Adolescent and School Health (CDC-DASH). The contents do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Advocates for Youth is funded by CDC to provide HIV-related educational materials. This website may contain potentially explicit information related to HIV.

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Contraceptive Access

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Supportive and Healthy Schools - Advocates for Youth

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Quality Sexual Health Education Advocates works to ensure all students receive quality sexual health education and sexual health services in a safe and welcoming environment. Advocates works with local education agencies through our Sexual Health Education and Sexual Health Services programs. quote Advocates has been funded by CDC-DASH's PS18-1807 to provide technical assistance and capacity building support to 28 local education agencies (LEAs) across the United States.

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By Kelly Davis, Associate Vice President of Peer and Youth Advocacy at Mental Health America

Mental Health America (MHA) is proud to announce the members of the 2021-2022 Young Mental Health Leaders Council (YMHLC). YMHLC identifies young leaders from across the U.S. who have created programs and initiatives that fill gaps in traditional mental health services in their communities. Through YMHLC, members connect with other leaders, share their work with MHA's audiences, and expand their ideas into new communities.

This year's cohort is working to address mental health across many areas including faith, policy, research, schools, and peer support. YMHLC members will contribute to MHA's annual Young People's Mental Health Report and will share their ideas and initiatives with our audience throughout the 2021-2022 academic year.

Learn more about them below!

Want to stay up to date on our youth and young adult mental health resources? Sign up for our email list at mhanational.org/youthalerts.

Jaden Stewart (he/him) is an 18-year-old freshman at Kenyon College looking to make a positive change in the world by using his social media platforms to inspire others to strive for greatness each and every day!

Currently, he's at the Division III level playing football and is in the process of working his way up the depth chart. THE PROCESS. Even with all of his accomplishments throughout high school, being a star athlete and valedictorian, he wants to make a bigger impact on people he may encounter day by day. By being a part of Mental Health America's Young Mental Health Leaders Council, he hopes to bring much positive energy and encouragement to people of all ages.

Prameela Boorada (she/her) is an artist, researcher, advocate, and social-impact storyteller.

Growing up in India, Prameela was raised on a wonderful selection of fables, mythology, biographies, and experiences. Moving to the United States opened a portal to identity and existential crises. She started college at 16 and graduated from UC Davis with a degree in Psychology. Through college, she suffered from depression, social anxiety, panic attacks, self-harm, and suicidal ideation. In an attempt to find healing and community, Prameela got involved with on-campus mental health advocacy. That passion stayed with her well beyond college -- in fact, it compelled her to quit her corporate job to learn more about digital well-being and social impact entrepreneurship. During this time, she did a fellowship with HeadStream Innovations where she researched how visibility and vulnerability on social media can impact well-being. She published a digital magazine featuring stories from 22 entrepreneurs/advocates/artists.

Alongside this project, Prameela got involved in grassroots advocacy through MannMukti. Given the stigma around mental health in South Asian cultures, her primary focus was on creating a space for youth to discuss mental health concerns safely. In June 2021, she launched MannMukti's nationwide Youth Fellowship Program. It's a six-month program featuring lectures from educators/activists, 1:1 mentorship from mental health professionals, and support to build a social impact project. The inaugural cohort has 18 students with a plan to expand the cohort size in 2022.

Mahmoud Khedr (he/him) is, above all, human-first. He's a proud Egyptian immigrant passionate about building equitable and scalable solutions empowering underserved communities addressing mental health and education. For the last 10 years, he's been working at the intersection of technology, government, health, and social impact. He is a social entrepreneur who is currently the co-founder and CEO of FloraMind, an organization with the vision of empowering young people to flourish through the most diverse mental health movement. Mahmoud previously worked at Facebook, Google, Echoing Green, and the NYC Mayor's Office of Tech & Innovation. Everything Mahmoud has been involved in throughout his career has been to end unnecessary suffering and empower people to flourish.

As a global advocate and speaker on mental health, youth empowerment, and social entrepreneurship, Mahmoud has received fellowships, awards, and recognition from former President Bill Clinton, General Colin Powell, Forbes, and Stanford d. School. In 2019, he delivered his TED talk, "How Toxic Positivity Leads to More Suffering."

Joseph Sexton (he/him) is a 20-year-old junior at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, where he is studying Psychology; Statistics; and Medicine, Health, & Society with a concentration in critical psychiatry. A Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship recipient, Joseph has centered his advocacy around a need for systemic reform, specifically through policy efforts and a deep commitment to research. He leads a Mental Health Policy Working Group that brings students together to learn about and advocate for policies relevant to mental health outcomes, and he also serves as a Rising Leader for the Tourette Association of America, speaking for the rights and awareness of those with tic disorders.

For his research on suicidal thoughts and behaviors, Joseph was awarded a Goldwater Scholarship in April 2021, recognizing high talent and potential for impact in science. He believes the commercialization of academia and medicine endangers American mental health and is fervently committed to open science and psychiatric reform, working to clean and publicize CDC data on suicides from 1960 to 2020 through his forthcoming U.S. Suicide Compiler project. In conjunction with Mental Health America of the MidSouth, Joseph is also organizing the inaugural Vanderbilt Critical Psychiatry Conference to bring together academics, clinicians, and students in order to understand what is and is not working in the current state of biological psychiatry. He plans on pursuing a career in academia, researching and teaching clinical psychology.

Catherine Delgado (she/her) is an 18-year-old from San Diego, California, and uses she/her/hers pronouns. She is a first-year Public Health student at George Washington University. Growing up, Catherine watched those closest to her struggle with their overwhelming stress, anxiety, and desire to self-harm. She believed that an unwillingness to hold safe conversations about mental health prevented young students from developing the life skills needed to support themselves emotionally throughout their lifetime. It became Catherine's mission to tackle the educational system and create strong mental health support for all students.

This mission led Catherine to found the Student Wellness Education And Resources (SWEAR) Committee at the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD). A student-led mental health advocacy group, the SWEAR Committee is leading the effort for formal mental health and wellness curriculum development. SWEAR's biggest achievement is the passing of a resolution with the SDUSD Board of Education to provide comprehensive, research-based mental health education on an annual basis to all secondary school students at SDUSD. Catherine is now part of the committee that is designing the curriculum for implementation within middle and high schools.

Breanna Kennedy (they/them) has suffered with mental illness since 6th grade alone due to growing up in an environment where mental illness was often ignored, stigmatized, and even considered taboo. They want to make sure other individuals and youth do not feel alone or silenced during their mental health journey.

Breanna is currently a sophomore Pre-Veterinary Sciences Biology major at the University of South Carolina-Aiken (UofSC). Breanna currently works on campus at their Wellness Center as a Student Coordinator for IMPACT Community Service. They also serve as UofSC Aiken Circle K International President in order to not only serve their school, but also their community.

In addition, they serve as the co-Director for Enrichment for Yellow Tulip Project, a nonprofit that seeks to eliminate the detrimental stigma that often surrounds mental illness and to open safe spaces for individuals to talk about their experiences with mental illness. They are currently working on events at UofSC Aiken and the local Boys' and Girls' Club in order to teach students and children the importance of mental health and also fun activities that allow them to practice self-care, self-love, and self-growth. Breanna is very excited to smash the stigma of mental illness and change lives.

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10 Young People Changing their Communities for Mental Health

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By Kelly Davis, Associate Vice President of Peer and Youth Advocacy at Mental Health America Mental Health America (MHA) is proud to announce the members of the 2021-2022 Young Mental Health Leaders Council (YMHLC). YMHLC identifies young leaders from across the U.S.

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Social Media and Climate Change (sustainability)

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Social Media and Climate Change (sustainability)

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These inspiring activists are taking to TikTok to bring awareness to the world's biggest environmental issues-and showing the simple ways we can make a difference

Climate change is a sticky subject-and something you may even avoid discussing because it can get so contentious. For instance, three in four Americans agree that climate change is real and that humans at least partly contribute to it, yet only 40% say that fighting climate change should be a top priority, according to a recent Pew Research survey. This may be partly due to the fact that well over half of respondents said that they do not believe the world will be able to do enough to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. There's a word for this climate anxiety: eco-despair.

But one group remains remarkably optimistic and motivated: people under 30 years old. They are the ones with the biggest investment in cleaning up and protecting the earth, and some of these motivated, eco-minded people are using the megaphone of social media to raise awareness about why we need to be kinder to the planet-and telling us exactly how to do it. By helping others live more sustainably by upcycling, recycling and so much more, these social media activists are changing the world, one tweet and TikTok video at a time.

Alaina Wood, aka The Garbage Queen

Fights climate despair with newsy, inspiring TikTok videos

Making TikTok videos started as a way for Wood to pass time during the pandemic, but when she saw numerous videos insinuating that you can't be a climate activist if you drive a car, aren't vegan or don't live a zero-waste lifestyle, she wanted to share her expertise as an environmental scientist. "I chose the title Garbage Queen because it was actually my nickname at work," she says. "My primary area of work as a scientist is landfills, and I know far too much about them."

She provides her 325,000 followers with simple, actionable ways to be more eco-friendly, proving that every little bit helps ... especially when all those little bits start adding up. Her videos are some of the most "stitched" (TikTok-speak for sharing someone's video along with your own response to it), as her viewers share how they are using and building on her tips.

Claim to fame

Helped form Eco-Tok, a group of popular TikTokers who promote environmental ideas and products, and started the "OK Doomer" trend, which fights climate despair with uplifting memes.

Seth Thomas, aka Zethdafer

Highlights ways to help wildlife survive climate change

When Thomas first joined TikTok, he simply planned to share his comedy skits. But when he started sharing his expertise on environmental issues, things really took off. As a biodiversity researcher and student at Oxford, he spotlights various animals, past and present, and talks about what makes them interesting and what extinction risks they face (or what likely made them go extinct). In his funny, chatty videos, he mixes gossip, life updates and memes with great information for preventing biodiversity loss, one of the most catastrophic consequences of global climate change.

"My favorite thing is when people say they had never heard of an issue before I highlighted it," Thomas says. "We live in an era of information overload, so highlighting some more obscure elements of the climate crisis and getting those traction is really rewarding."

Pro tip

"Healthy and diverse ecosystems are some of our best defenses against climate change," says Thomas, "and planting native plants in your backyard and supporting local wildlife are things everyone can do."

Aliya and Alyssa, founders of Banking on a Better Future

Courtesy Joshua Best, Courtesy Alyssa

Promote "sustainable finance" with investigative TikToks

Banking on a Better Future is a youth-led nonprofit that shows how the world's biggest banks are directly funding fossil fuel companies, some of the biggest environmental offenders. Their goal? To bring awareness to this issue, educate the public and put pressure on these banks, through protests and boycotts, to change their ways.

"Our online community has become a place where everyone's contributions are valued, whether they can move their money, make phone calls and send emails, educate their friends and family or protest in front of a big bank," says Aliya. "We have tangible proof the big banks are starting to feel the heat." She cites one instance when the Royal Bank of Canada moved an important meeting online, likely to prevent indigenous land defenders and allies from attending. "And when we get young folks direct messaging our TikTok, telling us how they've closed their account and got their friends to do the same, we feel so proud!"

Real-world impact

Inspired thousands to move their money out of the big five banks and pledge that they will not bank with them until they stop financing fossil fuels.

Umberto Greco, founder of OpenTabs

via @umberto.greco/Tiktok

Saves trees and conserves rainforests through a free web app

In college, Greco became passionate about climate change but was frustrated with the "green tax" that makes sustainable goods expensive. He wanted to create a free and easy way for anyone to help effect environmental change, and thus, OpenTabs was born. It's a nonprofit that funds rainforest conservation through a free web browser extension. How, exactly? Once users install the extension, it places a small ad in the corner of each tab, and every time they open a new tab, that ad revenue is donated to save trees. Opening five tabs is all it takes to save one tree! "We all open hundreds of tabs when browsing online, and now they can all be put to good use," Greco says.

Greco also shares forest conservation tips, news and updates on his TikTok, along with ways young people can be politically active in conservation. What could our government do to help? Check out these innovative ideas from the most sustainable countries.

Real-world impact

Saved more than 8 million trees to date and raised more than $30,000 for the Climate Change Fund.

Anna Sacks, aka The Trash Walker

via @thetrashwalker/tiktok

Shows how to reduce waste with videos of what she finds in trash

Walking around her New York City neighborhood, Sacks noticed how many perfectly good items were tossed to the curb every day, both in people's personal trash and in what corporations throw out. She began to take " trash walks " and posted videos of her greatest finds-everything from designer clothing to rare artwork to tons of fresh food. In a time when rising prices make you question every purchase, it's exhilarating and a little scary to realize how much great stuff actually goes to waste. Sacks inspires thousands of people to take a fresh look at "garbage," helping them to save both the planet and some money.

At first, her TikToks were simply her own adventures, but they grew in popularity, starting huge political, social and corporate campaigns to keep people accountable for their waste.

Real-world impact

Convinced corporations, including luxury purse brand Coach, to change how they deal with waste and is lobbying Congress to change the way tax laws are written to encourage sustainability.

Sabrina Pare, founder of Sustainable Life

via @sabrina.sustainable.life/tiktok

Shares how to make small sustainable swaps

In 2017 Pare, an environmentalist and popular social media content creator, decided to switch to a plant-based diet after learning about how harmful animal agriculture is for the environment. But she didn't want to stop there and began looking at other aspects of her life, including what she wore and purchased for her home, for ways to make her life more sustainable. Now, she focuses on sharing simple tips for living a low-waste lifestyle, like how to garden in an eco-friendly way and why (and how) to avoid buying fast fashion. She's particularly well known for highlighting areas of concern you might not otherwise think about-like how setting off personal fireworks on holidays pollutes the air and water, creates tons of litter and harms local animal ecosystems.

What not to throw away

Some of Pare's most popular videos share which common household items-including fluorescent lightbulbs, smoke detectors, batteries and prescription medications-actually shouldn't be thrown away in the garbage.

Alyssa Barber, founder of New Life Style

via @newlifestyle____/tiktok

Offers fun tips and tricks to live a more sustainable lifestyle

From properly using the vegetable drawer in your refrigerator to using a $2 "product spatula" to get every last drop out of tubes of makeup and toothpaste, Barber makes everyday sustainability feel fun and totally doable. But her real genius is creating an online community of young people who are constantly looking for small ways to reuse, repair and reduce waste. Her 350,000-plus followers on New Life Style take her creativity and build on it, stitching and sharing their ingenious eco-hacks, like how to make reusable heating pads.

Pro tip

Instead of buying boxes of tissues, opt for "reusable tissues"-aka old-school handkerchiefs.

Skylar Saba, founder of Happy Earth Habits

Designs the opposite of fast fashion

Saba, whose motto is "habits to make Mama Earth happy," started out studying product development, ethics and sustainability at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. But she became disillusioned with the unsustainable practices often used in fashion and decided to start her own social media channels sharing how to make clothing and other lifestyle choices more eco-friendly. She highlights cute items made by sustainable clothing companies and also shows how to make them into a complete outfit with accessories-busting the myth that sustainable dressing means you're limited to clunky sandals with wool socks and drab earth tones.

Claim to fame

Popularized the Conscious Outfit of the Day trend on TikTok and Instagram, a twist on the social media trend Outfit of the Day but featuring sustainable clothing.

Gabrielle, aka Eco OG

Highlights how capitalism encourages overconsumption

Whether she's filming rows upon rows of pillows in a store or demonstrating how to make cheap cleaning products at home, Gabrielle's goal is to help people become more conscious of their desire to buy more-and then help them fight that urge. One powerful way she did this recently was by sharing videos of historic flooding in Bangladesh, a country that produces many of the cheap goods Americans overconsume. She highlighted the unfairness of how poorer countries disproportionately deal with the impacts of climate change, as well as how buying fast fashion and single-use goods indirectly contributes to the problem.

Pro tip

Don't forget furniture in your quest to live a more sustainable life. If you invest in high-quality, sustainably manufactured items, they'll last longer, create less pollution and, because they can be used for generations, reduce consumption.

Emma, aka The Simple Environmentalist

via @thesimpleenvironmentalist/tiktok

Suggests simple solutions to decrease plastic use

Microplastics-toxins that end up in the environment from plastic products-are one of the biggest and most harmful contaminants on the planet. Using a method she calls "lazy zero waste," Emma explains how to reduce your use of plastic and keep existing plastics from contaminating the environment. Her most popular tips include saving the extra paper napkins from restaurants to use as tissues and preserving food in reusable glass jars instead of disposable plastic. What about other materials? Here's what you need to know about recycling Styrofoam.

Claim to fame

" Eco bricks "-her clever way of packaging plastic by shoving as much as possible into a two-liter bottle to ensure it can be properly recycled.

Karishma Porwal, aka Climate Girl

via @_makeearthgreatagain/tiktok

Explores the relationship between race and climate change

From fast fashion made in third-world sweat shops (that then ends up in landfills) to calling out celebrity culture that promotes wastefulness, Porwal shares deep and intellectual takes on the items we walk past every day without thinking about them. Her most recent viral video highlights how Kylie Jenner's private jet not only pollutes the environment but is also a powerful example of how wealth and privilege insulate some people from the effects of climate change. This is a problem in the United States too, with environmental racism disproportionately affecting communities of color.

Claim to fame

Made international news for showing how modern marketing propaganda contributed to the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger.

Morgan Cook, aka Mostly Eco Morgan

via @mostlyecomorgan/tiktok

Shows how sustainable living doesn't have to be all or nothing

Environmental initiatives are often presented as black-and-white concepts: You either eat animals or you don't. You recycle everything or nothing. You care about the planet or you don't. Cook, who describes herself as a perfectly imperfect pro-planet protector, shows how this extreme thinking leads to inaction and shares tips for making changes without having to commit 100%. For instance, her rant about liquid soap sums up everyone's frustration with the slippery bottles that never seem to allow you to get the last bit out ... and her viral video shows how to cheaply make your own frustration-free liquid soap.

Motivational thought

"We need to stop judging people for not 'doing enough.' Being mostly 'eco' is about trying to be better, not the best. It is not realistic to be perfectly sustainable in every part of your life, and that's OK."

Chelsy Christina, founder of Mindful Goods

via @mindfulgoods/tiktok

Highlights the problem with single-use plastics

One day, when taking out her recycling, Christina realized how much waste she produced-and that she had no idea what happened to it. What she discovered changed her life, putting her on a mission to live a low-waste, low-plastic lifestyle and teach others how to do the same. "The truth is that while it may leave our lives, single-use plastic stays on the planet for up to 1,000 years, and 14 billion pounds of trash is dumped into the ocean each year," she says. One of her most popular TikToks shares simple ways to DIY a plastic-free kitchen-and her replacements are so effective that you won't even miss your disposable plastic water bottles, food containers or grocery bags.

Big idea

Curates plastic-free and low-waste products on her website to give people eco-friendly alternatives to common single-use plastic products. "The goal is always progress over perfection," she says.

Akil Kofi, aka Tofu n' Tempeh

Shares big ideas to achieve a sustainable lifestyle

Ever wondered if you could compost? Live in a smaller house or even off the grid? Plant a garden? Become a farmer? Eat less meat? Vegan TikToker and master gardener Kofi shares all these things in her journey to living sustainably-and does it in a way that feels like an inspiring adventure. Her projects are bigger than most on this list (building composting chicken coops and irrigation systems, for example), and her videos go beyond simple tips, for people who are ready to commit to more. Her TikToks are educational and entertaining, with a dose of tough love and realism.

Straight talk

To everyone who says it's too hard to be an environmentalist, Kofi has a simple truth: "It isn't hard-you just lack self discipline."

Pew Research: "For Earth Day, key facts about Americans' views of climate change and renewable energy"
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Meet the Social Media Activists Changing the Narrative on Climate Change

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These inspiring activists are taking to TikTok to bring awareness to the world's biggest environmental issues-and showing the simple ways we can make a difference Climate change is a sticky subject-and something you may even avoid discussing because it can get so contentious.

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For the Gen Z generation, sustainability is of the utmost importance. According to a 2021 Pew Research report, 76 percent of people under the age of 24 termed climate change as one of the biggest societal concerns.

Sustainability is defined as catering to the present generation without sacrificing the needs of future generations. The youth has been vocal about this as according to a 2020 First Insights report, 73 percent of Gen Z consumers were willing to pay more to buy sustainable products.

Realising the importance of sustainability for a greener earth, many young entrepreneurs, environmentalists, climate activists and social activists have come forward with solutions to protect the environment.

SocialStory looks at some of these young activists/ innovators doing their bit to save the environment.

Having been part of many educational initiatives, Anushree Pratap (19) and Tisya Dewan (17) realised environmental courses taught in schools and colleges lack climate literacy.

The girls started Nitara youth initiative in 2021 to work on climate literacy as they believed the subject should be taught to students early on. The duo are on a mission to provide a broader scope of environmental courses to children and adults.

At present, Anushree and Tisya, along with their team, are working on two simultaneous projects. The first project, Eco-Net, focuses on climate literacy where the team makes resources available under structured modules and puts them on its website.

The second initiative, Green Column, is a monthly newsletter which brings young voices to the forefront, giving adequate coverage to climate issues in India often ignored by the mainstream media.

An Indian-American, Sri Nihal Tammana founded '﻿Recycle My Battery' in 2019 on realising the harmful effects of disposed of batteries on the environment. The US-based NGO aims to promote and facilitate recycling through safe disposal and educating others about the process.

Nihal with the used battery and the bin

The 12-year-old has been working to rid the world of battery pollutants to make it safe from fires. According to him, globally, over 15 billion batteries - containing toxic chemicals - are carelessly dumped in the garbage each year. This improper disposal causes fires and pollution, putting the lives of millions of people and animals at risk.

To date, he and his 150+ team of young kids have recycled over 150,000 used batteries and educated over 1.5 million people on the importance of recycling used batteries.

A nature lover, Vishwa Iyer decided to take action when he learnt about the number of people dying due to air pollution in India.

In 2021, he built Air Variance Authority (AVA), an app that helps determine air quality through images. There are two models behind AVA - one is a 16-layer convolutional neural network model deployed on Google Cloud. When a photo is uploaded, the model can predict which AQI bucket the photo would fall into.

The other model is built for rural Indians and does not require internet. It is a simple algorithm that determines the red, green, blue (RGB) value of the sky in the photo. It compares them to those in the dataset, and finds the closest value. The picture is assigned to the same AQI bucket as that of the nearest neighbour.

Vishwa has partnered with several local foundations, including Chopra Foundation, which is helping him deploy AVA on the ground. He is also in the process of collaborating with panchayats and local governments to update the public health guidance accordingly.

Since her childhood, 17-year-old Khushi Chindaliya has been passionate about nature. The teenager found the inspiration to preserve nature and its resources after witnessing her hometown turn into a concrete jungle.

Owing to her interest in conserving the environment, the Surat resident was recently appointed the Regional Ambassador for India by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) - Tunza Eco-Generation.

Amidst the lockdown, Khushi spent her time understanding the causes and repercussions of environmental degradation. Due to the restrictions and the problems of the pandemic, she is now working on an online programme where she shares reports and speaks on what the government is doing for the environment, and how education can help arrest the decline.

A podcaster, speaker, and social entrepreneur, Siyona Vikram was seven years old when she fell in love with the idea of podcasts. She started her own podcast - Little Mind Chats to inform children about current global events and educate them further on the limited information available in their textbooks.

During one of the podcasts, she learnt about how turtles were dying in the ocean due to plastic pollution. This led to the genesis of Little WISE club in late 2020. Through her club, Siyona intends to inspire kids the world over to use toys made of sustainable and biodegradable materials.

Through her club, Siyona raises awareness about the health hazards of plastic toys on children and their effects on our environment once discarded. She also collects used plastic toys from children and does her best to stop them from entering landfills and water sources.

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These 6 teenagers doing their bit for environment show that age is no bar for activism

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For the Gen Z generation, sustainability is of the utmost importance. According to a 2021 Pew Research report, 76 percent of people under the age of 24 termed climate change as one of the biggest societal concerns. Sustainability is defined as catering to the present generation without sacrificing the needs of future generations.

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New technologies will make the fashion industry more sustainable

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In 2022, some innovations could make fashion more sustainable — and boost customer satisfaction.

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When School Nurse are Not Enough (health care centers in schools)

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When School Nurse are Not Enough (health care centers in schools)

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There is no better time than now to bump up the health resources for children in schools, experts say. School children have had an especially challenging time navigating the tedious months of the pandemic, with recent reports showing that students fell four to seven months behind in math and reading compared to previous years, and with the most vulnerable students showing the steepest declines.

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Syracuse City Schools & School Based Health Centers 

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Syracuse City Schools & School Based Health Centers 

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School-Based Health Centers | The Syracuse City School District | Syracuse, NY

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International Youth Day, designated by the UN in the year 2000, is celebrated every Aug. 12 to recognize young people living around the world and the distinct issues that will affect the next generation of world leaders, activists, and Global Citizens.

Keeping in mind the 270 million people in urgent need of food aid and the enormous toll human activity has taken on the environment, the theme of International Youth Day 2021 is "Transforming Food Systems: Youth Innovation for Human and Planetary Health." That's because youth organizations and activists are at the forefront of fighting hunger and malnutrition.

Hunger is a tricky thing to measure. We produce enough food to feed every person in the world, according to the World Food Forum, but accessibility and affordability prevent that from happening. Even when food is accessible, there is a question of whether it is nutritious, particularly in regions of the world where food deserts keep people from enjoying diverse and healthy diets.

The COVID-19 pandemic has only made the problem worse, as lockdown restrictions and a global recession disrupted food systems everywhere.

Climate change is another big threat to accessing nutritious food. As a warming planet continues to devastate the land we live on - resulting in heat waves, flooding, and forest fires - food systems are becoming increasingly unreliable. If we don't adapt the current system to become more sustainable, world hunger is going to increase, and many more lives will be lost.
Young people are on the front lines of the struggle to build a better future for all. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the dire need for the kind of transformational change they seek - and young people must be full partners in that effort. UN Secretary-General António Guterres
Young people will inherit these global issues that have been building for years. But instead of waiting for the problem to become theirs to solve, they are taking action now, demanding world leaders defend the planet and defeat poverty with measurable policies, as well as starting their own initiatives to improve food security.

Here are five youth activists fighting the interconnected problems of world hunger and climate change that you can follow on social media. Let their work inspire you to take action in your own communities and abroad, no matter how old you are.

1. Kehkashan Basu, Canada

At just 21 years old, Kehkashan Basu has campaigned on issues spanning hunger, climate change, and gender equality for years, leading her to be recognized as one of Canada's Top 25 Women of Influence in 2018. This year, she participated in the Generation Equality Forum with other young activists as part of UN Women's Generation Equality Youth Task Force, where she underscored the importance of recognizing intersectionality when fighting poverty.

"In developing regions, poverty, hunger, gender abuse, and inequality are all interlinked, and [my organization] essentially addresses their intersectionality to elevate them out of poverty while helping to restore their natural environment and biodiversity," Basu told Global Citizen.

At age 12, she founded the Green Hope Foundation, which empowers vulnerable people - such as women and refugees - to implement sustainable agricultural practices. She believes that with more thoughtful ways of practicing agriculture, humanity can address the interconnected problems that stem from climate change.

"Unless we regenerate planetary health and restore nature's balance, it will be impossible to solve global hunger," Basu said.

Follow Kehkashan Basu on Instagram and Twitter.

2. Leah Namugerwa, Uganda

Seventeen-year-old Leah Namugerwa is an activist from Uganda fighting to make her home country, and the world, a more sustainable place for all people. In 2018, she learned of the high rates of hunger that people in Northern Uganda were experiencing due to drought and landslides, which were brought on by climate change.

She began striking on Fridays in front of the Ugandan Parliament, inspired by Greta Thunberg's campaign Fridays for Future. Since then, Namugerwa has advocated for planting trees, banning plastic bags, and saving the Bugoma Forest to prevent the human consequences that will emerge from climate change.

Follow Leah Namugerwa on Instagram and Twitter.

3. Joshua Williams, United States

We are excited to announce that Joshua Williams is a finalist for the @MiamiChamber#2020HYPEAwards! This annual recognition honors our community's young professionals who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in their field. Congrats, Joshua!
*#Miami#MiamiChamber pic.twitter.com/tbOdlhnUMX
- Joshua's Heart (@joshuasheart) December 9, 2020

At just 4 years old, Joshua Williams knew that no one should be hungry. While walking with his mom, Williams gave his pocket money to a person experiencing homelessness and started paying attention to how widespread the problem of food insecurity is in the United States and other countries.

The organization that arose from his beliefs, Joshua's Heart Foundation, distributes food and other types of aid to hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Now at age 20, Williams' activism has inspired other young people to take action to defeat poverty by volunteering and starting their open branches of Joshua's Heart Foundation.

Follow Joshua Williams' foundation on Twitter.

4. Webster Makombe, Zimbabwe

In 2019, Global Citizen spoke to Webster Makombe about his work to fight malnutrition in Zimbabwe by working with government leaders and organizations to prioritize access to safe, sufficient, and nutritious food. Now, at age 21, Makombe followed up with Global Citizen to share how he has continued his activism.

"There was a huge drawback on some of the progress that had been made, however the [COVID-19] pandemic has been able to put some of the hunger and nutrition issues that we have been advocating for [in] the spotlight," he told Global Citizen. "So, during the whole year of 2020 spilling into this year, I have been working on calling for the transformation of food systems and social behaviors towards food."

Makombe is a core leader of the #Act4Change campaign, which demands government leaders implement sustainable agricultural practices to fight world hunger. He is also working on completing his education, with the goal of becoming a policy maker who prioritizes laws to end hunger and defend the planet.

"We as young people should focus on regenerative and sustainable agriculture, working towards nourishing people and [the] planet together," Makombe said.

Follow Webster Makombe on Instagram and Twitter.

5. Sophie Healy-Thow, Ireland

Sophie Healy-Thow is a youth activist who focuses on improving access to safe, affordable, and nutritious food in undernourished communities. While studying International Development and Food Policy in Ireland, Healy-Thow is also a member of the Scaling Up Nutrition Movement (SUN), which engages activists, organizations, and world leaders to end malnutrition to fight world hunger.

She also sees a clear connection between issues like gender equality, climate change, and world hunger, which inspired her to work on helping women in agriculture implement sustainable growing methods. Earlier this year, Healy-Thow addressed the interconnected problems through The Midday Snackbox, a podcast she produced with anti-poverty organization Concern.

Follow Sophie Healy-Thow on Instagram and Twitter.
You can join the Global Citizen Live campaign to defend the planet and defeat poverty by taking action here, and become part of a movement powered by citizens around the world who are taking action together with governments, corporations, and philanthropists to make change.

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5 Youth Activists Tackling World Hunger to Follow on International Youth Day

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International Youth Day, designated by the UN in the year 2000, is celebrated every Aug. 12 to recognize young people living around the world and the distinct issues that will affect the next generation of world leaders, activists, and Global Citizens.

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It means lack of access to proper healthcare and affordable fresh foods. It means limited transportation options to get to and from work reliably, inadequate quality child care options, and limited savings for emergencies. And it often means living in unsafe housing or neighborhoods riddled with violence.

Our young children living in poverty are facing challenges some adults would find insurmountable - when walking to school through unsafe neighborhoods or going to bed hungry, it can be hard to concentrate on your studies. And children that fall behind in school are less likely to complete high school and college, making it hard to later become employed to support a family.

Clearly, the poverty epidemic in Central New York is detailed and complex. With it comes a series of causes and effects that make the solution seem almost unattainable.

But with every mentored child, job preparedness program or public policy change, the cycle of poverty begins to crack open. While our indicators in this section demonstrate the level of poverty in our region, it is important to remember that many of the indicators on this site are all connected to one another, and that the progress or decline of one can have a significant effect on the outcomes of another, especially our region's poverty rates.

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It means lack of access to proper healthcare and affordable fresh foods. It means limited transportation options to get to and from work reliably, inadequate quality child care options, and limited savings for emergencies. And it often means living in unsafe housing or neighborhoods riddled with violence.

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Introduction

To understand the physical and mental health of Central New York's residents, you can look at everything from health behaviors to disease outcomes and access to health services. However you look at it, it's clear that social factors have a huge impact on health.

By examining health trends in our community, we reveal significant areas of need, especially among our poorest residents and people of color. There are high obesity rates across our region, including our rural low-income communities. This points to barriers many people face in choosing a healthy lifestyle, such as difficulty affording fresh fruits and vegetables.

The indicators also point to high levels of lead exposure in our local children, especially those living in low-income neighborhoods of Onondaga County. Children younger than 6 years old are especially vulnerable to lead poisoning, which can severely affect mental and physical development, leading to brain damage and learning problems. This can affect their ability to succeed in school later in life.

Data clearly show mental health needs and domestic violence are problems in our neighborhoods as well. By looking at our local rates, we can estimate where we need the proper supports to address these issues head-on. Both can be corrosive to families and affect the ability to maintain stable employment and safe neighborhoods.

The state of health in our region is complicated and far-reaching, but by being knowledgeable of local needs, we can make informed decisions that will have a direct impact on the health and happiness of our neighbors.

Let's Break It Down

Central New York counties have high rates of obesity.

An adult who has a Body Mass Index (BMI) at or above 30 is considered obese. In 2021, it is estimated that 37% of Oswego County adults were obese, which was the highest rate of any county in the Central New York region. Cortland and Cayuga Counties had the next obesity highest rate (34 percent), followed by Onondaga County (32 percent) and Madison County (31 percent).

The obesity rates in Central New York are higher than those in New York State overall, where an estimated 26 percent of the population was obese in 2020. Data show clear disparities by factors such as income, race and disability status. Census tract data show high obesity rates in Syracuse, Auburn, and Oswego County relative to other parts of the region.

Locally and nationally, obesity rates have steadily risen over the past few decades. Emerging data show that the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the problem by changing eating habits, increasing food security, creating obstacles to physical activity, and heightening stress.

Why Does It Matter?

Obesity increases risk of serious health issues.

People who are obese statistically have a higher risk of health problems such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. They are also more likely to experience mental illness, body pain, and many other serious health conditions. Collectively, obesity-related disease and death takes a tremendous toll on our community. This also places an increased burden on our local health care system and has an economic impact, costing the healthcare system billions of dollars per year.

Lack of access to healthy food or exercise increases one's likelihood of becoming obese. People who live in food deserts - areas with little access to affordable, nutritious food - or who lack access to regular transportation to grocery stores have tremendous barriers to living a healthy lifestyle. This is reflected in Syracuse, where data show there is a gap in food accessibility in the below-poverty and racially concentrated areas of the city.

In 2017, the Onondaga County Health Department released a food environment map of Syracuse, which shows obesity rates among adults over the age of 18 were the highest in some of the city's poorest neighborhoods. About half of the census tracts in Syracuse were considered food deserts at that time, as most only have corner stores that mainly sell prepared foods that are made with artificial ingredients and are high in calories and fat, instead of major supermarkets that supply fresh foods and healthier options at lower cost.

The connection between poverty, food access, and health outcomes is seen clearly when you look at data for specific zip codes. For example, within zip code 13202, 68 percent of children lived in poverty, the median household income was $15,565 and 50 percent of people had no available access to a grocery store or a vehicle, according to the Health Department report. The same area has some of the city's highest hospitalization rates. For every 10,000 people, 48.9 were hospitalized for diabetes and 80.1 were hospitalized for heart failure, the latter being the highest rate among any zip code in the city.

Let's Break It Down

Poor mental health affects growing numbers of adults and children.

One way we measure mental health is by assessing the number of days people report having felt mentally unhealthy in the past month. In 2021 it is estimated that residents of Central New York counties had an average of 4.7 mentally unhealthy days per month. The average number of unhealthy days has increased for all counties in recent years.

According to the National Alliance of Mental Illness, over one in five adults in America experience mental illness, and one in 20 live with a serious mental illness. Over 19 percent of adults live with anxiety disorders and over eight percent live with major depression.

Mental illness varies by race and identities. Approximately 23 percent of Non-Hispanic white adults live with a mental health condition, while 17 percent of Non-Hispanic black adults and 14 percent of Non-Hispanic Asian adults live with a mental health condition. In addition, the prevalence of mental health conditions is significantly higher in the LGBTQ community, at 47 percent.

National data indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in symptoms of anxiety and depression in adults across the country. The rates are highest among people with disabilities, people identified as LGBT, and the youngest age groups. There are also particular concerns about children's mental health. In 2021 the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory on the youth mental health crisis, noting how the pandemic has added to pre-existing challenges. Locally, there have been many reports of Central New York youth struggling with mental health issues during the pandemic.

Why Does It Matter?

Service gaps and stigmas prevent people from seeking help.

Access to behavioral healthcare, regardless of healthcare coverage, is critical for treating people that have mental health conditions. Untreated mental health problems can lead to homelessness, suicide, substance abuse, unemployment, and domestic violence.

Often people who struggle with mental health disorders in our culture are viewed as being personally weak or broken. This negative stigma can deter people from seeking help when needed. Mental health disorders are often caused by biological factors such as genetics, trauma and abuse, family history, or environmental stressors. Childhood trauma and other experiences that may harm a child's health may lead to behavioral health needs as adults.

According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, only 44 percent of adults and less than 20 percent of children and teens with diagnosable mental health problems receive treatment.

Effective treatment of an individual's mental health disorder can make them more productive, lower their medical and disability costs and decrease their absenteeism from work or school. In turn, properly addressing a community's behavioral health needs can lead to better educational outcomes, a more productive economy, longer lifespans, greater personal safety, and lower healthcare costs and crime rates.

For many years Central New York has experienced a shortage of mental health providers, particularly for youth, leading to long waiting lists. The most recent Community Health Assessment conducted in Onondaga County found access to mental health services is one of residents' top concerns. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for mental health services, making it more difficult than ever to seek treatment. Strategies are needed to increase access to quality care as well as support systems to ensure both long-term and short-term mental health for our residents.

Fortunately, leaders are working to expand mental health services in the wake of the pandemic. For example, Onondaga County allocated resources for schools to help address students' mental health needs by adding staff who will offer school-wide support, early intervention strategies, and services at school-based mental health clinics.

Let's Break It Down

Lead poisoning is highest in Onondaga and Cayuga Counties.

When swallowed or inhaled, lead is extremely harmful to both children and adults. People can become exposed to lead through chipped house paint, dust, soil, and pipes. In the Central New York region, the most common source of lead poisoning is chipping paint in and around homes built before 1978, when federal regulations banned the use of lead-based paint. Children under the age of six are most susceptible to ingesting paint chips most commonly found on floors and window sills. Another common source of lead poisoning is when children unknowingly inhale dust particles created from the friction of painted surfaces when windows, doors and cabinets are opened and closed.

The CDC considers a blood lead level of over 3.5 mcg/dl in children to be high lead exposure. However, any amount of lead can be dangerous. The New York State Department of Health reports rates of children with lead levels that are 10 mcg/dl or higher, and these rates are shown in the chart above. The Onondaga County Health Department reports data on the percent of tested children with blood lead levels over 5 mcg/dl. Its most recent data show that in 2021, 10.5 percent of Syracuse children tested had elevated blood lead levels compared to 5 percent of Onondaga County children. Lead poisoning rates look even higher when you zoom in to analyze those census tracts that also report high levels of poverty and poor housing conditions.

In Syracuse's census tract 23, which is located just north of Interstate 690 between Pearl and Lodi streets, 18.5 percent of children tested had high blood lead levels in 2020. Census tract 54, located in the Brighton neighborhood of Syracuse's Southside, had an even higher rate with more than 32 percent of tested children having high blood lead levels. Here, a striking 36 percent of residents live below the poverty line.

Why Does It Matter?

Lead exposure is extremely harmful to children and adults.

Lead paint was banned in 1978, but more than 90 percent of occupied homes in the city of Syracuse were built before that regulation was enacted.

When children inhale or swallow lead-based paint dust or chips, they are ingesting lead into their bodies. Lead has a sweet taste, making it even more tempting to children. There is no safe blood lead level, as a child's development and intellectual function can be affected by exposure at any level. Lead in the human body has been found to reduce brain function, impacting the skills needed for academic success, physical activity and social interaction. It can lead to a higher likelihood of attention deficit disorders, criminal behavior, violence, and suicide. Increased impulsivity and aggression, along with a shorter attention span, are likely to influence a child's everyday social encounters and success in school.

In 2018, the Central New York Community Foundation announced that it was investing $2 million over four years to help end childhood lead poisoning through its LeadSafeCNY initiative. Learn more about the progress being made.

Let's Break It Down

Domestic violence is a widespread community issue in our region.

The Division of Criminal Justice Services tracks data on victims of reported domestic violence incidents. The incidents are broken down into four categories: sex offense, violation of a protection order, aggravated assault and simple assault. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, aggravated assaults involve an attack or attempted attack with a weapon or an attack without a weapon where serious injury occurs. Simple assaults are defined as an attack without a weapon resulting in minor or no injury; most domestic violence incidents in Central New York fall in this category.

The number of domestic violence incidents reported each year in Onondaga County has increased from about 3,500 in 2016 to nearly 5,000 in 2020. This means over one percent of the Onondaga County population has experienced domestic violence. Rural counties saw fewer reported incidents overall. However, in 2020 Cayuga County had 26 victims of reported sex offenses, which was the highest number of any Central New York county.

Sadly, these data do not reflect the true magnitude of the problem, because incidents of domestic violence are vastly under-reported. It is estimated that only about half of domestic violence incidents are never reported.

Why Does It Matter?

Domestic violence creates lasting devastating effects.

Domestic violence often happens behind closed doors, but affects entire families and social networks, including friends of victims and employers. When violence is occurring around children, they often become victims themselves or live in constant fear or worry that their parent may be harmed.

This issue is a pervasive problem that affects people regardless of their background or income. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), one in four women and one in ten men have experienced sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner. Domestic violence hotlines receive over 19,000 calls on a typical day.

NCADV estimates that intimate partner violence leads to an estimated loss of 8 million paid work days each year leading to annual costs of between $5.8 billion and $12.6 billion. The ripple effect continues into the criminal justice system and health care systems, which provide intervention and treatment to those impacted by violence.

Vera House, a service agency in Onondaga County, provides shelter, advocacy and services for women, men and children suffering the effects of domestic and sexual violence. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic they have seen an increase in need for services and a rise in severe, complex violence. According to a report from the National Domestic Violence Hotline, housing instability, economic instability, and forced isolation are some of the factors that are contributing to the problem and placing increased burdens on survivors.

Domestic violence is a pervasive problem in our culture. Often a person experiencing any type of physical or emotional violence at home may become isolated from family or friends, further limiting their ability to connect or reach out for help.

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, you can seek help by contacting Vera House's 24-hour crisis and support line at 315-468-3260.

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To understand the physical and mental health of Central New York's residents, you can look at everything from health behaviors to disease outcomes and access to health services. However you look at it, it's clear that social factors have a huge impact on health.

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Introduction

Children really are our future. The little ones that we are raising today will one day be working at our family businesses, voting in local elections, and teaching future generations.

The indicators on this page measure outcomes across various critical stages of a child's development. Children who enter school unprepared for kindergarten can struggle, lose confidence and fall behind. If they are not able to 'learn to read' by third grade, they are less able to 'read to learn' from Grade 4 and beyond. And without a financial means to attend college in their sights, many aren't motivated to keep up attendance or try hard in their high school studies.

Thanks to the work of our local literacy coalitions, the Early Childhood Alliance , Say Yes to Education Syracuse, and multiple community organizations, we are beginning to see optimistic development in these areas. But much work still needs to be done to ensure that all of our children have equal access to effective schooling and enter school ready to learn and excel.

By ensuring that our children receive a quality education across their lifespan, we are also addressing numerous community challenges at the same time - from poverty to home ownership and healthcare outcomes. Setting them up well now will help our next generation to succeed, planting the seed for a prosperous and thriving region.

Early Childhood Education

Let's Break It Down

Disparities persist between city and suburban test scores.

Kindergarten readiness rates measure the percent of children deemed ready to enter kindergarten according to assessment scores, though most children continue on regardless. A child's early education - pre-kindergarten through third grade - is a crucial period considered to be predictive of their success in the future.

A stark contrast exists between Syracuse and other areas of Onondaga County in third grade Math and English Language Arts (ELA) test scores. Out of a potential four-point scale, the majority of students in the Syracuse City School District are testing at level one or two, meaning performance is well below proficient standards for the third grade level. In many suburban school districts, significantly higher percentages of students are coming in at levels three and four.

Some rural school districts also have high percentages of students scoring poorly. For example, in Madison County the majority of students in the Morrisville-Eaton, Canastota, and DeRuyter Central School Districts had math and ELA third grade test scores below proficient standards in 2018.

Poverty is one factor that likely contributes to the disparities in children's test scores. Another challenge in Syracuse is the large numbers of students who are immigrants and have limited English proficiency, which makes ELA tests difficult to pass. Some scholars point to segregation in Syracuse schools as another cause of the achievement gap.

Why Does It Matter?

Early childhood education is a major predictor of a child's future.

A child's early education can impact his or her future significantly. Children who enter kindergarten already behind may struggle to keep up through the remainder of their education. Having access to a strong education between pre-kindergarten and third grade correlates to school success, high graduation rates and low instances of juvenile crime and teen pregnancy.

The ability to successfully read directly influences all other areas of a child's education and learning capabilities. Until third grade, students are typically learning to read, while after third grade, students are reading to learn. Therefore, a student who is not able to read proficiently by third grade may also struggle in other subjects like math and science.

Summer learning loss, or the tendency for students to lose some of what they learned over the school year during summer break, can set children back significantly when they return to school in the fall. In contrast, students with access to learning opportunities and educational materials during the summer months often see gains heading into the new school year.

With greater access to quality education, our future citizens and workforce can become economically stronger and more civically engaged.

A Local Story

Preparing Children to Learn

The Early Childhood Alliance (ECA) has an important mission: to build the brains of our youngest residents - babies. Children from birth to age 5 pass many developmental milestones at a rapid pace. The ECA works to prioritize the education of these children during a critical stage of their growth.

The ECA's mission is to ensure that all children are healthy, thriving and ready to succeed in school and life. It focuses on providing all families of young children parenting support by building knowledge, skills, confidence and the resources needed to raise their children in healthy and nurturing environments.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, an estimated 15% of children in the United States have at least one developmental delay, yet less than one-fifth of those children receive early intervention services before three years of age.

ECA's Help Me Grow (HMG) sets out to make sure that all children aged zero to five years old are receiving screenings over the course of their development. Where needed, it provides parents with referrals to community-based supports so that they can address milestone delays early.

Because the brain rapidly develops during the first five years of life, ECA's staff feels a sense of urgency to find children who need developmental help. Their referrals have come from childcare providers, grandparents and parents. The United Way's 211 outreach phone number is often a source of referrals and is accessible to anyone who needs services. The best source of referrals is from pediatricians, and yet, very few in Syracuse and surrounding suburbs knew about HMG until recently.

ECA's "Books, Balls & Blocks" events teach families about social-emotional development, milestones and screenings. When participants sign up, they receive a tote filled with age-appropriate developmental toys. To encourage parents to attend well-child pediatric visits, even during a pandemic, the team delivers developmental toys to the pediatricians' offices. The toys have a QR code tag which, when scanned, will easily help parents give their information and needs. Collecting data will help HMG know where to focus its energies and how to help the most families.

ParentChild+ (PC+), a collaboration between the ECA and Catholic Charities, matches an early-learning specialist with families to ensure children are ready to enter kindergarten. Each family receives a minimum of 46 home/virtual visits per cycle for a total of 92 visits. Families build a library of books and educational toys, along with curricular guide sheets containing tips for verbal interaction, quality conversation and skill development. Most of the activities are easy to implement and cost very little. Hopping around the living room from pillow to pillow is just one example of an activity that helps develop gross motor skills.

With continued funding, consistency, attention and a network of resources, the ECA is building an intentional framework to help families throughout Onondaga County. Raising early childhood development up as a priority requires the will of a community. Laurie Black, ECA executive director, added thoughtfully, "To quote Frederick Douglass, 'It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.'"

"To quote Frederick Douglass, 'It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.'" Laurie Black

What You Can Do

Give input and get involved.

Whether you're an experienced volunteer, an activist, a student, working professional, or a stay-at-home parent, there are roles both big and small that you can play to shape the future of the region.

Let's Break It Down

Dropout rates are higher for students living in lower income areas

Public school enrollment is highest in the city of Syracuse, as it has the highest population in Central New York. Public school enrollment in Onondaga, Madison, Cayuga, Oswego and Cortland County school districts generally remained consistent over the past decade, with small increases and decreases throughout. However, some school districts have seen large changes. Between 2010 and 2020 the Central Square School District saw enrollment decline by over 1600 students, while Syracuse City School District enrollment increased by over 1600 students.

Unfortunately, many students do not stay in school long enough to graduate. Every year the New York State Education Department reports on these students in each school district's dropout rate. Dropout rates show that large disparities exist between students of differing income level households. Within Onondaga County, areas with more wealth had lower high school dropout rates.

In 2020 the dropout rate in the Syracuse City School District was nearly 11 percent, which was higher than most other districts in the region and well above the national dropout rate of 5.1 percent. Other districts with high dropout rates include the Fulton City School District (10 percent), Oneida City School District (10 percent), and small districts throughout the region (7 to 14 percent).

It is important to note that the most recent available data are from 2020, a year that ended with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and an abrupt transition to remote schooling. Many school districts saw their graduate rates increase and dropout rates decrease in 2020, which may have been due in part to New York State's decision to waive the Regents exam requirements. However, it is impossible to know exactly how much of an impact the pandemic had on dropout rates.

Why Does It Matter?

Attendance and graduation are key to a student's future success.

Jobs in today's economy most often require at least a high school diploma. In addition, it has been found that educational attainment correlates directly to earnings during a person's lifetime. In 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that only 30 percent of employment opportunities required less than a high school diploma and the weekly median wage for that segment was $619, or approximately $32,000 per year.

Attendance is a key factor in successful high school completion. According to the Department of Education, irregular attendance is associated with decreased likelihood of graduating and poor outcomes as an adult. Students who are chronically absent may be caring for other siblings or family members, working to support their family, struggling with behavioral health or physical health issues, or may not be engaged in their schoolwork.

Differences exist in absenteeism and high school dropout rates between White students and students of color. According to the Department of Education, 14.5 percent of White students nationally were chronically absent in the 2015-2016 school year compared to 20.5 percent of Black students, 17 percent of Hispanic students and 26 percent of Native American students in the same time period.

In New York State, Black and Hispanic students are less likely to graduate from high school than their White counterparts. In 2020, the graduation rate was 77 to 78 percent for Black and Hispanic students versus 91 percent for White students. Only 46% of students identified as English Language Learners graduated. Additionally, the graduation rate for students considered economically disadvantaged was 80 percent versus 91 percent for students who were not economically disadvantaged.

A Local Story

Learning What's Out There

When students enter the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection (HW-SC) program, Regional Executive Director Wayne O'Connor says many dream of becoming NBA players or cosmetologists.

Over the course of the program, O'Connor hears students' aspirations evolve; they say journalist, photographer, researcher or even an environmentalist.

These new passions are ignited when HW-SC students explore the city of Syracuse and beyond on "learning expeditions."

Learning expeditions put students in the field - whether that's a zoo or a state park. O'Connor arranges interviews with professionals and gives students the resources needed to document their expedition, record observations and take photographs and video.

It was on a learning expedition that Charisma Sykes found that her passion and interest lay in the environment.

"[What I'm most interested in] is preservation and [the importance of] renewable energy," said Sykes. "We are putting too much fossil fuels in the air. The way we are heading - the earth can't handle it. People are getting sick and things are getting destroyed. There's nothing getting preserved."

Sykes and other students traveled to Beaver Lake and Rosamond Gifford Zoo where they learned about animals' well-being in zoos, birds and their environment through nature photography.

Expeditions such as Charisma's are especially important because many HW-SC students have never set foot outside of the city of Syracuse. There are more than 1,100 HW-SC students in 10 Syracuse City School District schools, and 99 percent face poverty and other life challenges. Students come to this program with evidence-based risk factors, including poor attendance, failing two or more core subjects and low standardized test scores. At the time she came to HW-SC, Sykes was struggling with math.

"I really wasn't good at math," said Sykes. "I really needed help and tutoring. I asked my parents [if I could join] and they said it was OK."

Sykes has been a mainstay at Hillside, starting early when she was in middle school. Now a senior at Henninger High School, she credits the organization for her newfound confidence. She has observed the staff and countless advocates work hard to make sure every student succeeds.

For O'Connor it's simple: It's being there for their students and setting the bar high.

"We have high expectations," said O'Connor. "We give a lot of love, affection and support. We've learned to work on Saturdays, and we've learned to work late."

What You Can Do

Give input and get involved.

Whether you're an experienced volunteer, an activist, a student, working professional, or a stay-at-home parent, there are roles both big and small that you can play to shape the future of the region.

Let's Break It Down

Central New York and the City of Syracuse are seeing rising graduation rates.

In Onondaga, Madison, Oswego, Cayuga, and Cortland counties, a significant majority of the workforce over the age of 25 had at least a high school degree in 2019. 5,384 people in Onondaga County's workforce had at least a 12th grade education but no high school diploma. Census tracts throughout Central New York with lower median incomes had more people in the workforce without a high school diploma compared to tracts with higher median incomes.

Graduation rates measure the percentage of students who graduate in four years from high school each June, though many students graduate soon after in August or the following year. In 2020 the average graduation rate was 84 percent in Onondaga County, 89 percent in Madison County, 84 percent in Cayuga County, 85 percent in Oswego County and 83 percent in Cortland County. In most counties, the city school district had the lowest graduation rate.

Central New York's overall graduation rate of 85 percent was the same as the state rate of 85 percent in 2020. In recent years the Syracuse City School District has seen its graduation rate increase from 54.5 percent in 2015 to 66.3 percent in 2020. Rates also rose in the region's other city school districts and in New York State overall.

Why Does It Matter?

Educational attainment is essential in today's economy.

Jobs in today's economy most often require at least a high school diploma. In addition, it has been found that educational attainment correlates directly to earnings during a person's lifetime. In 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that only 30 percent of employment opportunities required less than a high school diploma.

Because a high school diploma is becoming more of a minimum requirement for employment, students who graduate are more likely to get a higher paying job. In 2020, the Bureau found the average median weekly earnings for someone with less than a high school diploma was $619 and that segment carried an unemployment rate of 11.7 percent. By comparison, workers with a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $781 and an unemployment rate of 9 percent. Those with a Bachelor's degree had median weekly earnings of $1,305 and an unemployment rate of 5.5 percent.

With a more educated workforce, our economy is able to grow and adapt to changing needs and modern technologies.

Historically, there have been significant economic and racial disparities in public school completion rates. In New York State, the graduation rate in 2020 for Black students was 78 percent, compared to 91 percent for White students. One positive sign is that in Syracuse disparities in graduation rates between some racial groups have decreased. In 2020, White, Hispanic or Latino, and Black students in the Syracuse City School District all had graduation rates between 69 and 71 percent, with Black students having the highest rate. American Indian or Alaska Native and Multiracial students had lower graduation rates (59 and 61 percent, respectively).

A 2016 Gallup poll found that there is a strong link between hope and grades, achievement scores, retention and future employment. This means that the more hopeful a student feels about his or her future, the more engaged and motivated they may be to stay in school, and ultimately graduate.

A Local Story

The Initial Push

Aarick Knighton always planned to go to college, but credits his Say Yes Syracuse (Say Yes) scholarship with "cracking open the door" to more options.

Knighton, a 2011 Corcoran High School alum, used his Say Yes scholarship to study Information Management and Technology at Syracuse University. After graduating, Knighton worked as a social media manager, first for Syracuse.com and later for Syracuse University, before jumping into the political arena this past spring as Mayor Ben Walsh's campaign manager.

"The initial push that Say Yes gives is invaluable, it really is," Knighton said.

Say Yes to Syracuse provides fully endowed last-dollar tuition guarantee scholarships to all eligible Syracuse City School District (SCSD) students. Beyond the financial support it also provides families with academic support specialists, access to mental health clinics and legal services designed to help mitigate the systemic barriers to higher education. The SCSD graduation rate increased by 26 percent over the past ten years from 45 percent in 2010 to 71 percent in 2020.

The 2020 graduation rate of Black, Latino and Asian students in the Syracuse City School District (SCSD) met or exceeded that of White students, signaling that the program is helping students break through challenges historically caused by systemic racism.

Knighton said Say Yes provided financial flexibility that he is still experiencing, five years after he graduated from Syracuse University.

"The financial relief-that one less payment a month, the thousands of dollars less in debt-it provides flexibility as we build our young lives, as we move, have families, establish careers," Knighton said. "I am super grateful to Say Yes for that, and I know my classmates are, too."

Ahmeed Turner, Say Yes Syracuse's Executive Director, explained that the foundation of Say Yes is rooted in the economic revitalization of Central New York. Its mission is to provide opportunities for young people to gain a meaningful career and to make a positive impact on the community.

Since the fall of 2009, 4,900 Say Yes students have enrolled in 2 and 4-year colleges (public and private). In July 2020, the Central New York Community Foundation joined forces with Say Yes to continue its support of local students.

"In my opinion, Aarick embodies all of what Say Yes stands for; he took advantage of the tuition guarantee, and he stayed here," Turner said. "He's always had this sense of civic responsibility and I think the scholarship emboldened him to be more active in the community."

"A lot of the local students have the capabilities and the talents to succeed in college and beyond, but they don't always have the resources or the opportunities to do so. Most people will take off running if you just give them the keys."

What You Can Do

Give input and get involved.

Whether you're an experienced volunteer, an activist, a student, working professional, or a stay-at-home parent, there are roles both big and small that you can play to shape the future of the region.

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Children really are our future. The little ones that we are raising today will one day be working at our family businesses, voting in local elections, and teaching future generations. The indicators on this page measure outcomes across various critical stages of a child's development.

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The blog is sponsored by CoBank, who shares the National Farm to School Network's mission of growing farm to school to support farmers and vibrant rural communities. We thank CoBank for being a sponsor of our 2018 National Farm to School Month Celebrations.

By Elizabeth Esparza, NFSN Communications Intern

Observe any school cafeteria during a typical lunchtime, and you are bound to witness a perplexing problem. On the one hand, you would certainly see students who rely on school meals to meet their daily nutritional needs getting the food they need. Simultaneously, on any normal day, you would also undoubtedly notice the staggering amount of waste that cafeterias across the country inevitably produce.

Though plate waste abounds, schools and communities throughout the country are stepping up to fight the issue with creative solutions. Reducing plate waste in schools is an important things to consider in ensuring that all students get the food they need while working to send less food to the landfill. Here are a few examples of how school campuses across the country are taking steps to put more food in tummies, and send less food into trash bins.

The Natural Resources Council of Maine recently published a how-to Guide to Reduce Wasted Food in Maine's K-12 Schools. One of the study's coauthors, Ryan Parker, formerly a commercial farmer, was interested in how much it was costing school districts to purchase and prepare food that would ultimately be thrown away. Recognizing the barriers schools encounter in reducing their food waste such as limited staff time, serving mandates, and the length of lunchtime, the guide focuses on composting and share tables, two great ways to make sure the food they produce doesn't go to waste. Public schools produce 1.9% of food waste in the country, which amounts to 36.5 pounds of food per student per year. Though there is certainly more waste to be found in other areas such as households, schools provide a great opportunity to teach and influence students to create positive habits for the future. Check out the guide from some practical examples that can be implemented at any school.

The Campus Kitchens Project, a national program of DC Central Kitchen, has an innovative model to turn what could be waste into much needed meals for the community. The program works with students at 65 universities and high school campuses throughout the country to transform unused food from cafeterias and other community kitchens into meals for their hungry neighbors. With a model that targets the many root causes of hunger, Campus Kitchens not only feeds those who need it and keeps food from going to waste, it also creates opportunities for high school and college students to gain leadership and entrepreneurial skills that can benefit them into their future careers. Here's an example of the impact one school has made through the program: Gonzaga College High School, located in Washington, D.C., has recovered 28,990 pounds of food since launching in 2005. The Campus Kitchen cooks twice a week, and delivers twice a week to mostly senior, low-income housing communities - watch the video the learn more! Overall, schools participating in The Campus Kitchen Project in the 2016-2017 academic year recovered 991,872 pounds of food that would have otherwise gone to waste, and prepared 378,423 nutritious meals for those in need.

Another key strategy for reducing food waste is educating students about why this is an important issue in the first place. The more students know about food waste, food insecurity, and the complete cycle of the food system, the more likely they are to be conscious of what's left on their plate at the end of a meal. In Michigan, fifth graders at Traverse Heights Elementary have had a hands-on lesson with bananas (rescued from a local grocery story) that illustrated how much food is wasted despite the fact that many people are food insecure. In Arkansas, Washington Elementary School found success when students led a food plate waste audit. In the months following the audit, students reduced their milk waste by 20% and shared various unopened lunch meal items (e.g. milks, apples, oranges, etc.) as afternoon snacks with other students. And in Hawai'i, the Kokua Hawai'i Foundation's 3R's School Recycling Program focuses on educating students to reduce, reuse and recycle waste in gardens, schoolyards, cafeterias, and classrooms. The program trains students leaders to engage their school community in implementing a school-wide recycling system by conducting classroom presentation, creating campaign materials, and serving as mentors on campus. Empowering students to feel knowledgeable and invested in taking action to reduce waste in the cafeterias and throughout their school campuses is an important step in creating lasting impacts on reduced school food waste.

Whether they utilize share tables, composting, or transforming food, schools and communities are working to combat food waste by reducing what they are able to, reusing what they can, and repurposing what is left.

If you are interested in fighting food waste in your school, here are some more resources to get you started:

Are you taking steps to reduce food waste in your school? We'd love to hear about it! Send us a note via our Story Form or tag us in a post on social media.

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Plate Waste Warriors: How Schools Are Reducing Food Waste

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The blog is sponsored by CoBank , who shares the National Farm to School Network's mission of growing farm to school to support farmers and vibrant rural communities. We thank CoBank for being a sponsor of our 2018 National Farm to School Month Celebrations.

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Nov 2, 0222 is Plastic Free Lunch Dau USA! Take climate action right in your school cafeteria by reducing single-use plastics for one day, then one day per week, and then every day. In partnership with Urban School Food Alliance, and Cafeteria Culture.

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Every BackPack Program is unique. Most backpacks include enough food to make a few healthy meals. That way, kids return to school on Monday, ready to learn.

Backpacks may include:

Breakfast items like cereal, oatmeal, or granola bars

Easy to prepare meals like mac and cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or canned soup

Bread

Milk or juice

Fresh or canned fruit

Fresh or canned vegetables

Snacks

BackPack Programs in the Feeding America network are required to provide meals at least once a month. Most programs give out backpacks every week on Fridays or the day before a school break. Programs usually take a break during summer. During the summer, they may host summer meal programs.

How can I help?

There are many ways you can help BackPack Programs across the country.

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Backpack programs provide families with free groceries for the weekends and school breaks. See if one of the 11,000 backpack programs in our network is near you.

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What is food insecurity and what does it look like in central and northern New York?

The face of hunger has shifted from what once was the homeless man who used a soup kitchen to get by to working families and individuals who are struggling to make ends meet.

Food insecurity refers to the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) measure of lack of access to enough nutritionally adequate foods for an active, healthy lifestyle for all household members. Food insecurity is not exclusively a trait of the poverty stricken. Hunger and poverty often go hand in hand but poverty is not the ultimate determinant of food insecurity. Food insecurity may reflect a working households need to make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing nutritionally adequate foods. [i]

Food insecure people in Food Bank of Central New York's eleven county service area: 178,160

In the summer of 2017 Food Bank of Central New York conducted a follow-up study to understand who accessed emergency food agencies in our service area and why. The 348 interviews consisted of households, selected at random, who utilized one of the Food Bank's food pantries or soup kitchens.

We've developed the following results to bring awareness regarding who is hungry and the challenges they face. This enables us to collectively identify solutions to better address the growing problem of food insecurity as a community.

Among the thousands of people who depend on charitable food programs in central and northern New York:

Read the full report by requesting a copy of Food Bank of Central New York's 2017 Hunger Assessment
Feeding America: Facts About Hunger and Poverty in America Feeding America: Facts About Child Hunger

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The face of hunger has shifted from what once was the homeless man who used a soup kitchen to get by to working families and individuals who are struggling to make ends meet. Food insecurity refers to the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) measure of lack of access to enough nutritionally adequate foods for an active, healthy lifestyle for all household members.

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SOFSA | Syracuse-Onondaga Food Systems Alliance

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When we say 'food system,' what we're referring to is the network of interconnected processes - and the people behind these processes - that grow food and get it to your fork. The food system encompasses how and where food is produced, processed, distributed, and consumed, and how the waste is managed afterward. The food system is shaped by politics, economics, cultures, and the natural environment itself. The best food systems produce enough healthful food for all community members. Healthy food systems also create financial opportunities for businesses, offer gainful employment to individuals, and sustain the environment that we all share. A well-designed food system is the basis for a happy society.

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When we say 'food system,' what we're referring to is the network of interconnected processes - and the people behind these processes - that grow food and get it to your fork. The food system encompasses how and where food is produced, processed, distributed, and consumed, and how the waste is managed afterward.

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Oswego County has one of the highest rates of hunger among children in all of New York.

The county, located north of Syracuse, had 5,430 kids who experienced food insecurity as of 2019, according to a recent list from Stacker. That's 21.6% of all kids in the county, the sixth-highest percentage in New York.

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CNY county has among highest rates of hungry kids in NY

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Oswego County has one of the highest rates of hunger among children in all of New York. The county, located north of Syracuse, had 5,430 kids who experienced food insecurity as of 2019, according to a recent list from Stacker. That's 21.6% of all kids in the county, the sixth-highest percentage in New York.

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Opening Doors to Create Healthy Communities

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U.S. Federal Poverty Guidelines Used to Determine Financial Eligibility for Certain Programs HHS Poverty Guidelines for 2023 The 2023 poverty guidelines are in effect as of January 19, 2023. Federal Register Notice, January 19, 2023 - Full text.

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Follow

Global sports stars are winning battles for equality and respect on and off the field.

Today's activist athletes are using their success as a platform to push for social change.

Sports governing bodies have an important role to play in supporting free expression and inclusivity.

Sometimes it seems as if changing the world has become part of the job description for the world's top athletes.

Whether fighting poverty, campaigning for equal pay or standing up for human rights, they wield levels of soft power politicians can only envy and scramble to follow their lead.

When today's sports stars take a stand, it doesn't take long for public opinion - and sponsors - to line up behind them. But previous generations of activist athletes risked harming their careers or even prison for daring to enter the debate. In 1967, Muhammad Ali was excluded from boxing for refusing military draft in protest against the Vietnam War.

Here are four sports people leading change - and inspiring others - right now:

Pickett was born without part of her left arm and says she wants to use her success to be an advocate for limb difference. Being selected for an international team has helped, but so did the viral social media posts of her arm bumping 2-year-old fan Joseph Tidd, who was also missing part of his left arm.

American toddler Joseph Tidd meets athlete Carson Pickett, the first soccer player with a limb difference to play for the US women's national team. Image: Colleen Tidd/Instagram.com

"I feel blessed to be in this position for all limb difference people... being able to show that no matter what differences you have, you can do what you want," said Pickett.

2. Lewis Hamilton - winner of seven Formula One titles and his battle against racism.

"I don't regret a single moment of it... that was me following my heart", Hamilton said.

He donated $20 million to create and launch Mission44, a foundation that aims to improve the chances of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

3. Jake Daniels - the first professional footballer in the UK for more than 30 years to become an openly gay active player. Daniels says it was a "step into the unknown".

Daniels added: "There are people out there... that may not feel comfortable revealing their sexuality. I just want to tell them that you don't have to change who you are, or how you should be, just to fit in."

4. Megan Rapinoe - the American soccer star who fought for women players to be paid the same as men.

The pay gap came under the spotlight as the US national women's team won their second consecutive World Cup. During the final, fans made their views clear, with chants supporting equal pay roaring around the stadium.

"Knowing that we're going to leave the game in an exponentially better place than when we found it is everything," Rapinoe said after winning the case.

As Muhammad Ali found, taking a stand can provoke a backlash, and support - or lack of it - from sporting governing bodies is pivotal.

Mary Harvey, the CEO of the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, says they must ensure respect for freedom of expression: "Sports leagues have a difficult but critical role to play in supporting athletes who stand up for human rights... It is time to see athletes who speak up for who they are."

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The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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These activist athletes are making a change

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From Carson Pickett to Colin Kaepernick, athletes are winning their campaigns for equal pay, human rights and diversity. Here are four sports stars making a difference today.

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The blog is sponsored by CoBank, who shares the National Farm to School Network's mission of growing farm to school to support farmers and vibrant rural communities. We thank CoBank for being a sponsor of our 2018 National Farm to School Month Celebrations.

By Elizabeth Esparza, NFSN Communications Intern

Observe any school cafeteria during a typical lunchtime, and you are bound to witness a perplexing problem. On the one hand, you would certainly see students who rely on school meals to meet their daily nutritional needs getting the food they need. Simultaneously, on any normal day, you would also undoubtedly notice the staggering amount of waste that cafeterias across the country inevitably produce.

Though plate waste abounds, schools and communities throughout the country are stepping up to fight the issue with creative solutions. Reducing plate waste in schools is an important things to consider in ensuring that all students get the food they need while working to send less food to the landfill. Here are a few examples of how school campuses across the country are taking steps to put more food in tummies, and send less food into trash bins.

The Natural Resources Council of Maine recently published a how-to Guide to Reduce Wasted Food in Maine's K-12 Schools. One of the study's coauthors, Ryan Parker, formerly a commercial farmer, was interested in how much it was costing school districts to purchase and prepare food that would ultimately be thrown away. Recognizing the barriers schools encounter in reducing their food waste such as limited staff time, serving mandates, and the length of lunchtime, the guide focuses on composting and share tables, two great ways to make sure the food they produce doesn't go to waste. Public schools produce 1.9% of food waste in the country, which amounts to 36.5 pounds of food per student per year. Though there is certainly more waste to be found in other areas such as households, schools provide a great opportunity to teach and influence students to create positive habits for the future. Check out the guide from some practical examples that can be implemented at any school.

The Campus Kitchens Project, a national program of DC Central Kitchen, has an innovative model to turn what could be waste into much needed meals for the community. The program works with students at 65 universities and high school campuses throughout the country to transform unused food from cafeterias and other community kitchens into meals for their hungry neighbors. With a model that targets the many root causes of hunger, Campus Kitchens not only feeds those who need it and keeps food from going to waste, it also creates opportunities for high school and college students to gain leadership and entrepreneurial skills that can benefit them into their future careers. Here's an example of the impact one school has made through the program: Gonzaga College High School, located in Washington, D.C., has recovered 28,990 pounds of food since launching in 2005. The Campus Kitchen cooks twice a week, and delivers twice a week to mostly senior, low-income housing communities - watch the video the learn more! Overall, schools participating in The Campus Kitchen Project in the 2016-2017 academic year recovered 991,872 pounds of food that would have otherwise gone to waste, and prepared 378,423 nutritious meals for those in need.

Another key strategy for reducing food waste is educating students about why this is an important issue in the first place. The more students know about food waste, food insecurity, and the complete cycle of the food system, the more likely they are to be conscious of what's left on their plate at the end of a meal. In Michigan, fifth graders at Traverse Heights Elementary have had a hands-on lesson with bananas (rescued from a local grocery story) that illustrated how much food is wasted despite the fact that many people are food insecure. In Arkansas, Washington Elementary School found success when students led a food plate waste audit. In the months following the audit, students reduced their milk waste by 20% and shared various unopened lunch meal items (e.g. milks, apples, oranges, etc.) as afternoon snacks with other students. And in Hawai'i, the Kokua Hawai'i Foundation's 3R's School Recycling Program focuses on educating students to reduce, reuse and recycle waste in gardens, schoolyards, cafeterias, and classrooms. The program trains students leaders to engage their school community in implementing a school-wide recycling system by conducting classroom presentation, creating campaign materials, and serving as mentors on campus. Empowering students to feel knowledgeable and invested in taking action to reduce waste in the cafeterias and throughout their school campuses is an important step in creating lasting impacts on reduced school food waste.

Whether they utilize share tables, composting, or transforming food, schools and communities are working to combat food waste by reducing what they are able to, reusing what they can, and repurposing what is left.

If you are interested in fighting food waste in your school, here are some more resources to get you started:

Are you taking steps to reduce food waste in your school? We'd love to hear about it! Send us a note via our Story Form or tag us in a post on social media.

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Plate Waste Warriors: How Schools Are Reducing Food Waste

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The blog is sponsored by CoBank , who shares the National Farm to School Network's mission of growing farm to school to support farmers and vibrant rural communities. We thank CoBank for being a sponsor of our 2018 National Farm to School Month Celebrations.

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Growing up can be hard on a young person of any generation, but today's kids and teens are facing an ever-evolving pandemic, racial inequality, social pressures online and systemic inequities that create barriers to success. Unsurprisingly, data shows that mental health concerns among young people are on the rise.

Clubs equip young people with the skills they need to manage their emotions and build resiliency so they can engage in every opportunity that comes their way. Partners like the NFL are working with Clubs to support critical conversations with America's youth around social justice priorities and other issues impacting young people.

What are some of the main issues today's teens care about?

A panel of teens from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada recently shared their thoughts on these topics during the "Inspire Change Town Hall" as part of Boys & Girls Clubs of America's partnership with the NFL. Here's what Club teens had to say:

Experiencing Racial Injustice

The teen panelists know racial injustice all too well, with most having a core memory from their childhood that has stayed with them.

For DeMelle, 17, it was the first time someone commented on the color of his skin and he learned what racism was.

Cherish, 16, was the new kid in middle school who told her crush how she felt about him. She didn't expect his response -

And for Elisa, it was never feeling like she fit in due to her race:

Thoughts on Gender Roles

The teen panel also spoke to the confines of gender roles still pervasive today - with pressure to be masculine or feminine, and dress or act certain ways. Elisa spoke to the paradox that modern women face:

Nicolas, 15, spoke to societal pressures on men to not express emotions:

Reckoning with Mental Health Needs

Mental health was a theme throughout the panel, with the teens discussing the need for healthy coping mechanisms, how critical it is to check on the people in your life, and the importance of knowing when to get help or ensure someone else does.

Cherish spoke to her own experience losing a friend:

DeMelle shared how he's made mental health check-ins a group activity with his friends:

How to Address Society's Problems: Education

Nicolas thinks education is the biggest thing we could be doing as a society to address racial injustice and racism:

DeMelle agrees that education is needed to break down generational biases across race, gender, etc. - and that his generation and those to come are ready to change the status quo:

Through community service, leadership programs and elevating their voices on critical issues, Club kids and teens work together to create positive change and envision a better tomorrow.

Learn more about Boys & Girls Clubs of America's commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and watch the full "Inspire Change Town Hall" panel discussion, with moderator Khalil Green, Club alum and the first Black president of Yale University, and speakers from the NFL like Justin Simmons of the Denver Broncos, coach Jennifer King of the Washington Commanders and Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys.

Sign up for Boys & Girls Clubs of America's newsletter to receive the latest resources and stories.

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Racial Equity, Mental Health, Gender Equality Rank Top Teen Concerns

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Growing up can be hard on a young person of any generation, but today's kids and teens are facing an ever-evolving pandemic, racial inequality, social pressures online and systemic inequities that create barriers to success. Unsurprisingly, data shows that mental health concerns among young people are on the rise.