Cooperative Extension's National Framework for Health Equity and Well-Being is designed to serve as a roadmap for advancing the health-focused work of the Cooperative Extension System. The updated framework was approved by the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP) in July of 2021. The framework document resulted from more than a year of work by a work group of the Health Innovation Task Force of ECOP.
This framework is organized around three core themes. These are health equity, social determinants of health, and working through coalitions to increase community health assets. A comprehensive review of literature provides readers with the rationale for a focus on the three themes. The framework also puts forth five high-level recommendations for advancing work around these critical themes. Those recommendations include:
- Advance health equity as a core system value to ensure that all people have a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as they can be.
- Utilize community assessment processes that integrate data science and resident voice to identify and address health inequities with greater precision.
- Invest in the success and visibility of Cooperative Extension’s health-related professionals, programs, and initiatives.
- Establish partnerships with academic units, universities, government agencies, corporations, nonprofit organizations, and foundations that share a commitment to reducing or eliminating health inequities.
- Utilize a community development approach to advance the work of coalitions focused on influencing the social determinants of health.
Cooperative Extension's National Framework for Health Equity and Well-Being can accessed at:
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