Has your land grant institution implemented an innovation that has accelerated Cooperative Extension’s work to advance health and well being? If so, we want to help you tell that story of innovation and the difference it is making in your state. The Well Connected Communities Initiative, administered through National 4-H Council with the generous support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, will provide seven land grant universities with $25,000 each to perform a case study of a successful...

I am happy to share the Request for Applications (RFA) for seven additional land grant institutions to become a part of the Well Connected Communities Initiative. National 4-H Council through the generous support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation seeks to showcase land grant universities that are modeling how Cooperative Extension is already working in new ways to implement the five high-level recommendations included in Cooperative Extension’s National Framework for Health Equity and...

The 2022 National Health Outreach Conference (NHOC) will be held May 4-6 in Kansas City, MO. Be sure to put those dates on your calendar now, so that you won't miss out on Cooperative Extension's annual health-focused conference. The conference will focus on the long-term goals of improving population health and achieving equity in health status. Conference sessions will focus on the powerful roles of employment, education, income, housing, access to healthy foods, the physical environment,...

September 10, 2021 1:00 PM 2:00 PM ET Virtual Please join us for a COVID-19 web forum hosted by the LSU AgCenter, as part of the EXCITE grant. The following guest speakers will discuss COVID-19 related questions: Avery Callahan, DO FACEP Karuna Dewan, MD, FACS Jennifer O'Neal, MD To register for this virtual forum and submit any questions, please visit the link below: https://forms.office.com/Pages...T0s5UEtDMDdIUE1MUS4u

The opioid epidemic is a national issue impacting communities across the country. It was declared a public health emergency in October 2017. Communities have mobilized at the national, state, and local level to address the problem, and Cooperative Extension has partnered with them in their efforts. The drivers and impacts of the opioid crisis in communities are complex and require a multi-level response. We employed a stakeholder engagement methodology, the SEED Method , to create...

Life expectancy in the United States continued its downward trend in 2020 to just over 77 years of age. This marks a 1.5 year decline from 2019 when US life expectancy stood at 78.8 years. Deaths from COVID -19 accounted for the majority of the decline. The decline would have been far worse had it not been for a reduction in deaths from cancer. Declines in life expectancy among various groups showed disturbing inequities with people of Hispanic origin showing the greatest decline of three...

As Extension professionals working with a variety of audiences it is crucial that we take a good, hard look at our broccoli. That's not a typo; read on to see what I'm talking about!

Don't miss the opportunity to submit a proposal for a health-related project to be considered for support through the New Technologies for Agricultural Extension (NTAE) accelerator program. Through this offering, early stage Extension work that has clear goals and a solid platform for greater success can apply to receive a suite of support services through the Extension Foundation to accelerate a project's impact and scale. Selected projects will receive mentoring and support in the areas of...

If you haven't visited the Health and Well-Being subgroup in the last several days, you will notice a brand new look to the welcome page the next time you log in. The first thing that you will now see is a listing of twelve affinity groups where you can connect with others who share a specific area of interest. You can navigate to the the affinity group of interest to you by simply clicking on the corresponding image. One there, you can initiate a discussion around a topic of your choice by...

Authors: Dana DeSilva, PhD, RD, ORISE Health Policy Fellow, and LT Dennis Anderson-Villaluz, MBA, RD, LDN, FAND, Nutrition Advisor, U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Adults’ dietary patterns often reflect habits that they established during childhood and adolescence. Sometimes, this means carrying unhealthy habits into adulthood — but it’s never too late to make changes. Health educators can use the Dietary Guidelines for...

Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the crucial role of childcare within a strong economy – as many parents, primarily women, have been forced to choose between earning a living or caring for their out-of-school children. Sadly, this is nothing new for rural places. Rural areas face unique childcare challenges. Providing quality, licensed center-based services in many rural places is not financially viable; the business model relies on sufficient population density and a...

Individuals who has a not yet had an opportunity provide input into Cooperative Extension’s Framework for Health Equity and Well Being are invited to participate in a Zoom meeting at 1:00 PM (Eastern) on Tuesday, May 25. To register, visit https://extension.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJclf-qrqj4qEtDaodJH-DLhIL1kZWiH4oX7 . After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Also know that the session will be recorded. The Framework is an...