As part of its efforts to promote equity in health and health care, the Aetna Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Aetna (NYS: AET) , has bestowed a $130,000 grant on the New York-based Hispanic Federation. The funds will be used to launch the organization's pilot program that will engage Brooklyn teenagers in the drive to improve Latino health outcomes and reduce health disparities in the North Brooklyn community of South Williamsburg.
The initiative, called Youth Health Explorers, will train 36 Latino teenagers, aged 14 to 19, in the science of community mapping, on-the-street interviews and data analysis, to determine the environmental factors in their predominately Hispanic neighborhoods that can influence their communities' high rates of obesity, especially among young people.
The initiative's goal is to develop a significant pool of useful data to guide neighborhood health policies in South Williamsburg and coach young people to work with community leaders to address environmental factors that contribute to obesity. The teenagers will be trained in leadership, public speaking, and community mobilization skills. Upon completion of their analysis, they will present their findings to local public officials, community groups and civic organizations. When the pilot program is concluded, the Hispanic Federation hopes to expand the project to other communities across the country.
"Nearly two in five Latino youth are overweight or obese - the highest prevalence rate in their age group by race or ethnicity," said José Calderón, president of the Hispanic Federation. "Latinos want to be healthy, but food choices and environmental factors in our neighborhood frequently contribute to poor outcomes. Thanks to the Aetna Foundation's support, we are able to develop a project that explores the relationship between environment and health using data-driven methods."
Gillian Barclay, D.D.S., Dr.P.H., the Aetna Foundation's vice president of programs, said, "Teaching young people the fundamentals of public health assessments and advocacy to improve the health of their own neighborhoods can be a powerful force for change. By engaging teens in this endeavor, we not only expect to get a clearer picture of how the built environment can influence obesity rates in urban neighborhoods, but also inspire a young generation of Latinos to become leaders in public health." READ MORE
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