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Report: Trends in Walking and Bicycling to School from 2007 to 2012



Learn more about the latest trends in walking and biking to school. According to this 2013 report produced by the National Center for Safe Routes to School, more kids are walking to school across the country. The report found that the percentage of kids both walking to and from school increased between 2007-2012. This perhaps is due to the rise in Safe Routes to School  programs across the country. To learn more about this growing trend, access the October 2013 report here. ...

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Evaluation of San Diego’s First Open Streets Event (2013)



If you're interested in open streets events or ciclovias then you'll want to check out this report on the Evaluation of San Diego's First CicloSDias Open Streets Event. The report provides key findings from a city-wide survey, attendees, and businesses, as well details on the methods used to evaluate the event. To learn more access, the full report here. ...

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Where in the U.S. Can You Walk to the Grocery Store?



Many people across the U.S., including Latino families, live in food deserts, low-income areas where the nearest grocery store is more than a mile away. This can limit what families in these areas eat, especially when low-cost, unhealthy fast food is closer to home than the supermarket. The data-collecting website Walk Score helps people make more informed decisions about where to live, like finding an apartment within walking distance of everyday errands and close to public transportation. Recently, they've announced a new ranking of the best and worst U.S. cities for access to food based on their database of local places and their Travel Time API and ChoiceMaps technology. The question: What percent of a city's residents can walk to a grocery store from their home ...

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How to Host a Read-a-Thon Fundraiser!



For many years schools have relied on candy or cookie dough sales to raise money. However there are other options to food sales for fundraisers, one of them being a Read-a-Thon. A Read-a-thon, similar to any marathon, is where participants ask donors to give them money for every reading session. Students can have family and friends donate a few dollars for every 30 minutes read per week, a junk-food free activity. One website offers a way to host these Read-a-thons online to allow donors to use credit cards for easier use and for teachers to track student participation in a user friendly way. Visit their webpage on how to host a Read-a-thon and let Salud America know how the Read-a-thon goes in your ...

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10 Ideas for Healthy Fundraising!



Alliance for a Healthier Generation provides a guide for healthy fundraisers, giving these 10 examples of how to replace food sale fundraisers with healthy alternatives; Crestview Elementary in Carlisle, PA held a fundraising campaign called Promotion Motion. Students obtained sponsors and then participated in various challenges each week such as TV Free Week, No Fast Food Week and a Family Fitness Challenge. Teachers and parents participated and there was a tremendous response from local businesses. They raised $31,322 in six weeks of healthy activities! High Bridge Elementary School in Prince George’s County, MD raised $3000 during a 30 minute “Fun Run.” Students asked for donations per lap and ran as many as they could in 30 minutes. The funds were to be used for a new ...

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Yale Rudd Center Brief: Older Children Still Vulnerable to Marketing



New research by the Yale Rudd Center explains how marketing negatively not only affects young children, but also impacts adolescents aged 12 and older. “[The food industry] considers children ages 12 and older to be appropriate targets for marketing that encourages consumption of products that can harm their health. Yet recent research provides convincing evidence that unhealthy food marketing also negatively affects children 12 years and olde,” Yale Rudd Center notes in the report. Highlights from the report include: The adolescent brain is highly vulnerable to marketing, especially when it’s pushing really tempting stuff. The ways kids are being targeted – through social media and mobile phones – can seem like fun and games. Making it even harder to ...

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Comprehensive Toolkit On Competitive Foods



Voices for Health Kids has put together a comprehensive toolkit on Competitive Foods. The toolkit includes the 100+ page Master toolkit, "Make Food Choices an Easy A," which includes sections on recruiting, engaging, and mobilizing advocates to fight for healthier school foods. By engaging, organizing and mobilizing communities across the country, Voices for Healthy Kids aims to ensure that every child has access to healthy foods and drinks at home and in school, safe streets for biking and walking and safe places to play after school. This toolkit is designed to help coalitions educate their communities on ways to make this vision a reality. Along with the Master Toolkit there are fact sheets to give to advocates and decision makers, flyers, postcards, web banners, print ads, ...

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Report: Safe Routes to School Programs Increase Rates of Active Travel



A March 2014 report from Bridging the Gap, found that Safe Routes to School (SRTS) programs do make a difference in the amount of active transportation that kids participate in. According to the report, active travel was 60% higher in schools that had a Safe Routes to School program. The report also found that total number of schools participating in SRTS has grown by approximately 54% from 14.2% in 2006-2007 to 21.8% in 2012-2013. Results for the report came from surveys that were distributed to administrators at nationally representative samples of U.S. elementary schools. Read the full report here. ...

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Webinar: How to Build Your Own Safe Routes to School Policy



Walking or biking to school is a great way to get more kids moving. If you're interested in practical ways to keep kids active, tune in to the Build Your Own School District Policy to Advance Safe Routes to School webinar hosted by the Safe Routes to School National Partnership. This webinar will take place on March 3, 2014 at 2 pm EST and will discuss how to use a new on-line workbook to create your own policy. Find this webinar and more on the SRTS webinar page. ...

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