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YMCA of the USA’s Healthier Communities Initiatives (HCI) |
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http://www.ymca.net/healthier-communities/
Together, the nation’s 2,594 YMCA’s are the largest not-for-profit community service organization in America, working to meet the health and human service needs of over 20 million men, women and children in 10,000 communities in the United States. Y-USA’s Healthier Communities Initiatives engage community leaders, convened by local YMCA’s, in policy and environmental change efforts that support and promote healthy lifestyles. In addition, these initiatives empower local communities with proven strategies and models to create and sustain positive, lasting change for healthy living. Through its three programs – Pioneering Healthier Communities (PHC), Statewide Pioneering Healthier Communities (SPHC) and ACHIEVE– nearly 200 Ys are working in collaboration with community leaders to make changes in policies and the physical surroundings in those communities so that healthy living is within reach for individuals of all ages and backgrounds.
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Community Initiatives has worked closely with Y-USA staff for over four years. CI’s role has continued to evolve to meet the changing needs and circumstances of the HCI communities and network, including:
- Acting as strategic advisors in the design phase of the initiative;
- Helping design and lead national learning events;
- Coaching local sites in developing teams, building leadership capacity and creating collaborative processes that get both short and long-term results;
- Documenting effective practices emerging from HCI communities;
- Developing training and support materials for Y-USA’s GIS Mapping and Reporting tool; and
- Supporting peer-learning and coaching strategies.
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