Wyandotte County, Kansas has consistently ranked as one of the least healthy counties in Kansas and is, in fact, last when it comes to health behaviors. The youth of this county were not content with that ranking and did something about it. Take a look at how walking, bicycling, and nature trails are opening up opportunities for youth to live healthier lives by watching the videos below and then read how you can inspire these healthy changes for your own community.
Teen Leaders Bring A Fitness Trail to Harmon High in Kansas City, KS
Afterschool Bike Clubs Empower Physical Activity, Leadership for Students in Kansas City
Rozarks Nature Trail Brings Physical Activity to Underserved Neighborhood in Kansas City, KS
Tools to Help You Grow This Healthy Change
Each of the highlighted projects involved careful planning and stakeholder engagement from the very beginning. You can learn from these groups and from others involved in improving physical activity access by taking a look at the resources below.
- Salud America! has briefs that walks you through the steps the Harmon High Fitness Trail, FreeWheels for Kids, and the Rozarks Nature Trail went through to start their projects. The site also has a Resources for Change: Active Spaces page.
- Active Living Research has developed strategies and tools for improving safe places for children to be active.
- ChangeLab Solutions also offers a wide array of resources on issues like shared use policies, contracts and MOUs, as well as many safe routes to school resources.
- Enjoy other Salud Hero features and success stories
Maps like the one below can show stakeholders the disparities that may exist for communities sitting right next to each other. Here we see that Wyandotte County is surrounded by areas with higher health rankings.
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