Environmental justice is concerned with an equitable distribution of environmental burdens. These burdens comprise immediate health hazards as well as subtle inequities, such as limited access to healthy foods.

• Stark County WIC program
• Canton City Public Information Officer
• Stark County WIC participants
• Social media outlets
• Social media subscribers

The impact of neighborhood design on residents' health has become a focus of research interest. Results from these studies have led the environmental justice movement to expand its concerns beyond the unequal distribution of environmental hazards to issues of public health, such as obesity. Low-income and racial/ethnic minority populations have substantial environmental challenges to overcome to make healthy dietary choices and to maintain a healthy body weight.

The disproportionate distribution of food sources that contributes to the development of unhealthy behaviors among these communities and the consequent disease burden deeply affect not only individuals and families, but also society as a whole. (link)

• Develop a new advertising plan with WIC staff before April 2023 (may include social media, texting, postcard mailers, etc.)
  • Outcome: 
    • Advertising that was the same as previous years and completion dates
      • Clinic flyers/handouts- 3/19/23 started distributing; discussed with all site supervisors on 3/17 at meeting
      • Clinic flyers/handouts- 5/12/23 updated with actual market distribution dates
    • NEW ADVERTISING Efforts
      • On the Stark County WIC Facebook page (facilitated by Kim Koons) and the CCPH (Patty)
      • Also advertised on the Canton City Farmers’ Market page (Facebook page and website)
        • CCPH selected the July 15th market date to be on-site at the Canton City Market as this was a children themed market
          • WIC staff completed a kids activity while we provided the market vouchers to eligible participants 
        • NEW internal staff process
          • The week leading up to WIC staff being at the market, staff called off an “active client” report to remind them to go to the market on 7/15/23 for vouchers 
            • In additional to providing market info. To everyone in the office (if they were eligible) – CCPH WIC staff completed an additional 371 attempted phone contacts (as clinic allowed)
            • Many clients verbalized they received a call when they came to the market but the total # wasn’t captured since goal is to increase redemption- we had a significant increase in the # of vouchers distributed on-site, which was the goal of the calls (in FY22 we issued 2 full pages of vouchers at the market, each page has 16 sets so that is a total of 32 sets issued at the market ; this year in FY23, there were a total of 6 full pages issued at the market and 10 sets from the 7th page so that’s 106 voucher sets issued at the market!)
• Initiate clinic advertising/promotion of WIC Farmers Market activities and the importance of eating fruits and vegetables on a regular basis (in new ways) before June 2023
  • Outcome: 
    • This was completed and explained above
      • Clinic advertising started in March 2023
      • A bulletin board with market detail and info. On the health benefits of fruits and veggies was posted and used as nutrition education in the clinics the first week of May
      • Clinic advertising was updated with the July 15th distribution date in 5-2023 
• Complete WIC FMNP voucher distributions; work with local farmers and attempt to recruit/train new farmers locally (this may increase the # of famers accepting WIC as payment which = increased access)
  • Outcome:
    • Complete voucher distribution: We are still distributing vouchers in clinic as of this week- we should be done with the past page (last few sets) before the end of August
      • Then we will be reminding all those that received them to use them up
        • After this step- we can complete step #4 
    • Work with local farmers: I submit prelim # of famers that accept WIC as payment to K. Potkay at SCHD for the County wide SP
• POST market: Survey those that received vouchers on what advertising was helpful/useful to them, what barriers they had to using their vouchers once they received them, any suggestions for future improvements (I will have a list of everyone that received the vouchers and we could directly survey them after) - September-October 2023.