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Building Inclusivity at the Farmers Market
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Over the next few months, farmers markets throughout our region are opening for the season with a bounty of healthy produce and seasonal fruits and vegetables. As a new market season launches, the HEAL Campaign is encouraging our cities and towns to foster a culture of inclusivity at your local market. Whether your farmers market is operated internally through your municipality or externally through an outside organization, local elected officials and city/town staff can implement practices to help increase access for all residents.
Check out the resources below to help foster a culture of inclusivity and access at your local farmers market:
1) Getting started. Is your city or town interested in starting your own farmers market independently or through a local organization? For all you need to know on getting started -- check out this
Massachusetts Government Guide: How to Run a Farmers Market
. The Guide shares everything from starting your market, market research, rules and national regulations, and more. Please note: This is a general guide, so please be sure to do your research on local laws and regulation in Virginia and Maryland.
2) Improving practices. Whether you're just getting started with your first market or have been up and running for years, take a market temperature check to understand who's visiting the market and how you're reaching residents in your community. This resource --
Fostering a Culture of Inclusivity at Your Market
-- shares tips to design more inclusive farmers market environments through partnerships, accessible marketing, hiring practices, and more.
3) Addressing affordability.
Is your market affordable for your community and residents? Understand the ins-and-outs of providing federal food assistance benefits at your farmers market by checking out this
SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] Guide for Farmers Markets
. SNAP is a great way to help low-income residents in your city or town access affordable, nutritious food at your local market. For more ideas, check out how Michigan is increasing accessibility and affordability through innovative approaches like mobile markets and fruit and vegetable prescription programs.
4) Growing community
. How are you attracting customers?
Cultivating Community at the Farmers' Market
is a great resource filled with ideas to increase community participation at markets. Consider hosting chef demonstrations, farm tours, or kid-friendly events to help bring more folks to the market and celebrate this farmers market season.
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2019 MML Summer Conference
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Thanks to all our Maryland HEAL cities and towns for submitting an application for recognition at the upcoming Maryland Municipal League Summer Conference! We're looking forward to seeing you all there and recognizing your efforts to implement new HEAL policies and practices. We encourage all attendees to join us for the annual recognition ceremony. This is a great opportunity to congratulate your fellow HEAL members and hear how other municipalities throughout the region are implementing HEAL policies and practices.
As a reminder, HEAL Campaign staff will be available throughout the conference
at booth 802 in the exhibit hall. Stop by for a healthy snack and try our delicious fruit-infused water! We're excited to say hi to our current HEAL Campaign members and hear about your progress implementing your HEAL Campaign goals. We'll also have resources available for any municipalities that are interested in joining the Campaign.
We will be reaching out to our Maryland HEAL contacts shortly, so stay tuned for further information and updates. We're looking forward to seeing you all soon!
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Spotlight of the Month | New Carrollton, Maryland
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T
his month we are reissuing our Spotlight feature on the City of New Carrollton. This Bronze Level City is helping residents and City staff stay healthy through an employee wellness fair, healthy meeting standards, and a healthy vending initiative.
Read the Spotlight article
here
.
Interested in having your city or town featured in an upcoming Spotlight article? Please send a request to Sydney Daigle,
[email protected] .
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Tools and Resources
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Webinar Series | Equitable Development Training
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America Walk's hosts a three part webinar series to help communities create more equitable walkable communities. This series illustrates how community improvements can allow residents to stay and thrive in place through a deliberate and inclusive planning that reflects community priorities and safe-guards local culture and affordability.
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Resource | Healthy Vending Toolkit -
Interested in swapping out the usual chips and soda for healthier vending options in your city or town? From choosing a nutrition standard to finding a vending contract, the process can be challenging. To help navigate those hurdles,
Go Healthy Huston, an initiative of the Mayor's Office of Houston, has published a toolkit that shares tools and resources to implement a healthy vending protocol in your place of work. Download the toolkit
here.
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Report | The Best Complete Streets Policies of 2018 -
Smart Growth America has recently released their annual evaluation of Complete Streets policies from around the country. This year's evaluation includes a new and improved framework that elevates both equity and implementation to grade policies. With over 1,477 Complete Streets policies nationwide, this ranking provides examples of some of the most effective policies with an emphasis on translating policy into practice and ensuring that everyone -- particularly low-income residents and communities of color -- are able to access and benefit from these policies. Find more information here.
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Grants & Funding
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National Endowment for the Arts: Our Town Grant Program
- The National Endowment for the Arts is accepting applications for creative placemaking projects that i
ntegrate arts, culture, and design activities into efforts that strengthen communities by advancing local economic, physical, and/or social outcomes. These projects require a partnership between a nonprofit organization and a local government entity, with one of the partners being a cultural organization. Matching grants range from $25,000 to $200,000. Grant applications are due on August 8, 2019. More information can be found here.
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USDA Local Food Procurement Program -
The USDA is offering
grant funds to support the development and expansion of local and regional food business enterprises to increase consumption of, and access to, locally and regionally produced agricultural products, and to develop new market opportunities for farm and ranch operations serving local markets. There are two types of project applications are accepted under this program -- planning grants and implementation grants. Nonprofits and local government are eligible to apply. Applications are due by June 18th, 2019. Find more information here.
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Maryland's Community Parks & Playgrounds Program -
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is providing grant funding to incorporated Maryland municipalities to restore existing and create new park and green space systems. Applicants are encouraged to emphasize those projects that offer public benefits by enhancing quality of life in existing population centers and demonstrating the use of low impact development techniques, materials and management. Applications are due by 3:00 PM on August 21, 2019. More information can be found here.
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About Us
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HEAL is a project of the Institute for Public Health Innovation in
partnership with the Maryland and Virginia Municipal Leagues and funded by Kaiser Permanente, founding partner.
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