Food & Fitness Initiative Highlights: Massachusetts
Frank Mangan, associate professor in the Department of Plant, Soil & Insect Sciences at University of Massachusetts Extension, is recognized by the Food and Fitness Initiative for his innovative work with emerging farmers and ethnic crops in Boston and Holyoke, MA.
Holyoke
Holyoke, located along the banks of the Connecticut River in Western Massachusetts, is an urban village surrounded by some of the richest loam in the nation. Its community is a culturally and ethnically diverse mix of Irish, Polish, and French-Canadian immigrants who first settled the city. In addition, is has, proportionally, one of the largest Puerto Rican populations living in the United States. Once a booming, industrial paper mill town, Holyoke is now one of the poorest cities in the state. Challenged by a post-industrial shifting economy and encroaching development on its fertile agricultural land, Holyoke is still proud and vibrant but struggling to find its economic future.
The city’s poorest neighborhoods have few grocery stores with healthy and affordable food options. With 60 percent of residents qualifying for food stamps and 70 percent of public school students eligible for free or reduced-price lunches, food security is critical. Holyoke’s urban residents have limited access to indoor or outdoor activities.
Despite these difficulties, Holyoke’s many community-based organizations are making positive strides. From a downtown health center with a teaching kitchen, to a community farm, to mayor-led neighborhood walks, Holyoke is committed to advancing systemic change that builds on existing community assets and networks. The Holyoke Food & Fitness Policy Council is working to create alignment between many disparate components, informed and led by residents, to create a unified initiative that can affect real change.
Boston
Populated by an abundance of colleges, universities, and health care institutions, Boston is the largest city and unofficial economic and cultural capital of New England. The city’s nearly 600,000 residents reside in 16 densely populated neighborhoods, each of which maintains a strong individual identity and separate network of neighborhood associations and nonprofit organizations. With a developed park system, community gardens, ball fields and playgrounds, in addition to a string of harbor island beaches and waterfront parks, Boston has many opportunities for recreation. With its dense land use and an extensive public transportation system, Boston is among the most walkable cities in the nation.
Despite its significant assets, there is a notable disparity in the services and resources available to Boston’s racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse communities. Unequal distribution of fitness opportunities and increasing crime rates make physical activity challenging for many communities. Moreover, in many historically underserved communities, local, fresh, and healthy foods are frequently not available and, if available, are often too expensive for most residents. Such inequities have fostered health-related disparities in terms of diabetes, asthma, and obesity rates. Although Boston’s diversity and distinct neighborhoods contribute to the city’s greatness, it creates challenges in finding a common language to coordinate efforts.
The Boston Collaborative for Food & Fitness is poised to address these challenges and their underlying systemic roots through community involvement, youth leadership, and institutional support. From linking residential and commercial sections with safe biking and walking routes, to making healthy locally produced and culturally diverse foods available and affordable to residents of all incomes, the Boston Collaborative is working to engage and address the needs of individuals and organizations from all sectors of the community.
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