Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

MODELS OF COMMUNITY UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIP IN THE

WATERLOO REGION FOOD SYSTEM

Katherine Pigott – Region of Waterloo Public Health

Dr. Steffanie Scott – University of Waterloo

CFICE Workshop – Edmonton, AlbertaNovember 3rd, 2012

Comparison of two community university partnership models

• Model # 1 – Faculty of Environment University of Waterloo

• Model # 2 – Healthy Eating & Active Communities Team, Region of Waterloo Public Health

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Faculty of Environment University of Waterloo

• Academic department sponsors community-university partnership

• Fourth year food systems course• Forty to fifty students a year conduct

fieldwork• Annual consultations with civil

society food system stakeholders to create research/evaluation agenda

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Healthy Eating and Active Communities Team

• Civil society actor sponsors community-university partnership

• Inter-disciplinary team in public health department in regional government

• Over sixty practicum students in twelve years from several disciplines and academic institutions

• Practicum placements supported by Central Resources Division

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Waterloo Region Context

Mid-sized urban community

Vibrant countryside

88

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Our Definition of a Healthy Food System

All residents have access to, and can afford to buy safe, nutritious, culturally

acceptable food that has been produced in

an environmentally sustainable way and

that sustains our rural communities.

Faculty of Environment as facilitator of healthy food system

• Geography 461 – Food Systems and Sustainability

• Examines food systems sustainability and food security

• Broad lens: from production to consumption - from local to global

• Strong emphasis on civil society initiatives and localizing food systems

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Public Health as facilitator of a healthy food system

• Research • Economic Development• Community-based Partnerships• Policy Development • Organizational Change• Capacity Building for Advocacy• Food System Plan• System-wide networks

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Final Food System Plan, April 2007

• "Public Health continue to provide administrative and research support to the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable"

• Roundtable becomes guardian of Food System Plan

KeyRecommendation:

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

SYSTEM WIDE NETWORK • First meeting held early

2008

• Comprised of 18 representatives from key sectors in the local food system

• Oversees implementation of "A Healthy Community Food System Plan"

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Food System Prioritieswww.wrfoodsystem.ca/priorities

Food Sovereignty

Food Policy

Urban Agriculture

Local Food Infrastructure

Farm Viability

Access To Healthy Food

1515Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Purpose of Research• Describe and compare two ad-hoc

models of community-university partnership

• Explain the context in which these models evolved

• Reflect on strengths, potential improvements and unexpected outcomes

• Share learnings

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Proposed Methodology

• Document review, key informant interviews and focus groups

• Twenty research participants due to limited resources

• Three categories of research participants- partnership sponsors- students

- - civil society food stakeholders

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

Discussion/ Questions

Building Healthy and Supportive Communities

http://chd.region.waterloo.on.ca/en/researchResourcesPublications/reportsdata.asp#FOOD (Public Health Food reports)

www.wrfoodsystem.ca (Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable)

Dr. Steffanie Scott: 519-888-4567 x 37012 Sdscott@uwaterloo.ca

Katherine Pigott: 519-883-2004 x 5415 Kpigott@regionofwaterloo.ca