We Can!™ Cities or Counties

In April 2007, NIH established the We Can! City/County program to help cities and counties across the nation mobilize their communities to prevent childhood overweight. We Can! Cities or Counties pledge to offer We Can! evidence-based obesity prevention programs to parents and youth in collaboration with community-based partners. They also distribute We Can! tips and information to city employees.

We Can! Cities and Counties include the following:

• Berrien County, MI
• Armstrong County, PA
• Binghamton, NY
• Boston, MA
• Broome County, NY
• Caguas, Puerto Rico
• Carson City, NV
• Gary, IN
• Las Vegas, NV
• Indiana County, PA
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Roswell, GA
• South Bend, IN

The first three cities to sign up for the program were South Bend, IN, Gary, IN, and Roswell, GA. In May 2007, NIH officials presented the mayor of each of the three inaugural cities a specially designed road sign that says, "We Can! CityUSA – Working with the National Institutes of Health to promote healthy weight, healthy children." The sign showcases the city or county's dedication to the We Can! movement. Since that time, additional cities and counties have joined the We Can! movement.

 

We Can! City USA Sign

 

We Can! looks forward to growing the City or County Program as other counties and cities get involved and enjoy the following benefits:

• National recognition from the National Institutes of Health, including the specially designed road sign
• Technical assistance on planning, implementing, and sustaining programming
• Access to a variety of science-based resources that strengthen programming
• Free starter kit packed with resources and materials to help begin and promote programming
• Promotion as a We Can! City or County to national partners, federal agencies, and the media
• Inclusion on the We Can! Web site
• Participation in a dynamic network of We Can! community sites, cities, counties, and partners
• Technical assistance and supportive information shared through conference calls, listservs, and e-newsletters
• Access to success stories and lessons learned from other community sites to help sustain programming
  

 

Karen Donato presents the We Can! City Sign to South Bend Superintendent of Parks and Recreation, Phil St. Claire, and Indiana State Health Commissioner, Dr. Judy Monroe.

 

The level of commitment is robust, as each We Can! City or County is asked to implement ALL of the following activities in one year:

• Send a letter of commitment from the city mayor or county executive to We Can! program staff and publicly announce involvement through a mayoral or county executive proclamation to the city or county
• Provide We Can! information or activities to city or county employees
• Implement four or more We Can! youth programs/curricula
• Implement four or more We Can! parent programs/curricula
• Host four or more We Can! community outreach events
• Work with local partners to implement We Can! programs
• Pursue local We Can! media coverage
• Use the online We Can! Activity Forms to report on each curriculum implementation and each community event
• Submit an abstract of your year's We Can! activities for posting on the We Can! Web site

Sign up to become a We Can! City or County

 

We Can!™ is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.