What does it take to create a community of belonging?  In late 2021 Carver County launched the Communities of Belonging initiative in eight area communities to begin asking and answering that question. This became a priority for the county after identifying belonging and well-being in the community health improvement plan (CHIP). Participating communities were invited to explore and implement strategies to improve the sense of belonging for everyone in their community.

The Carver County approach is unique in several ways. The county made at firm commitment to support the participating communities for at least three years and is equally respecting the direction and pace of community leadership development.   Carver has built buy-in for this process among county leadership and elected officials by making it clear how belonging impacts, and is impacted by, a range of community factors from health, well-being, active living, climate change to economic development.  At least three county commissioners, along with three local city council members, have participated in this work to date.  The eight communities have approached the task in various ways: through outreach, assessment, development of a common language and framework, and even implementation of several tools.  Communities are building their partnerships and at least one has implemented a resident survey about belonging.  A county staff member has become a certified Living Room Conversations host, and more than 10 different conversations have been conducted.  Learn more about how Carver is making 2022 about belonging, what is in store for the partners, and what challenges they are facing. 

REGISTER TO PARTICIPATE!

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed alarming gaps in our public health system. This year-long event series will examine the urgent challenges facing public health today and explore the most promising ideas for rebuilding and revitalizing the field.

We’ll hear from leaders on the frontlines of local, state, and federal responses to the pandemic. We’ll discuss equity and access and meet a new generation of community activists. We’ll also talk to members of Congress pushing for solutions. Join us for these important discussions at a critical moment for public health.

Visit the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health for more information!

Join the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), American Public Health Association (APHA), and the Committee on Human Rights (CHR) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine for a discussion of the impacts of violent conflict on public health and health care and strategies to protect frontline workers, ensure access to routine and emergency medical care, and maintain crucial public health infrastructure.

Register Here! 

Join us in Duluth, Minnesota as the landmark regional White Privilege Symposium (WPS) brings its acclaimed, robust model of engagement and action to the area. Join racial justice activists, academics, and artists as we explore the pressing issues of our time; understand root causes of systemic injustice; build solidarity and community; and develop strategies for dismantling oppression. We will offer programming designed for participants from diverse sectors, including high school and college students, K-12 and higher education faculty, grassroots activists, social workers, nonprofit and government employees, artists, members of the spiritual/faith community, among others. Speakers include: Winona LaDuke, Resmaa Menakem, Robin DiAngelo, & Moore.

WPS is a project of The Privilege Institute (TPI), a 501(c)(3) best known for its annual national conference, the White Privilege Conference. Now in its 23rd year, and selling out weeks in advance, TPI is responding to growing demand by creating regional symposiums across the U.S. and Canada. This fall, the conference in Duluth will add to the growing list of regions bringing the WPS brand to our area.The national conference is recognized as a powerful gathering designed to move professionals and learners to models that comprehensively challenge White Supremacy’s multiple and entwined forms of oppression. These events offer cutting-edge thinking, current trends, and groundbreaking initiatives. Unlike many conferences that are sector-specific (healthcare, education, criminal justice) or ISM specific (e.g., racism, classism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, islamophobia), WPS gathers a cross-sector group of participants to address multiple oppressions at the individual, interpersonal, institutional, and cultural levels. 

Register Now!

Expand your knowledge of the hunger relief space, strengthen your community presence and responsiveness, and inspire staff, volunteers, and board members to new and different ways of thinking and behaving.

Register for FFEN’s new online educational offering for food shelf leaders, Welcome to Hunger Relief.

This introductory session delivered live via Zoom is designed for current, transitioning, and experienced food shelf leaders, staff, and stakeholders (volunteers, board members). In addition, for food shelf leaders interested in deeper engagement, FFEN offers tailored consultation to individual food shelves and a new  peer-learning series, Food Shelf Leadership Cohort.

The 2022 Summer Public Health Institute will be returning in person this May! This 3-week institute offers 26 intensive courses for students in public health and related fields.

Registration officially opens for degree-seeking students on Thursday, February 24, 2022 (March 2, 2022 for non-degree). More information on registration and courses can be found on our website. Any questions can be directed to phi@umn.edu.

This notice announces the opportunity to apply for funding under the Rural Public Health Workforce Training Network Program (RPHWTN). The purpose of this program is to expand public health capacity by supporting health care job development, training and placement in rural and tribal communities. The expected impact of this program is to enhance clinical and operational capacity in order to adequately address the population health needs of rural communities affected by COVID-19, including those dealing with the effects of long COVID1.

Visit Grants.Gov website for more information about this opportunity. 

We are facing many challenges to our mental health and well-being. AND Minnesotans are doing amazing work to address every aspect of our well-being. Despite our interconnected world, we often don’t know about many of these innovative efforts!

MN Thrives is here to change that! MN Thrives is a collectively sourced interactive database of mental well-being initiatives in Minnesota. This tool can help us know what is happening in each county, identify potential gaps, and learn about innovative strategies to promote mental well-being in other communities.  

MN Thrives is intended to be a living resource that provides a comprehensive picture of mental health promotion strategies in Minnesota.  But it has to be populated to be useful.  The goal is to get 1,000 entries in the MN Thrives database by the end of 2022!

Can you help?! Visit the Minnesota Thrives website for more information, to submit an entry, or explore the MN Thrives database. 

REGISTER NOW!

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has released a 10-year strategic framework to improve the health care and quality of life for over 422,703 Minnesotans who have asthma.

The 10-year framework focuses on closing health equity gaps related to asthma and reducing the burden of uncontrolled asthma, such as hospitalizations, emergency departments visits, missed days of work or school and preventable healthcare costs.