Population: 302,407
Project focus: Access to foods that support healthy eating patterns
Goals:
- Standardize data collection and measurement of food and health equity in Pittsburgh that will identify healthy food priority areas for policy action
- Develop and launch resident advisory program to meaningfully co-design policy & program change
- Comprehensive citywide food and healthy equity policy
Approaches and Partners
Pittsburgh Food Policy Council, with the City of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Human Relations Commission, Allegheny County Health Department and American Heart Association – Greater Pittsburgh actively engaged key food, health, and equity stakeholders and local city and county government representatives in order to improve data sharing and support resident-led food policy action by creating the Pittsburgh Food Equity Ambassadors Program. The resident leadership program invited panelists from across the food system and government to share their knowledge and best practices with community residents to support them in understanding the food system and co-creating policy recommendations to address community needs, advocating for supports like a Food Justice Fund.
Successes (as of September 2022)
Leveraging these learning opportunities, the group gained the support of Pittsburgh City Council members as well as their newly elected mayor. The team supported Pittsburgh’s first comprehensive citywide food policy to identify “healthy food priority areas.” Through their advocacy, ambassadors also supported the creation of a Discounted Transit Fare Pilot Program in Allegheny County and convinced the Pittsburgh City Council to host a public hearing on food equity and urban agriculture. They also developed a draft policy brief that included background on food security in the city, relevant stakeholders, currently available data, and a proposed strategy for maintaining the data and sharing it publicly. April marked the start of the second cohort of the Ambassador program!
Snapshot 1 (July - December 2020) | Snapshot 2 (January - June 2021) | Snapshot 3 (July - December 2021)
Resources: