Title
a. Approve and authorize the Director of Health Services or their designee to execute a three-year Facility Use Agreement for the term upon execution to June 30, 2026, with Ventana Wildlife Society to use designated facility space at the Women, Infants & Children office located in Salinas, to provide program eligible families with Nature Prescription Programs and Community Outdoor Adventure Club services at no cost; and
b. Approve and authorize the Director of Health Services or their designee to sign up to three (3) future amendments to this Agreement where the amendments do not significantly change the scope of work.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the County of Monterey Board of Supervisors:
a. Approve and authorize the Director of Health Services or their designee to execute a three-year Facility Use Agreement for the term upon execution to June 30, 2026, with Ventana Wildlife Society to use designated facility space at the Women, Infants & Children office located in Salinas, to provide program eligible families with Nature Prescription Programs and Community Outdoor Adventure Club services at no cost; and
b. Approve and authorize the Director of Health Services or their designee to sign up to three (3) future amendments to this Agreement where the amendments do not significantly change the scope of work.
SUMMARY DISCUSSION:
The purpose of this agreement is to support nature prescription strategies for Monterey County residents. A recent article in the American Journal of Health Promotion (Milliron B-J, Ward D, Granche J, et al., Nature Relatedness is Positively Associated with Dietary Diversity and Fruit and Vegetable Intake. American Journal of Health Promotion. 2022;36(6):1019-1024) demonstrates that a strong connection to nature may impact a more varied diet and an increase in intake of fruits and vegetables. Encouraging and promoting nature prescription programs may increase physical activity, improve dietary intake, and increase the lifespan of our county residents. Collaboration between Public Health’s Nutrition Programs and Ventana Wildlife Society (VWS) provides an opportunity to bring additional community resources to County residents and support behavior change.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-Ed) County Profile Dashboard for Monterey County indicates that a greater proportion of certain Monterey County residents are considered overweight or obese compared to California residents. In 2020, 60% of adults in Monterey County had a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25 or higher and are considered overweight/obese. The state percentage is 61. Among the SNAP-Ed eligible adult population in Monterey County, the percentage of residents with a BMI of 25 or higher is 68%. The state percentage is 36. The percentage of 5th graders in Monterey County with BMI greater than the 85th percentile is 51%. The state percentage is 41.
Public Health’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and CalFresh Healthy Living (CFHL) nutrition programs provide the community with nutrition information and food resources. Specifically, WIC and CFHL provide services to eligible low-income community members through nutrition education and obesity prevention activities and interventions. Public Health’s nutrition programs address high overweight and obesity rates among Monterey County children, adolescents, and adults. The focus of this agreement with VWS is to promote healthy lifestyles among community members and to equip our community members with nutrition and physical activity information and opportunities at the earliest age possible.
This new partnership allows VWS staff to provide our program eligible population access to nature prescriptions. VWS will provide nature prescription programming 2-3 days per month at the Salinas WIC location. Families will voluntarily register directly with VWS to attend club meetings held at Salinas WIC and to attend family outings such as whale watching, hiking, and kayaking to be organized and led by VWS. The VWS Nature Prescription Program is funded by the Outdoor Equity Grants Program created by AB209 and administered by California State Parks, Office of Grants and Local Services.
This work supports the Monterey County Health Department 2018-2022 Strategic Plan Goals: 1. Empower the community to improve health; and 2. Enhance community health and safety through prevention. It also supports two of the ten essential public health services, specifically: 3. Communicate effectively to inform and educate people about health, factors that influence it, and how to improve it; and 4. Strengthen, support and mobilize communities and partnerships to improve health.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The Office of the County Counsel has reviewed and approved this Agreement as to legal form. Auditor-Controller has reviewed and approved this Agreement as to fiscal provisions.
FINANCING:
There are no fiscal provisions included as part of this Agreement.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:
Check the related Board of Supervisors Strategic Initiatives:
☐Economic Development:
• Through collaboration, strengthen economic development to ensure a diversified and healthy economy.
☐Administration:
• Promote an organization that practices efficient and effective resource management and is recognized for responsiveness, strong customer orientation, accountability and transparency.
☒Health & Human Services:
• Improve health and quality of life through County supported policies, programs, and services; promoting access to equitable opportunities for healthy choices and healthy environments in collaboration with communities.
☐Infrastructure:
• Plan and develop a sustainable, physical infrastructure that improves the quality of life for County residents and supports economic development results.
☐Public Safety:
• Create a safe environment for people to achieve their potential, leading businesses and communities to thrive and grow by reducing violent crimes as well as crimes in general.
Prepared by: Patricia Velarde, Management Analyst II, 796-1377
Approved by:
______________________________Date: _________
Elsa Mendoza Jimenez, Director of Health Services, 755-4526
Attachment:
Board Report
Agreement