LOCATION: Rockford, IL, U.S.A.

ORGANIZATION TYPE: Government

FOCUS AREA: Children / Families, Education, Environment / Land Use, Health Care Delivery, Housing / Neighborhoods, Immigration, Income & Wealth, Jobs & Work, Law, Public Health, Public Policy, Race / Ethnicity, Social Inclusion, Transportation

HEALTH EQUITY INITIATIVES: Ellis Heights Weed & Seed Initiative is working at level including community, service and policy levels to have impacts on the residents. We are a crime prevention initiative and are fortunate to have the local health department as the fiscal agent. We currently engage community residents, public health professionals, law enforcements, organizations and businesses in implementing creative ways to address issues related to neighborhood blight, lack of community and economic development, the need for additional social services taylored to our population. Within this work, there is a common theme of inequality as it relates to both health and treatment of our residents as well as access to critical services that ensure not only survival but a healthy life, overall. We are a multi-organizational collaboration that sees the need to educate our peers as a way to improve our work as well as education community residents... so that they can be better advocates for their own health as well.