FAMILY AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
Partnering with Portland State University to Launch
‘Food for All in Clackamas County’ Project
In January 2023, the OSU Family & Community Health (FCH) Program began working with a student team enrolled in the Portland State University (PSU) Master of Urban Planning (MURP) program on an applied planning project. The “Food for All in Clackamas County” project addressed the Blueprint for a Healthy Clackamas County goal: “All residents have access to affordable, culturally relevant healthy food.” The student team examined the data methodology, reviewed applicable literature, and refreshed the county data with a special lens focused on food security and food systems.
Following the data update, the team hosted a countywide roundtable that convened a diverse group of approximately 30 food systems stakeholders to share the data update and discuss the Blueprint goal. Participants discussed cultural diversity of food, and access to culturally relevant food, and shared thoughtful and innovative solutions. Following the roundtable, the team selected the Molalla Health Equity Zone (HEZ) to participate in a community engagement event.
The community engagement event took place in early May at Molalla High School, and was hosted by the team, OSU, and AntFarm. Approximately 40 community members, primarily representing the LatinX community attended. AntFarm catered a Mexican buffet. The Oregon Food Bank provided food boxes. Activities, including Participatory Mapping, Storytelling, “You are what you Eat” and Idea Hive provided a forum for attendees to share stories, and strengths and challenges associated with navigating the local food system.
A Final report containing the data update, evaluative summaries of the roundtable and community engagement events, recommendations for Next Steps, as well as a “Community Voices Food Accessibility Toolkit” can be found at https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/usp_murp/189. Contact the Family and Community Health Program if you are interested in delivering a similar engagement event in your community.