Susan G. Zieff

Do Health Benefits Outweigh the Costs of Mass Recreational Programs? An Economic Analysis of Four Ciclovía Programs

One promising public health intervention for promoting physical activity is the Ciclovía program. The Ciclovía is a regular multisectorial community-based program in which streets are temporarily closed for motorized transport, allowing exclusive access to individuals for recreational activities and physical activity. The objective of this study was to conduct an analysis of the cost–benefit ratios of physical activity of the Ciclovía programs of Bogotá and Medellín in Colombia, Guadalajara in México, and San Francisco in the USA. The data of the four programs were obtained from program directors and local surveys. The annual cost per capita of the programs was: US

Active living collaboratives in the United States: understanding characteristics, activities, and achievement of environmental and policy change.

6.0 for Bogotá, US

A “Ciclovia” in San Francisco: Characteristics and Physical Activity Behavior of Sunday Streets Participants

23.4 for Medellín, US

Taking Physical Activity to the Streets: The Popularity of Ciclovía and Open Streets Initiatives in the United States

6.5 for Guadalajara, and US

Opportunity Meets Planning: An Assessment of the Physical Activity Emphasis in State Obesity-Related Plans

70.5 for San Francisco. The cost–benefit ratio for health benefit from physical activity was 3.23–4.26 for Bogotá, 1.83 for Medellín, 1.02–1.23 for Guadalajara, and 2.32 for San Francisco. For the program of Bogotá, the cost–benefit ratio was more sensitive to the prevalence of physically active bicyclists; for Guadalajara, the cost–benefit ratio was more sensitive to user costs; and for the programs of Medellín and San Francisco, the cost–benefit ratios were more sensitive to operational costs. From a public health perspective for promoting physical activity, these Ciclovía programs are cost beneficial.

Leading the Way in Science, Medicine and Physical Training: Female Physicians in Academia, 1890–1930

Introduction Changing the built environment to promote active lifestyles requires collaboration among diverse sectors. Multisectoral collaborative groups in the United States promote active lifestyles through environmental and policy changes. The objective of this study was to examine the characteristics of these collaborative groups and the extent to which they have achieved change. Methods We identified, recruited, and interviewed the coordinators of active living collaborative groups in the United States. We used descriptive statistics to characterize groups by composition, stakeholder engagement, and the extent of environmental and policy change in 8 strategic areas. Results Fifty-nine groups from 22 states participated in the study. Most groups had a diverse set of partners and used a range of activities to advance their agendas. Most groups achieved some form of environmental or policy change. On average, groups reported working on 5 strategy areas; parks and recreation (86%) and Safe Routes to School (85%) were named most frequently. More than half of groups reported their environmental initiatives as either in progress or completed. Groups reported the most success in changing policy for public plazas, street improvements, streetscaping, and parks, open space, and recreation. Complete Streets policy and zoning ordinances were the most frequently cited policy types. Engaging in media activities and the policy-making process in addition to engaging stakeholders appear to influence success in achieving change. Conclusion Although many groups successfully worked on parks and recreation improvements, opportunities remain in other areas, including transit and infill and redevelopment. Additional time and resources may be critical to realizing these types of changes.

Obesity, health, and physical activity: discourses from the United States.

BACKGROUND Temporary parks such as the monthly event, Sunday Streets SF, support public health goals by using existing infrastructure and street closures to provide physical activity in neighborhoods underserved for recreational resources. Sunday Streets creates routes to enhance community connection. METHODS Six hundred and thirty-nine participants at 3 Sunday Streets events were surveyed using a 36-item instrument of open- and closed-ended questions about overall physical activity behavior, physical activity while at Sunday Streets, experience of the events, and demographic data. RESULTS Overall, Sunday Streets participants are physically active (79% engage in activity 3-7 days/week) and approximately represent the ethnic minority distribution of the city. There were significant differences between first-time attendees and multiple-event attendees by duration of physical activity at the event (55.83 minutes vs. 75.13 minutes) and by frequency of physical activity bouts per week (3.69 vs. 4.22). Both groups emphasized the positive experience and safe environment as reasons to return to the event; for first-time attendees, the social environment was another reason to return. CONCLUSIONS Temporary parks like Sunday Streets have the potential to provide healthful, population-wide physical activity using existing streets. The trend toward increased activity by multiple-event attendees suggests the importance of a regular schedule of events.

Racial Difference and Social Meanings: Research on “Black” and “White” Infants' Motor Development, c. 1931-1992

As a way to reduce chronic diseases associated with increasingly sedentary lifestyles, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advocates community-wide initiatives promoting physical activity. One such initiative gaining popularity in the United States is the Ciclovı́a, or Open Streets initiative, where city streets are opened to residents for physical activity and closed to motorized traffic. Open Streets gained international prominence in Bogota, Colombia, and are viewed by policy makers and health and community advocates as being beneficial to social, environmental, and community health. The interest in initiatives is demonstrated by the increase in the number of events within and across the United States in recent years; between 2008 and 2013, over 90 U.S. cities hosted at least one event. The cities hosting events range in size from small suburban towns to large metropolitan areas and also range in socioeconomic demographics and diversity. Open Streets offer a potentially effective public health intervention in a variety of contexts.

Sunday Streets SF: An Economic Impact Assessment

BACKGROUND In the United States, health promotion efforts often begin with state-level strategic plans. Many states have obesity, nutrition, or other topic-related plans that include physical activity (PA). The purpose of this study was to assess PA content in these state plans and make recommendations for future plan development. METHODS Publically available plans were collected in 2010. A content analysis tool was developed based on the United States National PA Plan and included contextual information and plan content. All plans were double coded for reliability and analyzed using SPSS. RESULTS Forty-three states had a statewide plan adopted between 2002 and 2010, none of which focused solely on PA. Over 80% of PA-specific strategies included policy or environmental changes. Most plans also included traditional strategies to increase PA (eg, physical education, worksite). Few plans included a specific focus on land use/community design, parks/recreation, or transportation. Less than one-half of plans included transportation or land use/community design partners in plan development. CONCLUSIONS Though the majority of states had a PA-oriented plan, comprehensiveness varied by state. Most plans lacked overarching objectives on the built environment, transportation, and land use/community design. Opportunities exist for plan revision and alignment with the National PA Plan sectors and strategies.

NASPE Sets the Standard: 35 Years of National Leadership in Sport and Physical Education.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the profession of physical education was influenced by the ideas and research activities of physicians interested in understanding the role of physical training in health. Physicians Lilian Welsh and Clelia Mosher were among those physicians who contributed to both curricular developments in hygiene and physical education programmes in higher education and to scientific research that provided the basis for health claims from exercise, while employed by institutions of higher learning. In their decades of service to Goucher College (Welsh) and Stanford University (Mosher), these doctors also used science to diminish the claims of physiological inferiority of women thereby furthering the cause of higher education for women.