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UrduStephen Ritz, acclaimed teacher, founder of Green Bronx Machine and best-selling author of The Power of a Plant: A Teacher’s Odyssey to Grow Healthy Minds and Schools, has been invited by United States Congressman James P. McGovern (MA-02), Chairman of the House Rules Committee, to testify before Congress on the role of schools in ending hunger and improving nutrition. Ritz will testify on Wednesday, September 15 at 11:00 a.m. His testimony can be viewed live at: https://youtu.be/AoB13ifdO6I.
Tag: Food Insecurity
Soul food: WVU Campus Food Garden a place to learn and grow
With funding from the West Virginia University Office of the Provost’s competitive Transform This! Challenge Grants, the WVU Campus Food Garden was installed to provide equitable access to fresh produce for those struggling with food insecurity.
Expert review: USDA Food Insecurity Report, how COVID-19 has intensified food insecurity
The COVID-19 pandemic has only intensified issues for people and families experiencing food insecurity. With the USDA’s Food Insecurity report set to come out today, we’d like to make sociologist Leslie Hossfeld available to you. As dean of the College…
Food Insecurity During College Years Linked to Lower Graduation Rate
A study led by a researcher at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that food insecurity among college students is associated with lower college graduation rates and lower chances of obtaining a bachelor’s or advanced degree
SuperSNAP Helps Food Insecure Households Afford Healthy Foods
Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill studied the effects of SuperSNAP, which is run through Reinvestment Partners out of Durham, NC, to see if the additional funds translated into the purchase of more healthful foods, setting the stage for better health outcomes.
HELPING INDIA’S SMALLHOLDER FARMERS
Instead of simply employing the practice of multiple cropping — producing crops multiple times during the year and not just in one growing season — a new study led by the University of Delaware’s Pinki Mondal shows that smallholder farmers in India should instead look toward different nutrition strategies. These strategies can be on the individual level, such as growing more diverse crops for personal consumption in their home gardens, or on a community-level, where individuals would work with their local communities and arrange to have farmers bring in different vegetables each week to the local markets.
Discrimination, Safety Concerns Are Barriers To Accessing Healthy Food for Food-Insecure Young Adults
University of Minnesota School of Public Health researchers recently completed a study to determine how food-insecure young (emerging) adults (18–29 years of age) adapted their eating and child feeding behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
NO “VACATION” FOR GREEN BRONX MACHINE THIS SUMMER
For Green Bronx Machine, summer vacation is growing season – for plants, people and the organization itself. GBM spends June, July and August tending multiple community gardens and running asummer camp, as well as tackling food insecurity and promoting sustainable food systems with national and international leaders, and preparing for the return of in-person student learning this fall and all of the issues that will entail.
Arlington, Va., Named ‘Fittest City’ in 2021 American Fitness Index Ranking of Top 100
CSM and the Anthem Foundation release the 2021 American Fitness Index, ranking America’s 100 largest cities on health behaviors, chronic disease and community infrastructure indicators. Arlington, Va. earned the title of “America’s Fittest City.” Minneapolis, Minnesota; Seattle, Washington; Denver, Colorado; Madison, Wisconsin; Washington, D.C.; St. Paul, Minnesota; Irvine, California; Portland, Oregon; and Atlanta, Georgia; round out the top 10 fittest cities.
ACSM / Anthem American Fitness Index to Reveal 2021 Fittest City
For more than a decade, the evidence-based ACSM / Anthem American Fitness Index has recognized the critical role physical activity and city infrastructure play in a city’s overall health and fitness. ACSM and the Anthem Foundation will release the 2021 Fitness Index rankings at 7 a.m. EDT on July 13.
GREEN BRONX MACHINE NAMES THREE POWERHOUSE PLAYERS TO ITS NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Linda Femling, Director of Food Programs at Google in the Americas, Ana Cristina Garcia, Director of Government and Community Affairs at NewYork-Presbyterian, and Joel Makower, Chairman and Executive Editor of GreenBiz Group Inc., have been named the newest board members of Green Bronx Machine (GBM), the innovative national education nonprofit that effectively uses urban agriculture to transform teaching, learning and workforce development to boost student academic, health and career outcomes in underserved communities.
Bronx Educator Named National Life Group “LifeChanger of the Year” Award Winner
Stephen Ritz, founder of Green Bronx Machine and the National Health, Wellness, and Learning Center at CS 55, has been selected as a 2020-21 national LifeChanger of the Year award winner.
In quest to end hunger, Green Bronx Machine welcomes U.S. Congressman James P. McGovern to CS55
United States Congressman James P. McGovern (MA-02), Chairman of the House Rules Committee, visited Green Bronx Machine and its founder Stephen Ritz at its headquarters yesterday at the National Health, Wellness and Learning Center at CS 55 in the Bronx.
When the Economy Goes Down, So Does the Quality of Our Diets
According to a new study, adults overall ate more refined grains and solid fats and children increased their intake of added sugar during the recession. The impacts of the downturn were especially pronounced in food-insecure households, where individuals significantly reduced their intake of protein and dark green vegetables while increasing total sugars.
How a Global Pandemic Changed the Way We Eat and Shop
Studies being presented at NUTRITION 2021 LIVE ONLINE bring new insights into how people ate, shopped and felt about food as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded. Studying these trends can shed light on potential lingering health impacts of the pandemic and inform responses to future emergencies.
GREEN BRONX MACHINE’S LET’S LEARN WITH MISTER RITZ TO PREMIERE ON BRONXNET ON JUNE 1
Green Bronx Machine announced today a new partnership with BronxNet, a public affairs television station addressing the concerns, interests and cultures of the people of the Bronx, to bring episodes of Let’s Learn with Mister Ritz to its viewers starting on Tuesday, June 1.
Grocery taxes put low-income families at risk for food insecurity
Approximately one-third of all U.S. counties do not exempt grocery foods from the general sales tax, which means the lowest-income families living in those areas are most susceptible to food insecurity. New research from Cornell University finds that even a slight grocery tax-rate increase could be problematic for many.
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Reduces Food Insecurity in Local Community
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School community reduces food insecurity in Princeton area while providing healthy eating health care for the underserved.
GREEN BRONX MACHINE FOUNDER STEPHEN RITZ WINS 2021 CEA DISRUPTOR AWARD
Green Bronx Machine congratulates its founder Stephen Ritz who has received the 2021 Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) Disruptor Award for the organization’s work during the pandemic.
WHERE IN THE WORLD ARE GREEN BRONX MACHINE AND STEPHEN RITZ? APRIL AND MAY 2021 SIGHTINGS
From creating and starring in segments for public television’s Let’s Learn children’s series to celebrating National Nutrition Month and Earth Day to preparing for outdoor growing season at its various urban farms, one thing is for sure: Green Bronx Machine (GBM) and its founder Stephen Ritz have been and will be extra busy tending to their communities, people and gardens.
Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Needham awards more than $40,000 in community grants
Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Needham (BID Needham), part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, has awarded more than $40,000 in grant funding to nine community-based, non-profit organizations focused on addressing food insecurity, youth education and social determinants of health.
STEPHEN RITZ BRINGS HIS AWARD-WINNING GREEN BRONX MACHINE CLASSROOM TO PUBLIC TELEVISION’S “LET’S LEARN”
This spring, Stephen Ritz, award-winning educator and founder of Green Bronx Machine, will delight children in 3-K through second grade when he brings his acclaimed classroom – and a cast of newly-created characters – to public television’s “Let’s Learn” series.
MacNeal Hospital Launches Food Surplus Project
MacNeal Hospital, located in Berwyn, Illinois and part of Loyola Medicine, has launched the Surplus Project to package excess hospital and cafeteria food for delivery to nearby shelters and transitional housing.
Each Tuesday and Thursday morning, staff volunteers pack individual meals and desserts – labeled with nutrition information, including allergens – along with beverages, fruit, vegetables and other available food. The group packs approximately 75 meals each day, or 150 meals a week, adhering to strict state and local food safety guidelines. (View a video on the Surplus Project).
Time to Shift from “Food Security” to “Nutrition Security” to Increase Health & Well-Being
A new Viewpoint article argues that today’s health and equity challenges call for the U.S. to shift from “food insecurity” to “nutrition insecurity” in order to catalyze appropriate focus and policies on access not just to food but to healthy, nourishing food.
CATCHING UP WITH GREEN BRONX MACHINE AND STEPHEN RITZ IN MARCH AND APRIL 2021
Attention all Green Bronx Machine fans! Even though growing season is still around the corner, our founder Stephen Ritz and other GBM leaders are literally “zooming” around the world, planting the seeds for better education and health outcomes. From the Middle East and Austin, Texas, to New York City and far-flung places in between, their mission is to educate everyone about the power of a plant to help young people achieve academic and personal success, improve community health and wellness, and address economic and food justice.
CSU CalFresh Outreach Supports Students’ Basic Needs
CSU campuses hosted CalFresh Outreach Week to raise awareness of expanded nutrition program for students.
Land deals meant to improve food security may have hurt
Large-scale land acquisitions by foreign investors, intended to improve global food security, had little to no benefit, increasing crop production in some areas while simultaneously threatening local food security in others, according to Notre Dame researchers who studied their effects.
Roadmap offers solutions for future of food, global ag innovation
To deflect future world food crises created by climate change, a Cornell University-led international group has created a road map for global agricultural and food systems innovation.
Penn Medicine Researchers Find Link Between Food Insecurity and Cardiovascular Death Risk
According to preliminary research conducted by Penn Medicine, increasing rates of food insecurity in counties across the U.S. are independently associated with an increase in cardiovascular death rates among adults between the ages of 20 and 64. This is one of the first national analyses to evaluate changes in both food security and cardiovascular mortality over time, and to see if changes in food insecurity impact cardiovascular health.
Research shows bidirectional relationship between housing instability and food insecurity
A retrospective study found food insecurity and housing instability are bidirectionally linked and must be addressed together in order to solve a problem that affected millions even before the COVID-19 pandemic pushed many Americans out of the workforce.
Algorithm boosts efficiency, nutrition for food bank ops
Cornell University systems engineers examined data from a busy New York state food bank and, using a new algorithm, found ways to better allocate food and elevate nutrition in the process.
Food insecurity and schools during the pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has brought a number of challenges to schools, which were forced to close in the spring to help slow the spread of infection. One major challenge for schools was ensuring that students’ nutritional supplementation needs were met when they were not attending school in person.As schools across the country begin to welcome students back in person or for virtual learning, equity must be at the forefront of decisions pertaining to school emergency food services, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.
Infants in Households With Very Low Food Security May Have Greater Obesity Risk
Infants from households reporting very low “food security,” a measure of access to adequate and healthy meals, tend to weigh more than those from households with relatively high food security.
Study: Why U.S. Black Entrepreneurship Lags & How Banks Can Help Fix It
A steady stream of media reports detailing the deaths of unarmed Black Americans at the hands of police. False 911 calls aimed at bringing harm to African Americans engaged in innocuous, everyday activities. Street protests calling for an end to discrimination and police brutality. As racial tensions swirled this summer, so did calls on social media for those who support the social justice movement for African American civil rights to amplify Black voices and support Black businesses.
How to Tackle Climate Change, Food Security and Land Degradation
How can some of world’s biggest problems – climate change, food security and land degradation – be tackled simultaneously? Some lesser-known options, such as integrated water management and increasing the organic content of soil, have fewer trade-offs than many well-known options, such as planting trees, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Global Change Biology.
Food for Thought
Some people must make the difficult decision whether to put food on the table or spend money on other necessities, such as a utility bill or rent. In a recently published paper, Jean McDougall, PhD, and colleagues report the results of a 400-person survey that assesses food insecurity before and after cancer diagnosis
Mexican Immigrant Obesity Rates Climb with Deportation Fears
Stress, unhealthy foods contribute to obesity in undocumented adults and children, Rutgers study reports
Even before COVID-19, many adults over 50 lacked stable food supply and didn’t use available assistance, poll finds
Even before the coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc with the nation’s food supply and economy, one in seven adults between the ages of 50 and 80 already had trouble getting enough food because of cost or other issues, a new poll finds.
New Survey: Food Insecurity in Vermont Has Risen 33% During Pandemic
Food insecurity in Vermont has increased by one-third during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey. The increase was strongly correlated with employment status. Among food insecure Vermonters, two-thirds had experienced job losses or work disruptions during the pandemic.
Campus Kitchen keeps food on the table
Employees and volunteers harvest food and deliver prepared meals and bags of groceries to 53 food-insecure families in the area. Food comes for local gardens and grocery stores.
NMU Launches Indoor Agriculture Program
Northern Michigan University will begin offering an indoor agriculture associate degree program this fall. Through a hands-on, multidisciplinary approach, graduates learn equally about plant biology and the construction/maintenance of indoor growing systems, preparing them for a variety of career opportunities.
COVID-19: Disaster researchers can comment on infants, at-risk populations, chronically ill and animals
The University of Delaware’s Disaster Research Center includes several core faculty members who can discuss various aspects of the COVID-19 health crisis: Sarah DeYoung, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice: Can talk about companion animals and COVID-19, as well as…
Younger Cancer Survivors Far More Likely to Experience Food and Financial Insecurity than their Cancer-Free Peers, According to Researchers from American Cancer Society
New research from the American Cancer Society in the March 2020 issue of JNCCN—Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network finds that younger cancer survivors are more likely to experience significant financial strain for food, housing, and monthly bills after diagnosis.
Lack of Information Impedes Access to Food Pantries and Programs in Utah
Utah residents who have difficulty keeping their families fed could be missing a key ingredient: information. A University of Utah Health study finds that poor communications in at least 22 Utah communities could be hampering efforts to connect those in need with food stamps, food banks, soup kitchens, and other food resources. Researchers say the finding could help refine future community food distribution efforts.
Rutgers Expert Available to Discuss Climate Change Impacts on Land, Wildfires and Solutions
New Brunswick, N.J. (Jan. 15, 2020) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick Professor Pamela McElwee is available for interviews on climate change impacts on land, including increasing wildfires such as in Australia and California, and solutions. She is scheduled to testify before…
From lack of food to chronic illness, 2018 Health of Houston Survey sheds light on residents
A snapshot of health conditions revealing the disparities across 38 neighborhood areas in Harris County has been published in the 2018 Health of Houston Survey by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health.