In Kansas City, Missouri, schools are undertaking a new approach to improving the health of children as well as their families. Dubbed "Food from the Farm," this program is aimed at teaching kindergarteners about healthy foods and healthy eating, providing them with the necessary tools to make the healthy choice. The aim of Food from the Farm is to connect kindergarteners and their families to local farmers as a means to encourage eating local fruits and vegetables and to help kids understand where food comes from.

A diverse group of partners in South Los Angeles recently broke ground on a new Wellness Center and healing garden to serve Los Angeles Unified School District students and the surrounding community.

Slavic Village Development (SVD) is a community development corporation located in Cleveland, Ohio that works with the Broadway neighborhood. With a population consisting of mostly working class, middle to lower income families, Slavic Village Development was faced with the challenge of improving a community that undergoing increasing foreclosures and perceptions of a lack of safety. In 2003, SVD received a grant from the Active Living by Design program to begin an initiative to rebrand Broadway as "a community on the move."

This community-driven project engaged a variety of age groups in revitalizing Hunting Park to prevent violence and promote healthy food access through a new community garden and farmers market.

The Communities United for Health coalition formed to create a "healthy zone" in the Shawnee neighborhood by limiting alcohol and tobacco promotional signage, increase adequate lighting, and decrease graffiti to positively influence perceptions of safety.

This project developed a healthy local food system that addressed underlying inequities that contributed to violence in the underserved Westwood community of Denver.

How communities are designed and function can promote -- or restrict -- physical activity and access to healthy, affordable food options for children and adults. Part of the Healthy, Active Multnomah County "It Starts Here" initiative aims to encourage the community opportunities for kids to be active before, during and after school.

An award-winning initiative, the Shreveport/Bossier Community Renewal (SBCR) is an effort to rebuild the social bonds within the Shreveport region of Louisiana, a low-income area with high crime rates.

Like many rural communities, Teton Valley faces increasing pressure to develop agricultural, farm, and natural lands to accommodate a growing population. In response, residents and advocates are advancing policy solutions to help preserve their natural resources while creating an environment that supports physical activity. Teton Valley Trails and Pathways (TVTAP) represents 500 active, dues-paying residents working to shape the valley so that it will continue to support physical activity opportunities.

Working intensively in the low-income city of Muskegon, Michigan, this relatively new organization is galvanizing support for a local, sustainable food system and hopes to get a statewide initiative on the 2010 ballot that will declare healthy, sustainable food as a right for every Michigan resident.