RAMP Digest – May 22
GENERAL
1) Events: Healthy Homes Regional Symposia
2) Leadership Development Program: CompassPoint Next Generation Leaders of Color Program
3) Funding Announcement: RAMP Legacy Projects
4) Funding Announcement: NIH and NHLBI Funding for Translational Programs in Lung Disease
5) Funding Announcement: Packard, Irvine, and Hewlett Foundations Community Leadership Project
6) Resource: KQED QUEST’s On-line Asthma Story
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
8) Events: The California Endowment Health Exchange Academy in Sacramento
9) Events: Pesticide Watch and GreenAction hosting Grassroots Lobbying Trainings
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GENERAL
1) Events: Healthy Homes Regional Symposia
The Healthy Homes Collaborative is hosting a series of regional convenings, “Healthy Homes Healthy Families: A Series of Regional Symposia to Develop a Statewide Healthy Housing Plan.” The symposia will be held at various locations throughout California and is free, but space is limited, and early registration is encouraged. The results of the various regional meetings will culminate at a Statewide Symposium, Healthy Housing for California: Reducing the Burden of Asthma and Other Health Impacts, which will be held in San Francisco on June 16 and 17 (//www.californiabreathing.org/). For more information click on the link below and to register for one of the regional symposia, visit //healthyhomescollaborative.org/HHHFLocalRegionalSymposia/tabid/211/Default.aspx.
2) Leadership Development Program: CompassPoint Next Generation Leaders of Color Program
CompassPoint has announced a leadership development program for Next Generation Leaders of Color working in Bay Area health and human service organizations. The 12-month intensive program is funded by a grant from The California Wellness Foundation and will include interactive seminars, facilitated peer learning groups, online learning, and individualized coaching support. The focus of the program is on two critical content areas: to supervise, develop, inspire, and influence people; and to acquire business acumen with an emphasis on financial strategy, comprehension, and literacy. The program will utilize a framework that examines cultural dimensions in management and will help participants lead in a culturally competent manner. Applications are due June 12th. For more information visit //www.compasspoint.org/assets/769_finalformlocked.pdf.
3) Funding Announcement: RAMP Legacy Projects
Regional Asthma Management and Prevention (RAMP) has released a Request for Applications (RFA) for its second round of Legacy Projects. Legacy Project grant proposals should be focused on reducing asthma disparities in African American and Latino communities by addressing social determinants of health and by using a public health prevention approach. Priority will be given to proposals that are in alignment with the work of RAMP’s three goal areas to address asthma in African American and Latino communities. The goals are to reduce environmental triggers in homes and outdoor air, reduce environmental triggers and improve education and management of asthma in schools and childcare settings, and improve culturally competent clinical management. The RFA is being disseminated nationally and additional eligibility criteria and priorities are listed in the RFA. Funding will be for one-year grants and it is anticipated that up to 3 awards, ranging from $25,000 – $30,000 each, will be granted. Applications must be received by July 1st. For more information and to access the RFA, visit //www.calasthma.org/news/show_story/651/.
4) Funding Announcement: NIH and NHLBI Funding for Translational Programs in Lung Disease
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Heart. Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) have released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for applications from institutions/organizations that will perform collaborative, translational research that moves mechanistic research to clinical applications to improve prevention, diagnosis and/or treatment of lung diseases and sleep disorders. The size and duration of each award will vary and the total amount awarded and the number of awards will depend on the number, quality, duration, and costs of the applications received. New applications may request up to $1.75 million per year in direct costs and a project duration of up to five years for a maximum of $8.75 million over a five-year project period. Applicants will be required to propose research that will become progressively more clinical and translational during the life of the program project, and they are expected to assemble interactive, multidisciplinary teams that have the combined expertise to formulate a plan for successful translation. For more information, visit //grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-09-185.html.
5) Funding Announcement: Packard, Irvine, and Hewlett Foundations Community Leadership Project
The Packard, Irvine, and Hewlett Foundations plan to commit $8 million over the coming three years for a new project to strengthen grassroots organizations that are led by or serve people and communities of color. Called the Community Leadership Project, it will target small and midsized organizations in three geographic regions: the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, Central Coast, and San Joaquin Valley. The regions were selected after listening to what leaders in these communities had to say about their needs and studying the state’s changing demographics, among other considerations. While this new Project is designed to last three years, the Foundations view it as part of a continuing and open-ended commitment on all of their parts to listen to these communities and to work to assure that all of California’s citizens prosper through effective grantmaking. For more details about the Project, visit the Project website at //www.communityleadershipproject.org/. The site also will be the place to learn of additional announcements as they are made in the coming months.
6) Resource: KQED QUEST’s On-line Asthma Story
The KQED QUEST series recently aired a story on “Asthma: What Brought on the Epidemic?”, the episode looks at asthma, the country’s third most common pediatric disease. QUEST meets with Bay Area researchers who are investigating possible environmental and social factors that may cause asthma in the hope that this understanding may lead to measures to prevent children from developing the disease. To view the episode, visit //www.kqed.org/quest/television/asthma.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
7) Event: ARB Chair’s Seminar Series Presentation on Air Pollution and Climate Change in Sacramento, June 10th
The next presentation of the California Air Resources Board Chair’s Seminar Series is taking place on June 10th from 1:30-3:30pm (Pacific Time) in Sacramento and can also be viewed via webcast. The presentation topic is “Tackling Air Pollution and Climate Change: A Bumpy Road Towards the Common Good” and the speaker is Frank Raes, Ph.D., head of the Climate Change Unit at the Joint Research Center (JRC) of the European Commission. The Joint Research Center (JRC) has developed scenarios for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants between 2000 and 2050, scenarios that are considered realistic by policy makers in Europe. Dr. Raes will discuss how it is important that climate policies be implemented tomorrow, in order to stabilize climate in the long term however, one can expect a faster global warming in the short-term. It is therefore important to stress and communicate the short-term co-benefits of climate policies for air quality and energy security. For more information on the presentation and how to join the webcast, visit //www.arb.ca.gov/research/seminars/raes/raes.htm.
8) Events: The California Endowment Health Exchange Academy in Sacramento
The California Endowment is hosting The Center for Healthy Communities’ Health Exchange Academy, a series of day long trainings designed to improve the effectiveness of health-related nonprofit organizations throughout California. Trainings will be held at various locations in Sacramento. The training schedule and topics are as follows: May 28th – Advocating for Change; June 18th – Communicating for Change; July 30th – Evaluating for Change. To learn more about the Health Exchange Academy, visit //www.calendow.org/Article.aspx?id=3899. To register, contact Sunaina Sondhi at ssondhi@calendow.org.
9) Events: Pesticide Watch and GreenAction hosting Grassroots Lobbying Trainings
Pesticide Watch Education Fund and GreenAction for Health and Environmental Justice are hosting Grassroots Lobbying Trainings (as part of the Environmental Health Legislative Working Group (EHLWG)) to take place from 10:30am until 4pm on May 29th in Oakland and on June 12th in Sacramento. Sessions will include: an update on priority environmental health and justice bills; understanding the legislative process; and influencing the legislative process. Staff from Senator Hancock’s office will also be joining the training over lunch. To download the registration forms visit //www.calasthma.org/news/show_story/655/.
