Insights from the Think&amp;EatGreen@School Project: How a community-based action research project contributed to healthy and sustainable school food systems in Vancouver

Rojas, Alejandro; Black, Jennifer; Orrego, Elena; Chapman, Gwen E.; Valley, Will

doi:10.15353/cfs-rcea.v4i2.225

Cited by 8 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…The third phase, in its infancy in most countries (Canada included), is a response to increased rates of childhood obesity and nutrition-related chronic diseases, a larger societal context of challenges in the food system, climate change, and environmental degradation. This phase incorporates food systems and societal issues into food programs and policies and generally integrates them more closely with curricula and the school environment as a whole [ 16 , 24 ]. Various researchers argue that this approach is the future of school food programs around the world and is consistent with the principles outlined in the CFG [ 25 , 26 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Good Food for Learning Universal Curriculum-Integrated Healthy School Lunch Intervention: Protocol for a Two-Year Matched Control Pre-Post and Case Study

Engler‐Stringer¹,

Black²,

Muhajarine³

et al. 2021

JMIR Res Protoc

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Background Good nutrition affects children’s health, well-being, and learning, and schools offer an important setting to promote healthy behaviors that can last a lifetime. Once children reach school age, they spend more of their waking hours in school than in any other environment. Children’s eating habits may be easier to influence than those of adults. In Canada, households with children are more likely to experience food insecurity, and school food programs that are universally available to all children can support the development of healthy eating patterns across groups of varying socioeconomic status. There is a significant gap in the rigorous community-engaged academic research on the impact of school meal programs, especially universal ones. Objective The aim of this population health intervention research is to study the impact of a 2-year universal, curriculum-integrated healthy school lunch program in elementary schools in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, on food consumption, dietary quality and food and nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Methods This population health intervention study will be conducted in 2 intervention elementary schools matched with 2 control schools. We will collect preintervention data, including objective measurements of food eaten at school and food-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. This will be followed by the intervention itself, along with qualitative case studies of the intervention process in the 2 intervention schools. Then, we will collect postintervention data similar to the preintervention data. Finally, we will finish the data analysis and complete the ongoing sharing of learning from the project. Results This study was funded in April 2020 but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, data collection did not begin until May 2021. The intervention will begin in September 2021 and end in June 2023, with end point data collection occurring in May and June 2023. The case study research will begin in September 2021 and will be ongoing for the duration of the intervention. Conclusions The opportunity we have to systematically and comprehensively study a curriculum-integrated school lunch program, as well as the promising practices for school food programs across Canada, is without precedent. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/30899

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Good Food for Learning Universal Curriculum-Integrated Healthy School Lunch Intervention: Protocol for a Two-Year Matched Control Pre-Post and Case Study

Engler‐Stringer¹,

Black²,

Muhajarine³

et al. 2021

JMIR Res Protoc

Self Cite

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“…Universal SFPs have also been found to have a positive influence on social inclusion (Corter & Pelletier, 2010), gender equity, food literacy, environmental sustainability and stewardship (Rojas et al, 2017), and economic development (Becot et al, 2017).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of Canadian school food programs funded by provinces and territories

Ruetz

McKenna

2021

CanFoodStudies

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Given the complexity of school food programs (SFPs) in Canada and recent political developments, this research provides a systematic examination of provincially and territorially-funded SFPs during the 2018/19 school year. Relevant literature and the RE-AIM Framework, a planning and evaluation tool developed by Glasgow, Boles & Vogt (1999), informed the development of an electronic survey sent to leads in each province and territory to assess SFP Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance. Results from 24 surveys (16 from provincial/territorial ministries/ departments, supplemented by surveys from 8 non-governmental organizations (NGOs), indicate considerable variability across Canada. Collectively, provinces and territories contributed over $93 million to support a minimum of 6,159 programs in 5,186 JK-12 schools, funding free breakfasts, snacks, and/or lunches for a minimum of 1,018,323 or 20% of students (based on limited data in some jurisdictions). The majority of provinces and territories partner with one or more NGOs and rely heavily on NGO staff and volunteers. Program demand often exceeds supply and monitoring is inconsistent. This research, which provide an important but incomplete picture of SFPs in Canada, indicate the value of future discussions about SFP administration, especially about program mandates, student reach and universality, sustainability and resources, and monitoring based on nationally-harmonized metrics. The results offer opportunities to explore promising organizational practices, enhanced collaboration, and sharing of expertise, all of which would assist with developing the National School Food Program proposed in the 2019 federal budget.

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“…Our research engaged substantially with a separately funded community-university educational programming partnership, Think&EatGreen@School 2017-2019 (TEGS). This project built on the foundations set by an earlier phase of the programme, funded from 2010 to 2015 (Rojas et al, 2017). TEGS was a partnership between the City of Vancouver, VSB and the University of British Columbia (UBC) Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, offering small grants to elementary and secondary schools and community organisations within the City of Vancouver to implement school food systems projects.…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘We are all in this together’: Investigating alignments in intersectoral partnerships dedicated to K-12 food literacy education

Renwick

Powell

Edwards

2021

Health Education Journal

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Background: Activities to foster food literacy in young people are increasingly common in schools, driven both by the public health sector and by curriculum mandates from education officials in government. In Canada, both Kindergarten–Grade 12 (K-12) classroom teachers and educators from community organisations deliver food literacy education programmes in schools, often framed as partnerships working in the interests of young people. Objective: The study examines the alignment between what both classroom teachers and community educators state are the desired outcomes for students of their food literacy education work and the topics/activities they engage in with students. Design, setting and method: We surveyed and interviewed teachers and community educators in British Columbia, Canada, and utilised participant observation and secondary data from food literacy education network activities. Results: Shared food literacy education goals and topics/activities were evident in the responses of classroom teachers and community educators. Teachers framed their food literacy education programmes around the curriculum-as-plan – in this case, the provincial curriculum known as the BC Curriculum – and then enacted a lived curriculum that students experienced in the classroom. Community educators offered programmes that were initially designed to meet their organisation’s focus, but which varied in terms of how much of the BC Curriculum was addressed. Conclusion: Our results show broad alignment between teachers and community educators in food literacy education goals and practices; however, there is potential to increase this alignment and build stronger partnerships that support teachers in enacting the BC curriculum and meeting the needs of their students.

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Insights from the Think&EatGreen@School Project: How a community-based action research project contributed to healthy and sustainable school food systems in Vancouver

Cited by 8 publications

References 21 publications

The Good Food for Learning Universal Curriculum-Integrated Healthy School Lunch Intervention: Protocol for a Two-Year Matched Control Pre-Post and Case Study

The Good Food for Learning Universal Curriculum-Integrated Healthy School Lunch Intervention: Protocol for a Two-Year Matched Control Pre-Post and Case Study

Characteristics of Canadian school food programs funded by provinces and territories

‘We are all in this together’: Investigating alignments in intersectoral partnerships dedicated to K-12 food literacy education

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