The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #67219

Tom Torlakson, Senator, California State Senate, California State Legislature, State Capitol, Room 5061, Sacramento, CA 95814, 916-445-6083, Senator.Torlakson@sen.ca.gov

Public health experts have begun teaming up to address the alarming epidemic of obesity. Much of the attention has deservedly focused on childhood obesity. We know, however, that unless parents have the means to incorporate good nutrition and fitness into their busy workdays that it is unlikely that their children will make meaningful change.

As a State Senator, I have learned that experts in any particular field are more likely to successfully advocate legislation if they have had an opportunity to fully relay their concerns and ideas for legislation to policy-makers and their staff. Such open-ended discussions create opportunities for creative collaboration and partnership. Accordingly, I founded and now chair the California Task Force on Youth and Workplace Wellness. This body was enacted by Senate resolution to create a forum for lawmakers and experts in the areas of health, fitness, education and industry to specifically address workplace and youth wellness issues. We are focused on both legislative means and community advocacy in order to affect this change, understanding that legislation without buy-in from the community will be as ineffectual as grass-roots advocacy without the legislative imprimatur. It is through such partnerships that we can address an epidemic such as obesity as we did several years ago with we dealt with smoking in public areas. We must learn from one another and then support one another’s efforts in both grass-roots and legislative arenas when our endeavors are mutually designed to affect significant societal change.

Learning Objectives:

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participants will be able to:
• Articulate at least three strategies that public and private worksite health promotion practitioners can employ to educate and then collaborate with lawmakers in order to improve workplace health.
• Identify at least three opportunities that public and private worksite health promotion practitioners can utilize to solicit the assistance of lawmakers in local grass-roots advocacy efforts designed to improve workplace health.
• Describe three challenges advocates and lawmakers alike may face when attempting to affect significant changes in public policy in the workplace.

Keywords: Food and Nutrition, Public Health Policy

Related Web page: www.senate.ca.gov/Torlakson

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.