2008 Network for a Healthy California Annual Social Marketing Conference

Online Abstract Submission

The Network for a Healthy California (Network) invites you to submit one or more abstracts to be considered for a workshop or poster presentation at the annual statewide conference entitled, "Champions for Change: Taking Action for Healthy Eating and Active Living." The conference will be held January 23-24, 2008 at the Sacramento Convention Center. The conference will provide speakers and workshops that highlight the ways we transform low-income California communities through our primary messages:

Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption,
Increasing physical activity,
Decreasing food insecurity, and
Preventing chronic diseases focusing on obesity

Conference Goals

Provide opportunity for professionals involved in nutrition and physical activity to identify and learn about promising practices, current visions, and strategic developments.
Increase attendee's understanding and capacity to be change-agents for better nutrition and increased physical activity in California's low-income communities.
Provide opportunities for collaboration between Network funded projects and community partners focused on nutrition education, physical activity, and healthy food access for Food Stamp eligible populations.
Disseminate strategies to help eliminate and reduce health disparities.
Increase knowledge of effective ways to provide comprehensive services to Food Stamp eligible households.

Who Should Submit Abstracts
All partners of the Network may submit abstracts. These partners include:

Network Steering Committee Members
Local Incentive Awardees and Non-profit Incentive Awardees
Faith Based Community Project Awardees and African American Advisory Council
Local Food and Nutrition Education Awardees and Task Force Members
Healthy Cities and Community Awardees
Power Play! and Latino Campaign Lead Agencies and Awardees
Network Regional Lead Agencies
Physical Activity and Nutrition Center Awardees
State Agencies, including Department of Education, Department of Food and Agriculture, Department of Public Health, and Department of Social Services
Organizations with similar goals, objectives and activities, regardless of funding source
Partners working with programs at either the state, regional, or county level

Abstract Theme Areas
Please note that all abstracts submitted should focus on the conference theme, "Champions for Change: Taking Action for Healthy Eating and Active Living." including not just Network funded projects, but others who are also addressing nutrition/physical activity/obesity prevention throughout California are changing the healthy eating and active living norms and behavior in low-income communities, schools, etc.

Presentation Formats
Concurrent break-out sessions will include both invited speakers and speakers selected from the responses to this Call-for-Abstracts. Approximately 35 abstracts will be selected to be presented in a workshop break-out session.

Break-out Sessions--Unless submitted as a complete workshop, abstracts selected for oral presentations will be combined with two or three other abstracts submitted from similar program areas. Each presenter will have approximately 15-20 minutes to present if part of a combined session. To assist the conference planning committee in combining abstract submissions into a single workshop session, please mark the appropriate box(s) that best describe your abstract’s program area on the submission form. Abstracts for an entire panel may be submitted together.
Poster Presentations--Abstracts will also be selected to participate in poster presentations. Authors illustrate their findings by displaying graphs, photographs, diagrams and limited text on poster boards. The poster boards measure four feet by eight feet. Posters will be displayed in a highly visible central location throughout the conference. Poster presenters will be assigned a designated time for the author to be present, interact with conference attendees, and provide handouts. Presenters are expected to remain by their board for the durations of the one hour session.

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION GUIDELINES AND SAMPLES

All those submitting abstracts must complete the submission form. Oral and poster presentations should address how the work presented is relevant to serving low-income Food Stamp eligible audience and how it impacts nutrition, physical activity, and health disparities in California. In addition, oral presentations should be interactive and must include a description of the interactive methods used. See below for examples of interactive techniques, learning objectives, and a written abstract.

Guidance on Making Your Session or Oral Presentation Interactive
Microphones will be available for use in larger conference rooms for the audience to speak, ask questions, and make comments in the sessions. Although the audience size cannot be predicted, a presentation or session of any size can be interactive using one or more of the following methods:

Questions and Answers: Hold periodic question/answer periods during the session or presentation. Ask open-ended questions and ask the audience to share their views. During these periods, be patient and silent to allow enough time for questions and responses.
Facilitated Discussion or Dialogue: Ask the audience for feedback and/or to share their views on a subject allowing time for responses. Then, follow-up with additional questions for the audience depending on audience responses.
Exploration of New Ideas: Ask the audience to think of new approaches or ideas related to the information presented and then encourage discussion about those ideas.
Case Study Approach: Present a case study related to the topic and ask the audience to provide input on their suggested approach, or solutions to potential problems, related to the case study.
Audience Person-to-Person Interaction: Ask audience members to turn to one or two people near them that they do not know and share an innovative idea, best practice, or way to break a barrier to improvement, then ask for audience feedback based on these exchanges.
Group exercise: Develop a brief exercise (with a related handout if appropriate) that audience members can work on alone or with others during the session or presentation and then ask for feedback about the exercise.

Be creative! The above tips for interactive sessions are just examples — we encourage you to think of other methods for encouraging and inspiring the audience to interact and actively participate instead of passively listening to a lecture.

Submission Procedure and Deadline
Please submit your abstract electronically via the conference website no later than midnight on Monday, September 10, 2007.

Notification
You will receive an e-mail notification that your abstract has been received. Notification of acceptance will be sent during November. If you do not receive notification by December 1, 2007, you should contact the conference planner at the contact information listed on the conference web site. Presentation and poster session guidelines will be mailed in early December to all those whose abstracts are accepted.

Conference Registration
Oral and poster presenters must register for the Network conference and the cost should be billed to their own agency budget.

Example of an Abstract:
Title: Effect of Fresh Fruit Availability at Worksites on the Fruit and Vegetable Consumption of Low-Wage Employees.

Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this presentation, the participants will be able to:

Describe the results of the initial pilot study
Discuss the relationship between availability and consumption of fruits and vegetables
Recommend additional environmental-level interventions focused on increasing fruit and vegetable consumption at worksites.

Abstract:
Over half of California adults are overweight or obese. To reduce these numbers and improve overall health, Californians should eat a healthy diet, rich in fruits and vegetables, and engage in physical activity every day. Unfortunately, according to the California Dietary Practices Survey, California adults consume an average of only 4.1 servings (approx. 2 cups) of fruits and vegetables, well below the 3 ½ to 6 ½ cups recommended for good health. Additionally, 61 percent of Californians agree that fruits and vegetables are “hard to get at work.” As a result, the California 5 a Day—Be Active! Worksite Program has developed a worksite intervention designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption. The purpose of this study was to measure the change in fruit and vegetable consumption in low-wage earning adults when fruit was provided free of charge. The quasi-experimental study recruited matched pairs of worksites and randomly assigned each to an intervention or control condition. After a three month intervention period, employees reported a 39 percent increase in daily fruit and vegetable consumption. In addition, findings indicated a significant increase in both fruit and vegetable purchasing habits and consumption by participants’ families. These findings demonstrate that worksites provide a vital opportunity for affecting the dietary habits of California’s families. Business leaders and policy makers must synergize their efforts to create worksites where employees are provided the opportunity to engage in healthy behaviors during the workday. Increasing access to fruit during the workday is an easy, affordable, and sustainable first step.

Example of an interactive presentation approach:
Each panel participant will provide a PowerPoint presentation on his/her topical area and will provide ample time for a robust question and answer session. The session attendees will have the opportunity to ask specific questions related to each campaign/program, as well as offer their own best practices and suggestions. For updates, continue to visit the conference website at www.networkforahealthycalifornia.net/2008conference/.

Important Dates:
Abstracts Due: September 10, 2007