Path to Wellness

ABOVE ALL, I AM A PROBLEM SOLVER. PREFACE / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

First and foremost, I am a problem solver with an endless curiosity, strong sensibility to experiment, and a natural interest in the discovery process. My evolution as a graphic designer began with the challenge of pairing words and visuals to communicate compelling stories for intended audiences.

My passions in design started with publication design, typography, photography, and writing. Following a year with MICA’s Post-Baccalaureate in Graphic Design, I joined the Masters in Social Design (MASD) in Fall 2013 to push my personal meaning of the role of graphic designer in today’s society. What I discovered is that a designer’s role involves being both a facilitator and a change maker. It goes beyond just communicating; it involves testing and prototyping new ideas for programs, products, and services across print, web, and physical mediums.

Prior to MICA, my career was rooted in strategic communications, marketing, and branding. I have six years experience creating and implementing high-profile campaigns for public sector clients during my tenure at Booz Allen Hamilton. Despite a strong focus on traditional communications, I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit. In recent years, I have provided design and enterprise solutions for the Nike Foundation’s Girl Hub Rwanda, Johns Hopkins, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Baltimore, Humanim, Mother Nature’s Network, and several small businesses in the Washington metropolitan area. Over the course of my career, I have gained extensive experience working with interdisciplinary and cross-sector teams, which is also what drew me to social design. I love people and thrive at using design solutions to make their lives better.

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CONTENTS

Introduction................................................page 7

Research..........................................................page 9

Intervention...............................................page 15

Implementation & Impact...................................page 21

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INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

there is a health epidemic in america that continues to plague Baltimore. “Research shows developed economies like the United States have reduced physical activity levels by as much as 32 percent in fewer than two generations,” according to Nike’s Designed to Move campaign. Specific to Baltimore, especially in disinvested neighborhoods, approximately 25 percent of children and 30 percent of adults are obese.

Additionally, chronic diseases like diabetes and stroke are rampant in poorer communities, especially among the black population which makes up the majority of Baltimore city.

Last year, dozens of recreation centers were closed and many city parks and playgrounds remain run down, dirty, and not people friendly.

My design intervention—Walk & Talk Baltimore—is a response to Baltimore’s need for more structured, proactive physical activity on an individual, hyper-local level. My work is based in East Baltimore—a primarily residential area spanning nearly a third of the city. It is home to McElderry Park, one of the most disinvested neighborhoods in Baltimore.

Residents of McElderry Park have a life expectancy 20 years lower than that of their fellow citizens in the nearby, wealthier area of Roland Park.* The lack of regular physical activity has a negative impact on both the physical and cognitive well-being of East Baltimoreans—a community which could benefit greatly from regular movement.

Fortunately, there is a citywide movement to improve the visibility of and participation in health and wellness among the residents of East Baltimore. As the city’s Commissioner of Health Dr. Oxiris Barbot has said, “Enhancing the health of our neighborhoods is fundamental to Mayor Stephanie RawlingsBlake’s vision for a healthier and growing Baltimore.” A few years ago, the Baltimore City Health Department released Healthy Baltimore 2015—a comprehensive health policy agenda for the city. While progress has been made and the number of healthy individuals has increased some, there is still much work to be done in this critical area.

*Source: Charm City Clinic

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RESEARCH

RESEARCH / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

the social phenomenon i am addressing is that regular physical activity and access to tools is a privilege in our society. There is much observational evidence behind this phenomenon. By spending even a short time in East Baltimore, it is clear that residents do not lead healthy lives, including a lack of proactive physical fitness. Unlike other Baltimore neighborhoods where you see residents engaged in activities like biking, walking, running, and outdoor play, the streets of East Baltimore are filled with residents often partaking in unhealthy behaviors like smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, and yelling after each other. With that said, my theory of change is if the people in East Baltimore incorporated fitness into their lives over time they would make more positive, healthy daily life decisions. The impact of this theory has the potential to be transformative.

I employed various research techniques to dig deeper and better understand this phenomenon. More specifically, this phase consisted of ethnography, informal interviews, and archival exploration (online research, books, and reports).

This was framed by my thesis question: how might design improve the accessibility and visibility of fitness resources in East Baltimore? Within in that question there were two sub-questions I asked myself throughout this phase of my thesis work: 1) What precedents exist that can showcase the impact of sports on those living in poverty? 2) Why is this phenomenon occurring in East Baltimore?

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Images: Back on My Feet, Homeless World Cup, and Girl Hub Rwanda

RESEARCH / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

My research began with better understanding the connection between the positive impacts of sports on those living in poverty. I uncovered many existing precedents for programs and services across the globe that address the issue of helping those who are poor, unemployed, and/or homeless through the power of sport. Some of the more noteworthy examples are Back on My Feet and the Homeless World Cup, which share similar theories of change. Girl Hub Rwanda—a program which I have worked on previously—is another great example that does not include sports per se but was inspirational to my work in how they used the human element to create lasting, positive change.

Design interventions focused on helping society be more active were also a source of great inspiration. They helped educate me about just how bad the issue through the extensive research they have conducted, as well as, get me thinking about clever ways to engage people. These precedents included Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign, the Walk Your City guerrilla way finding campaign, The New York City Active Guidelines, and Nike’s Designed to Move. The internal precedents were the thesis work of Becky Slogeris (Designing Education, MASD ‘12) and Briony Evans Hynson (PLAYgrounded, MASD ‘12).

My research also involved studying levels of analysis to hone in on the where my target audience falls within our social system and how the problem definition applies to them. The target audience for Walk & Talk fell between the individual and meso levels. Looking at the individual level of analysis helped me identify some of the characteristics of decision making so I could better understand how to influence behavior change. Then, I wanted to understand how that behavior change was impacted at the community or group level, so I analyzed the meso level. I discovered in Baltimore the meso level is very tight-knit, shares strong common values including a faith, and relies heavily on word of mouth for information exchange.

The target audience for Walk & Talk is residents of East Baltimore who face many physical and psychological barriers to getting physical activity. To better understand the why behind this phenomenon I conducted informal interviews with residents and with my community partners. I also conducted ethnographic studies by walking the streets of East Baltimore on my own, with other classmates, and with residents to observe and experience the neighborhood first hand. My research over several months indicates there are eight major barriers (see graphic representation on pages 12-13): 1. Lack of a people network 2. Actual time and perception of time it takes 3. Lack of access to tools, spaces, and knowledge 4. Actual costs and perception of costs to engage 5. The cognitive strains of living in poverty 6. Problems with safety on the streets 7. Chronic physical health issues are rampant 8. Health is not a priority until it is most urgent During conversations, I learned more anecdotes concerning the reasons behind these barriers. A few struck me as particularly noteworthy. While speaking with Demetrio Lance Cooper from Charm City Clinic in East Baltimore, he said “Until they’re really sick, it’s not a priority. They are not concerned with their health until it really matters.” Amy Hartman from the Center for Grace-Full Living at the Amazing Grace Church spoke about the cognitive impacts of living in poverty based on her experiences working and living in McElderry Park for the past two years. She shared her feelings that this type of program is needed but will take time because living in poverty is taking a toll on residents ability to think about much more than their dire situations.

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INTERVENTION

the concept behind my intervention is simple yet profoundly impactful: inspiring residents to move their bodies in the public spaces of their community. To kick-start proactive movement in this community, I launched Walk & Talk—a weekly walking group accessible to the neighborhood residents. Participation in the group not only promotes movement, but provides a support network that increases potential for behavior change. Over time, and if scaled, walking not only transforms the individual’s overall wellbeing, but also the well-being and safety of the community.

Walk & Talk’s overarching goal is to show individuals that physical activity is simple, enjoyable, and rewarding. The group also provides a safe means to engage outdoors and is of no cost—two concerns for this target audience.

Participants are incentivized by extrinsic motivators such as different topical themes for walks (e.g. nutrition or tree planting) with knowledgeable guest walkers, the ability to track steps via pedometers, and by receiving rewards for participation. By engaging individuals through the walks over a period of time, moving will become a healthy habit of their own while also helping build community and keep the streets safer. Walking has the potential to transform the community for better.

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Images: Walk & Talk participants and membership rewards card prototype

INTERVENTION / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

Walk & Talk Baltimore is an initiative that emerged during last summer’s Baltimore Data Day and Hackathon by a group of Baltimore architects, designers, and community liaisons. At the time, the team launched a Tumblr site (www.walkandtalk. tumblr.com) to begin sharing their concept and resources.

The idea was immediately well-received and following the Hackathon partnerships were forged on a community level in McElderry Park. However, a lack of a committed leadership and inclement weather precluded the initiative from officially taking off. Since then the interest and buzz continued and there remained a need for this type of design intervention, which nicely tied into my interests for a thesis.

The original mission of Walk & Talk has remained intact: to improve the visibility of, awareness of, and participation on health and wellness resources in East Baltimore at a community level. It starts with walking because there is a low-barrier to entry, making it accessible to the widest range of users. However, it was envisioned to be part of the larger shift to transform East Baltimore into a mutually-beneficial health ecosystem with projects like the development of Eager Park in 2015, as well as, other greening and environmental efforts in the works over the past few years. Eager Park and other city-wide parks began to have initiatives like Docs in the Park where doctors could provide informal medical guidance to residents. The goal of programs like that could ultimately be a stop along the Walk & Talk route and thus encourage increased resident interaction with medical professionals.

Access to and an understanding of the East Baltimore community started with my fantastic partnerships.

Implementation began on Saturday, February 22, 2014 when the inaugural Walk & Talk was held starting at the Center for Grace-Full Living at the Amazing Grace Church in McElderry Park. This was organized and advertised with the help of Amazing Grace’s Amy Hartman. The first walk was advertisement in the McElderry Park Star, the quarterly community newspaper. The walk started immediately following a Neighborhood Block Leader Training held at Banner Neighborhood by Beth Meyers. One point of difference in the approach for this program was syncing our efforts with other resident-centered initiatives in the neighborhood.

Tag-teaming our efforts encouraged more participation and increased visibility in the community.

The purpose of Walk & Talk is to get residents walking and talking. A straight-forward concept harnessing the potential to unlock many possibilities of creating a community around proactive movement and well-being. One of the major goals of this project is to not reinvent the wheel, and therefore leverage existing tools and knowledge. Walk & Talk simply facilitates that exchange.

Soon after launching I was connected to a life-long East Baltimore resident, Miss Dee Pixie Randall, who wanted to co-lead Walk & Talk. This was a game changer because she was able to help me shape the program to make it most appealing to our target audience, which included residents of all ages who wanted to engage in physical activity. Together we developed a flexible walking curriculum for each week that centered around existing content, such as gardening, cooking, and other positive community engagement efforts.

The way things panned out proved to us that we were filling a gap in the Baltimore market. We were connected to Pat Tracey of Johns Hopkins’ Environmental Justice Program (EJP) regarding her initiative to create a network of walking groups within Baltimore called Stepping Out for Health.

She has been a tremendous help in connecting us to health resources and has generally been a great advocate of Walk & Talk. Other neighbors, including Cynthia Gross of CARE, have begun their own walking groups and have been reaching out to Walk & Talk for best practices. More over, during the Spring Fling block party in McElderry Park, more than 75 residents eagerly signed up to participate in future walks.

As with anything, there were challenges. One challenge has been to create a program that appeals to a wide range of ages and genders. However, we have noticed thus far that the nature of a walking group tends to appeal more to women of middle age and older. The pace and lengths of the walks, as well as, the time of day they were held played a huge factor in this outcome. This is something that would have to be further explored with tested solutions before arriving at a sound conclusion on how to evolve the program.

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INTERVENTION

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IMPLEMENTATION & IMPACT

IMPLEMENTATION & IMPACT / www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com

the walks, which are held weekly on saturday mornings, were structured around existing resources and community events. They were 45 minutes to an hour in length, and approximately two miles in distance. It began at the labyrinth located behind Amazing Grace church where the group participates in a meditative walk and blessing for the day.

Next, the group follows a specified route within Patterson Park. The idea was to create a team mentality as behavior change is greater within a team dynamic. All participants received branded gear including a Walk & Talk t-shirt, as well as incentives like a membership card with rewards and a pedometer. We help participants set the their walking distance goals and award them with stars for each walk. The t-shirts also helped create visibility for our group while we were on the street. To encourage broader participation, we passed out flyers and talked about our efforts to passersby.

While evaluating the program’s progress, impact is something that is hard to measure with such a short timeframe for implementation. One thing we considered a success is that we developed a strong core team of about 6-8 people in a matter of weeks. We also continued to have a strong buzz around the Walk & Talk brand within the community. We know people are hungry for a program like this based on feedback during events like the Spring Fling block party and what our community partners have relayed, but that the major hurdle is getting individuals to move and participate.

One participant is a shining example of the impacts of a group dynamic and the human element to influence positive behavior change. Miss Carol was the participant experiencing the most physical barriers and could barely walk two blocks during the first Walk & Talk meet up. However, she was so inspired to succeed she got the tools (in this case a walker) she needed to give her greater mobility. Two weeks later, Miss Carol walked the furthest of all participants and when I asked her how she felt she said, “Honestly, I feel great and could do this everyday.�

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ANNE MARIE JASINOWSKI gooddesignissocial.tumblr.com Maryland Institute College of Art Masters in Social Design Thesis Publication | Spring 2014 www.walkandtalkbaltimore.com