Dear Friends,

No doubt we are all working as hard as we can to keep up with current events and the agendas of policy-making agencies. Our busy lives can over-shadow our ability to absorb it all. The purpose of this e-letter is to inform you of a presentation to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (TPCHD) during their Study Session this week. Details are below.

TPCHD’s Public Health Centers for Excellence will be sharing ideas for a Surplus Land Policy. I believe it is a transformational concept and contrary to our form of government. I looked for a short YouTube that shares a bit about Public Health Centers for Excellence but didn’t see any that were current. 

As an FYI, the Centers for Excellence program was funded by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As a reminder, the CDC was established by Congress as an independent, nonprofit organization (unelected) and the CDC Foundation is the sole entity authorized by Congress to mobilize philanthropic partners and private-sector resources to support CDC's critical health protection mission. The Public Health Centers for Excellence is a partnership between the Spokane Regional Health District and the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department

You can learn a lot about current conversations in the health arena in the article Sharing Power to Improve Population Health: Participatory Budgeting and Policy Making, which describes 6 Communities of Focus in Pierce County who face tough health disparities, and the Participatory Budgeting Process, designed to empower people to decide together how to spend public money. This system is rooted in the principles of participatory democracy (yes…it promotes a different form of government) and packs a great deal of influence over local policies. 

Study Session Agenda
February 15, 2023 3-5 p.m.
Metro Parks Tacoma
4702 S. 19th St Tacoma, WA 98405
Hybrid Format with in-person and remote attendance
Dial in: 253 205 0468
Webinar ID: 879 2956 5840
Passcode: 593189

If you have the opportunity to watch the meeting or a recording at a later date, please let me know your thoughts on the Surplus Land Policy document, or local health policies in general.

Grateful for you!