A project aiming to help Western North Carolina communities consider health needs when doing long-term planning revealed that issues such as farmland preservation and alternative transportation are high health priorities for WNC residents and earned MountainWise, the organization that did the work, statewide recognition. 

The American Planning Association’s North Carolina chapter presented MountainWise with the Marvin Collins Planning Award in the Special Theme Awards/Multidisciplinary Project category, which honors projects that use collaboration as the primary means for success. 

“Collaborative partnerships are the cornerstone of public health practice, but that can be easier said than done,” said Jim Bruckner, MSHS, Health Director for Macon County. "MountainElements successfully connected land-use planning, community design and public health practice and policy to build healthier communities in Western North Carolina.”

MountainElements Health Impact Assessment was a first-of-its-kind look at how the comprehensive plans in North Carolina’s eight westernmost counties impact health. The evaluation process involved the health departments of each county, their respective economic development and planning departments and the Southwestern Commission. 

The project revealed that the region as a whole supports improved food systems planning. That includes farmland preservation, improved land use, transportation networks and economic development.  

“This recognition will further help us to advance the regional conversation about the importance of health and how it can be facilitated through effective planning,” said Sarah Tennyson, Regional Coordinator for MountainWise.

MountainWise is funded through the North Carolina’s Community Transformation Grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve opportunities for healthy living in the eight western counties of North Carolina.

www.mountainwise.org