Posted: December 23rd, 2009

Dear Friends,

All children deserve places to play, where they can become strong and healthy, and learn cooperation and competition in a safe environment. I’m writing today to ask for your support in expanding opportunities for children to be physically active and learn lifelong habits for health.

The City Project, a nonprofit advocacy and policy organization, is dedicated to the creation of healthy, livable communities for all. The City Project’s goal is to protect the health and enrich the lives of families by advocating for green space, financing for parks, and physical education in schools—all of which provide low-income urban communities with opportunities for physical activity and healthy eating.

Enforcing Physical Education Requirements in Public Schools

This year has been a turning point for children’s health in Los Angeles public schools. The City Project and our allies have succeeded in ensuring that Physical Education will be taught according to state guidelines and civil rights laws in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the second largest school district in the country. This one victory will affect nearly 700,000 students each year.

Within the next few months, The City Project will make the Physical Education advocacy campaign available to school districts and communities statewide and beyond.  We anticipate that this campaign could potentially impact the health of every student in California when the state guidelines and civil rights laws are enforced

Equal Access to Parks and Recreation

Outside of school, children and their families need green space in which to play and come together through healthy activity. The City of Los Angeles and many other municipalities throughout the state require developers to pay fees for park space when they develop residential projects.

Los Angeles has over $120 million of unused fees for this purpose. The City Project is advocating that these funds be invested in an equitable manner, providing park space where it is desperately needed to support improved quality of life and human health. The City Project, with our partners, is conducting research, mapping and analyses of park space in Los Angeles to improve those communities that need it most.

Transit to Trails

A dedication to the protection of the Earth and its people is best learned early. To ensure that all people receive the great benefits of our state and national parks, Transit to Trails provides fun and educational trips for children and their families in friends in inner city areas to mountain, beach, and rivers to instill a sense of pride and ownership in public lands while educating them about the important benefits of physical activity and healthy eating, our diverse national heritage, and conservation.

The City Project is partnering with various state and federal agencies to support this program, and plans to institutionalize Transit to Trails in the near future.

The City Project works to provide equal access to public resources and their benefits for all people, and to create a healthier and greener future for all children.

To continue our work on all of these projects and others that promote the rights of all people, including ow-income communities and people of color, The City Project needs your support.

Please join us in this work and donate generously to The City Project today to ensure a better future for children for generations to come. More information about our work can be found at www.cityprojectca.org.

Please join our efforts to give all children a healthy start in life—and the chance for lifelong health.

On behalf of the entire City Project team,

Robert Garcia
President and Counsel

Griffith Park on the East Bank of the Los Angeles River, the next Great Urban Park.