Tuesdays at APA–DC — August 2012

Weight of the Nation: Film and Facilitated Discussion

August 21, 2012

With overweight and obesity affecting up to 66 percent of the U.S. population — leading to chronic disease, early death, and substantial costs to society — we must begin to find creative solutions far beyond education or free gym memberships. We need to understand the environments and behaviors that contribute to this unique epidemic.

Join us for a viewing of two excerpts from the HBO series Weight of the Nation, first broadcast in May 2012. The fourth film, Challenges, discusses the complex dynamic between an environment that offers — and sometimes necessitates — unhealthy choices, and the individual behaviors that ultimately lead to disease. Then, learn what the City of Nashville, Tennessee, is doing to shape a more healthy environment for its citizens and see how solutions that target the built environment are central to the prevention of obesity in both children and adults.

Following the screening, join in a discussion facilitated by Anna Ricklin, manager of APA's Planning and Community Health Research Center.

About the Speaker

Anna Ricklin first became aware of the connection between healthy living and the built environment when she had a job promoting public transit, walking, and biking in Portland, Oregon. She went on to earn her Master's in Health Sciences from Johns Hopkins University and later worked on transit planning and bike projects with the Baltimore City Department of Transportation. She joined APA as manager of the Planning and Community Health Research Center in December 2011.