WHAT IS HEALTHY ECONOMICS?

"The day a community once termed low-income or underserved becomes independent and self-sufficient."

David Roach

BUILDING HEALTHY ECONOMICS

the STRATEGY

DIAGRAM FOR WEST OAKLAND

3 STEPS OF HOTEP

2009 ANNUAL REPORT



HOTEP MEANS PEACE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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drMy personal journey began at Morehouse College in 1991, when Dr William Sheftal assigned our Urban Economic and Public Policy Class to find economic solutions for the African American community.

During my research, I became inspired by the Tuskegee Normal School (Today’s Tuskegee University) pioneered by Booker T. Washington, George W. Carver, and Thomas Campbell as a model of rebuilding our communities by connecting a school’s agricultural system to meet the food needs of the school and its surrounding community.

Our journey to turn this inspiration into action began with the Mo’ Better Food Conference in 1996 and two years later establishing a student run farmers market at McClymonds high school (where I was the Director of the Business Academy).

My students learned various computer programs to operate and promote the farmers market that was supplied by produce grown by African American farmers.

 
A few years later, I became the co-director of the West Oakland Food Collaborative, which was funded by the U.S.D.A. to expand the farmers market for two years while planning to establish a cooperative grocery store in West Oakland in year three. We renamed our market "Mandela's Farmers Market," because we moved from McClymonds high school to Mandela Parkway on 7th Street.

Today’s Mandela Food Cooperative in West Oakland is the result of the work initiated by Mo’ Better Food and later the West Oakland Food Collaborative.
 
From these years of working to improve the health of West Oakland, I have witnessed an increase of urban gardens, school gardens, and farmers markets conducted by various organizations that in most cases have moved into a low-income community with the mission of increasing access to healthy foods for the residents.
  Healthy Economics main difference is to strengthen organizations already in the community that represent a specific demographic of the community to provide the healthy food needs of the community.
  For example, I am a board member or representative in some capacity with the following organizations.

The African American Farmers of California
The Historical Black College and Universities Coalition
McClymonds Alumni Association
S.F. Bay Area Morehouse College Alumni Association

Each organization contains its own governance and membership of individuals who participate with the intent of improving the education for the next generation:
 


We call the Healthy Economics Campaign a “Model,” because the organizations above, typically exist in every city in the U.S.

For example, there is a high school in every city. and typically graduates (Alumni) of that high school live fairly close to their old high school).

Our role is to pull them together, to create a continuity of education and community development.

Our strategy is to utilize three main programs (we often call “The three steps of Hotep”) are designed to bridge these typical type of organizations that represent an association in most communities.

These three programs are:

1) Mo Better Food -www.mobetterfood.com
2) Friends of school – www.friendsofschool.org
3) The Intergenerational Enterprise- www.intergenerationalenterprise.com

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