Alabama Inclusive, Healthy Communities Summit
Lakeshore, in partnership with UAB Institute for Human Rights, hosted a two-day summit focused on creating walkable communities in Alabama. Keynote speaker and walkability expert Mark Fenton, trained participants on how to conduct a walk audit. Panels featuring national inclusive community design experts and local elected officials discussed steps individual advocates and community organizations can take to create a more safe, active and accessible environment for all people to walk, push, bike and freely move.
VISIT THE WEBSITE WATCH THE VIDEOS
Global Sports Mentoring Program: Where are they now?
In 2016 Lakeshore Foundation was chosen by the U.S. Department of State’s Global Sports Mentorship Program, which partners with the University of Tennessee Knoxville Center for Sport, Peace and Society, to be a host and mentor organization to emerging leaders from across the globe. Lakeshore provided them with extensive interdepartmental opportunities to cultivate their skills in sports management, marketing, advocacy and business to address the pressing social issues facing persons with disabilities within their local communities. Then, the leaders developed a strategic action plan to address these specific social issues through sport. Since returning to their countries, our leaders have been doing groundbreaking work organizing Para sport events, facilitating sport and inclusion workshops, creating policy, and establishing high ranking positions in National Paralympic Committees. Click to read more about all of the work our GSMP alumni are doing.
Visitability Panel
Visitability is a growing trend focusing on designing homes that can be visited or lived in by all people. To launch this topic in Birmingham, Lakeshore and UAB Institute for Human Rights hosted a Conversation on Visitability at The Edge of Chaos. This event featured local residents with disabilities who shared their experience navigating the housing market and architectural barriers.
Rapid Health Impact Assessment on Access to Care for Mobility Challenged People in Central Alabama
People without access to a personal vehicle have limited transportation options to access medical care, grocery stores, merchandise, and other essential services in the Jefferson County area. Finding information about available transportation options is a challenge for a significant segment of the population. With funding from the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham and Lakeshore Foundation, a multi-disciplinary team conducted a Rapid Health Impact Assessment (HIA) on one of the most pressing needs for mobility challenged individuals: access to medical care.
100 Alabama Miles Challenge
Lakeshore is a proud partner of the 100 Alabama Miles Challenge, which encourages all Alabamians to record 100 miles of physical activity this year by visiting Alabama’s parks, nature preserves and rivers. This initiative provides opportunities for all Alabamians to be active and part of a community. Communities with trails and sidewalks are walkable and bikeable places where people can get outside and interact with each other. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 42 percent of Alabama adults with disabilities are inactive. The 100 Alabama Miles Challenge will benefit public health, strengthen our sense of community, enhance our quality of life, and support economic development.
Durable Medical Equipment Access
Lakeshore’s policy and public affairs department is working to bridge the gap between durable medical equipment (DME) providers and people who use DME. A diverse group of men and women who use DME as well as parents of individuals with disabilities participated in four small focus groups to discuss their experiences obtaining DME. The information gathered will assist in generating a dialogue between DME users and those who inadvertently create barriers to DME use.
Universal Trail Access Project
Lakeshore, in partnership with the Alabama Trails Commission, was awarded a grant from the Recreational Trails Program funded by the U. S. Department of Transportation and a grant funded by the Curtis & Edith Munson Foundation to conduct a pilot program at Oak Mountain State Park. The pilot included the purchase of state of the art trail measurement technology, assessment of 32 miles of pedestrian trails, implementation of Trail Access Information signage throughout the park, and training of professionals and user groups on the Universal Trail Assessment Process. Now, Oak Mountain State Park features 40 signs that serve as nutritional labels for the trails, marking grade, elevation changes, width of pathways and surface hardness. People of all ability levels can use these signs to determine the accessibility of the trails and choose which will be best for their hike. Lakeshore is aiming to train more Universal Trail Assessors and spread this pilot to other trails and parks across the state.
Design 4 Disability
Lakeshore desires to eliminate the barriers to physical activity participation by working locally to support improved accessible public transportation options. In order to help promote these efforts Lakeshore received a grant from the National Center for Mobility Management. With this grant we hosted two Charrettes. The first brought together 15 agencies and three transportation providers to examine the needs of people with a disability. In the second Charrette, stakeholders with disability met to discuss ways to improve access to health and transportation in their local area.
