APHA in Brief
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* Michele Late

![Figure1](http://www.thenationshealth.org/http://www.thenationshealth.org/content/nathealth/51/9/3.3/F1.medium.gif)

[Figure1](http://www.thenationshealth.org/content/51/9/3.3/F1)

Home windows are a common place where children can be exposed to lead paint. AJPH is seeking submissions for a special issue on the health hazards of lead that will publish in 2022.

Photo by M-image, courtesy iStockphoto

## Submissions sought on lead hazards

APHA’s *American Journal of Public Health* is seeking submissions for a special issue on the health hazards of lead.

The issue, to be published in 2022, will feature guest editors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The supplement’s goal is to spotlight “hazardous sources of lead exposure related to global trade, climate change and infrastructure renewal,” according to the call for submissions.

Original social, policy, research and evaluation articles are sought on lead exposure prevention and mitigation. Suggested topics of focus include blood lead level testing, lead exposure identification and measurement, lead poisoning as a global health crisis, and emerging sources of lead exposure. The deadline for submissions is Jan. 30.

For more information, visit [www.ajph.org/callforpapers](https://www.ajph.org/callforpapers).

## Communities report progress on equity

Community engagement and partnerships are paying off for 20 teams across the U.S. that are working to address inequities in food access and health services, a new update shows.

In September, the Healthiest Cities & Counties Challenge released a progress report on the work of the 10 cities and 10 counties in the initiative. Teams have reported strides in community engagement, policies, relationships and knowledge, and resident connections.

Now in its second round, the Healthiest Cities & Counties Challenge is funded by the Aetna Foundation and led in partnership by APHA, the National Association of Counties and Healthy Places by Design. Each of the 20 community organizations was awarded $100,000 and technical assistance to improve access to health services and foods that support healthy eating patterns.

“The challenge has improved the way community members and organizations work together by providing assistance that is highly flexible and responsive to community needs, supporting a shift in the conditions that hold systemic inequities in place,” Brittany Perrotte, MPH, Healthiest Cities & Counties Challenge project director at APHA, told *The Nation’s Health*.

Because of its success, Perrotte is encouraging other funders and communities to adopt the approach of the challenge and to support the programs that have grown from it. In Ohio, for example, work led to the Community Navigators in Cleveland Neighborhoods Advisory Board, which gathers ideas and expertise of community members.

“By assuring that our community health and empowerment navigators and staff are constantly growing with regard to understanding and knowledge of racial equity and diversity, we are able to better serve and reach all members of the communities that we serve,” the Cleveland team said in the progress report.

Participants at APHA’s 2021 Annual Meeting and Expo can learn more about the challenge by attending virtual session 3061, on Monday, Oct. 25, which will feature team members from 10 communities.

For more information on the Healthiest Cities & Counties Challenge, including updates from its Communities4Health Blog, visit [www.healthiestcities.org](https://www.healthiestcities.org).

![Figure2](http://www.thenationshealth.org/http://www.thenationshealth.org/content/nathealth/51/9/3.3/F2.medium.gif)

[Figure2](http://www.thenationshealth.org/content/51/9/3.3/F2)

## New state public health fact sheets

New fact sheets from APHA show how much federal funding states receive for public health.

The state-by-state fact sheets include information about public health funding, access to care, notable health measures and threats to health. In Michigan for example, challenges include tobacco use rates, which are higher than the national rate, and high school graduation rates, which lag behind the U.S. average.

The fact sheets are among the tools offered through APHA’s Speak for Health campaign, which makes public health advocacy easy. Resources include sample op-eds, talking points, social media posts and email messages.

A new addition to the resources is a racial equity fact sheet, which outlines the public impact of racism and ways it can be addressed. APHA encourages advocates to use the tools to talk to their elected officials about the need for adequate and sustained funding for public health.

For more information, visit [www.apha.org/speak-for-health](https://www.apha.org/speak-for-health).

*   Copyright The Nation’s Health, American Public Health Association