PetaWakan WakanTipi Tipi Peta Description
Dream of Wild Health
Diabetes Prevention Project Rationale
Peta Wakan Tipi is one of the oldest Disease patterns among Indian people are programs in the Twin Cities founded and strongly associated with adverse led by American Indians since 1986. The consequences from poverty, limited access mission of Peta Wakan Tipi is to promote to health services and cultural dislocation. the social, economic, physical and cultural The changes in diet forced on Native health of American Indian people through people by relocation to reservations culturally appropriate programming. combined with dependence on unhealthy Dream of Wild Health provides cultural commodity foods have had a lasting and nutritional health within the urban impact. In Minnesota, there are racial and Population Served & Geography Native community and incorporates a 10 ethnic disparities in the prevalence, American Indians in the Twin Cities area and acre farm where we grow and share complication and preventive care received reservations throughout Minnesota. healthy foods with the Twin Cities by those who have diabetes. The death American Indian community. We rate from diabetes for American Indians in Project Partners continually work with a group of Minnesota is almost four times higher than American Indian Family Services, Ain Dah organizational partners to plan, implement the rate for Whites. Dream of Wild Health Yung, Division of Indian Work, Elders Lodge, and evaluate EHDI activities. Every Dream takes a comprehensive approach to Mpls American Indian Center, UofM Food of Wild Health activity is designed with diabetes prevention in the Native Science & Nutrition, Institute for Ag. & Trade the fundamental purpose of strengthening community by increasing diabetes Policy, Indian Women’s Resource Center, MN urban Indian communities by giving awareness through youth health advocates; Horticulture Society, 24th Street Urban Farm people opportunities to participate increasing availability and accessibility of Coalition, St. Paul Public Schools Indian together in living a good and healthy healthy foods; and changing lifestyle Education, Harding High School and South life. We have learned that it is through behaviors through physical exercise. H olm ,M Gd aredM enaekras,SLkow InidgihanScChoom unaisttye,rM a, aenrdSioux active participation and lived experience Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. that people begin to remember their cultural teachings; people learn by stepping into these activities as families and as a community. Program Contact Diane Wilson, Executive Director 612.874.4200
[email protected] Dream of Wild Health is a part of the Eliminating Health Disparities Initiative (EHDI) through Minnesota Department of Health’s Office of Minority and Multicultural Health
Successes •
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The Great Race for Health One of the activities developed by our group of 12-15 Youth Leaders was creating a 5 minute video that tells the story of “The Great Race” between the tortoise and the hare from a Native perspective. In their version, the Hare stops to eat junk food and loses the race. Meanwhile, two “actors” demonstrate how to make a healthy smoothie for the Tortoise. Our youth came up with the project, wrote the script, filmed it while acting the parts, edited the final movie, and presented it at a community feast to families and friends. This project is a perfect example of the creative energy that youth bring to advocacy work. Throughout the process, they deepened their own knowledge of the importance of healthy food in preventing diabetes. The video was “premiered” at a community feast for 75 people and we will continue to share this movie on YouTube and at community events, potentially reaching thousands of people. We partnered with South and Harding High School to recruit program participants, the University of Minnesota Extension program provided nutrition education, and Independent Indigenous Film & Media providing technical expertise.
The American Indian community is seeing positive changes in food habits and becoming empowered to know about and improve their personal health! We have been very successful with our family cooking programs, not only from an “each one teach one” effect broadening the numbers reached, but also in the community encouragement built through participants. The increase in food production through improved soil fertility produces over 4 tons of fresh, organic produce annually, which is distributed through markets in Native neighborhoods, through social service organizations, and directly to the families we serve.
Challenges •
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Transportation was a challenge for nearly every program; it curtails our ability to serve more young people in particular. Accessing a teaching kitchen was challenging primarily due to the prohibitive cost of rental.
Cost Savings The Trust for America’s Health stated that a 5% reduction in type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure rates could save the US $5 billion in health care costs. The national cost of diabetes in the U.S. in 2007 exceeds $174 billion. This estimate includes $116 billion in excess medical expenditures attributed to diabetes, as well as $58 billion in reduced national productivity. People with diagnosed diabetes, on average, have medical expenditures that are approximately 2.3 times higher than the expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes. Approximately $1 in $10 health care dollars is attributed to diabetes. Indirect costs include increased factors such as absenteeism, reduced productivity, and lost productive capacity due to early mortality.
Key Evaluation Findings 2012-2013
18 Native Youth Leaders created and delivered culturally appropriate messaging about diabetes through presentations and products distributed at pow wows and community events as well as showing a video they made about diabetes and the Native community; 941 people received information, education, food or other diabetes prevention materials from the Youth; 325 community members received healthy traditional food alternatives.
We held 3 community feasts with over 200 community members, distributed 1,000 cookbooks & 500 fresh food totes as incentives, held cooking workshops and demonstrations.
Our farmers markets in Minneapolis and St. Paul provided fresh produce for more than 1,500 people annually.
120 families participated in our first year of healthy cooking classes, and 75 community members attended 14 food preservation workshops and demonstrations.
We provided training and education in healthy cooking and gardening to 40 Native youth (ages 8-18).
We were able to distribute over 100 food and diabetes surveys at the Augsburg College powwow.
This activity is made possible by a grant from the Eliminating Health Disparities Initiative (EHDI) of the Minnesota Department of Health’s Office of Minority & Multicultural Health, through an appropriation from the Minnesota State Legislature.
