Embodying The Mission: Research
Helping communities meet transportation needs through partnership
By Dustin Duncan
Jeff LaMondia, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been instrumental in empowering numerous small communities in Alabama to address their distinctive local active transportation needs.
Fortunately for Alabama, LaMondia will continue working with communities to promote safe/ accessible active travel and improve access to healthier foods through a five-year, $4.4 million grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in collaboration with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES) Live Well Alabama Thriving Communities team.
This work builds upon a previous multi-year, multimillion-dollar grant from the CDC as part of its High Obesity Program (HOP), which supports land-grant universities to work through cooperative Extension programs in counties where the adult obesity rate exceeds 40%.
Their previous work not only generated community action plans and improved transportation infrastructure, but the team received the 2023 National Technology Transfer Leadership Award from the Council of University Transportation Centers for their outreach work.
LaMondia, co-investigator on the grant, is teaming with Katie Funderburk, assistant director for Federal Nutrition Programs, Ruth Brock, Thriving Communities program coordinator and Mitch Carter, Thriving Communities specialist.
The Thriving Communities team will collaborate with Alabama Extension County offices and county coalitions to implement evidence-based initiatives to improve access to healthier foods and promote safe and accessible physical activity.
Thriving Communities will focus on addressing health disparities related to poor nutrition, physical activity and obesity in 12 Alabama counties: Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Escambia, Etowah, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Perry, Russell, Sumter and Wilcox.
Smaller communities are well-positioned to undertake transportation projects with just a bit of assistance because there are numerous opportunities to create sidewalks, crosswalks and bike lanes, LaMondia said.
Researchers