THESE VITAL SPEECHES

32
CICERO SPEECHWRITING AWARDS
things. So the next time you’re out
doing errands—sitting in the car—why
not park in one of those empty spaces
on the other side of the parking lot,
instead of fighting for that spot right in
front of the door?
Or better yet, what if shopping
areas were designed and developed so
that beautiful promenades were more
prominent than parking lots? And,
at work: the next time you’re sitting
through yet another meeting, what if
you asked everyone to stand up, and
told them to stay standing?
You’re not going to believe how much
faster that meeting’s going to go!
Now, is walking a little more going
to solve all of our health problems?
Of course not. But it will get us one
step closer to a Culture of Health. And
if we all take Dr. Gomez-Marquez’s
advice and start asking how we as individuals,
as investors, as developers, and
planners—can build better health into
everything that we do, we can and will
make a difference.
It’s time for this country to make
a seismic shift—to raise our expectations
as a nation. And recalibrate our
individual behavior. Because personal
responsibility plays a key role in
improving health. No doubt about it.
But we also need to remember that the
choices people make depend on the
choices that they have. So, let’s make
the healthy choice the easy choice.
Let’s make better health part of what it
means to live in America.
Now, why do I think a cultural shift
of this magnitude is possible? Because
it’s happened before. Back in 1970, the
year Earth Day was established, the
word “recycling” wasn’t part of our
common vocabulary, much less part
of our lives. But people began asking
why we were choking our land and our
oceans with plastic, glass and paper
that could be repurposed. And then
they insisted on a change. And now, recycling
is part of our culture. And one
of the reasons that happened is that we
made it easy. Put paper in the bin over
here. And bottles in the one over there.
In fact, it’s become so much a part of
our lives that how many of you have
actually reached into the garbage to
fish out a bottle that you’ve accidently
tossed in there?
You’re laughing because you know
you’ve done that. I know I have.
And how many of you were fans the
show Mad Men? Do you remember
how you laughed when you saw Peggy
and Joan being examined by a doctor
with a cigarette in his mouth? And how
all those guys didn’t think twice about
slamming back five or six bourbons at
the office! It’s laughable now because
our culture is so different. We just don’t
do that anymore. So let’s make changes
that will allow the next generation to
laugh at the notion of cities that focus
more on cars, than on people. And let’s
make the thought of growing up in
a neighborhood without green space
a joke. The good news is, some communities
are already starting to do this.
And you are playing a big part in the
movement. In the time I have left, I’d
like to tell you about some folks—who
are leading the way.
(slide) This is the Rev. Michael Minor
of Hernando Mississippi. Not too long
ago he had the crazy idea that he would
ban fried chicken from church suppers
because he was tired of conducting
funerals for people dying from avoidable
diseases. Well, if any of you have ever
spent time down South, you can imagine
how well this idea went over at first! But
Pastor Minor was committed to leading
his flock down a new path. And today,
not only do his church suppers feature
healthy pot-lucks, but there’s also a
walking track around the building, and a
blood pressure monitor in the lobby. And
what’s more, the Rev. Minor has created
a curriculum to help other churches start
health and wellness ministries. And it has
been adopted by the American Heart
Association. We need to start acting as
if health is at the top of our national
agenda. We need to work across sectors,
and cultivate communities that make
healthy choices possible for everyone.
And we need to stick to these commitments
until we see success.
In Brownsville, Texas ordinary
citizens teamed up with builders, civic
organizations, universities, and government
to transform their surroundings
into a home-grown Culture of Health.
This video will give you a glimpse at
what they’ve done. And lastly, I want to
tell about the East Lake neighborhood
in Atlanta. I’m sure many of you are
familiar with this amazing revitalization
story. But today I want you to
think of it as a story about how health
is everything.
(slide) This is what the neighborhood
looked like 20 years ago. It was
a scary, violent, place. The crime rate
was 18 times higher than the national
average. And the people who lived
there felt angry and abandoned. Just
like any of us would if we lived there.
But thanks to the vision and leadership
of a developer named Tom Cousins
East Lake looks like this today. Instead
of tackling the crushing poverty, the
failing schools, and the horrible blight
in a piecemeal fashion, Tom helped
establish the East Lake Foundation—
which brought business leaders, residents,
philanthropists, and city officials
together with Purpose Built Communities—and
they made the collaborative
decision to tear down the slum and
replace it with 1,400 units of mixed-income
housing, half of which is market
rate. They started a charter school.
They built a world-class YMCA. And
they even revived a professional golf
course that everyone who lives in East
Lake—no matter how much money
they have—can use.
And what happened? Well, the
employment rate skyrocketed—from
13 percent to 75 percent. The charter
school has one of the best academic
records in the state of Georgia. East
Lake kids are going to college in
record numbers—some of them on
golf scholarships! And the crime rate
has dropped by 90 percent. When you
define health and well-being as more
than the absence of sickness, these
are all health issues, aren’t they? And
they are issues that you’re impacting
with the Urban Land Institute’s focus
on creating healthier, more sustainable
communities.
I’ve got to tell you, I was so excited
to be invited to speak here today. Because
even though the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation is the largest philanthropy
in America dedicated solely
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