About Well City Challenge: 2.0
The 2023 Well City Challenge is focused on Community Solutions for Mind and Heart Health. Through a series of listening sessions, we have compiled the community’s most common and significant concerns regarding mental and cardiovascular health. Those concerns are the basis for the competition’s subcategories.
Supporting Community & Social Connections: With today’s technology, there are new opportunities to build community in nontraditional ways, breaking down the invisible walls that act as barriers to true connection. Those walls include arbitrary lines between neighborhoods but also the divisions between generations. Creating stronger community and social connections gives us a chance to empower neighbors, tap into grassroots leadership, and increase access to resources.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care: Too often, health disparities come down to one thing: access. There is no shortage of hospitals and health resources in the region, but the reality is that the quality of care is often dictated by a patient’s race or ethnicity. Likewise, many under-resourced neighborhoods lack access to healthy, culturally appropriate foods. We must build pathways to care and nutrition that embraces and reflects the community’s identity, instead of working against it.
Creating Safe Spaces: Safety in our Streets, Homes, & Communities: Our environment has a direct impact on our health, and unsafe environments lead to unhealthy outcomes. Here in Philadelphia, our neighborhoods are facing an epidemic of gun violence. There is an undeniable link between violence and health—whether poor mental health leads to violence, victims of violence face poor mental health outcomes, or neighbors are fearful of their surroundings. Unsafe streets are preventing many neighbors from walking, gathering, attending community hubs, and other activities that contribute to health and wellness. Safe spaces are critical to both mind and heart health.
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CONGRATULATIONS WINNERS OF OUR
WELL CITY CHALLENGE PITCH COMPETITION!
-ONWARD TO OUR ACCELERATOR
Creating Safe Spaces
TCBME: is a behavioral health counseling ecosystem tailored for Black & Brown youth.
The Hermitage Philadelphia: The Hermitage Philadelphia will offer a variety of free to low-cost wellness services in a welcoming, hospitable and non-clinical atmosphere to promote rest and peace.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care
Peds 360+: offers a unique integrative approach to pediatric medicine by providing comprehensive, family-centered care.
Heart Healthy Philadelphia: Healthy Heart Philadelphia will address health inequity and primordial prevention of heart disease by training high school students in local community schools and via social media platforms
Supporting Community Connections
The Wellness Co-Op promotes opportunities for all residents to access quality health & wellness resources facilitated by local providers & public spaces.
WavelyDX (Nightlife to Wholelife app): Nightlife to Whole Life is a Community Development & Wellness App aims to meet people in nightlife activities while addressing core issues of isolation that lead to heart & mental health decline
Winners of the Well City Challenge Pitch Competition will advance into our 3-month Social Impact Accelerator to develop their expertise, compete for the $50,000 grand prize - and have an opportunity to pilot their venture with an implementation partner.
Stay Tuned! Our Well City Challenge Grand Prize Winer will be announced this September 2023!
Watch The Pitch Competition LIVE stream!
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MEET ALL OUR 2023 WELL CITY CHALLENGE PITCH CONTESTANTS
15 teams will be presenting their unique ideas to our esteemed panel of judges. These judges are healthcare experts and community leaders who are passionate about promoting wellness in Philadelphia. And the best part? Teams with winning ideas will receive prizes of up to $10,000!
Voting Polls For The People's Choice Award Open at 8pm May 4th and CLOSE May 7th!
Creating Safe Spaces
Creating Safe Spaces
Anavi Strategies
Anavi Strategies is proposing to scale the use of trauma-informed organizational practices within non-profit organizations using concrete tools, training, & technology. Anavi works with mission-driven leaders to achieve transformational change using a trauma-informed business model that we have created & refined. Anavi hopes to help client organizations to develop their own trauma-informed procedures as well.
Creating Safe Spaces
Counseling in Motion
Counseling in Motion uses boxing and other exercises to help bring therapy and mental wellness to inner-city youth; to those who haven’t had access to mental health resources or who may not seek out traditional therapy on their own
Creating Safe Spaces
Hoops for Hearts
Hoops for Hearts is a basketball program for middle schoolers in underserved communities designed to make cardiac health awareness "cool." Hoops for Hearts aims to raise awareness of heart health and the importance of staying active to reduce susceptibility to heart disease and high blood pressure. The program will involve interactive lectures, tournaments, leadership development, and mentorship that follows them into high school.
Creating Safe Spaces
TCBme (That Could Be Me)
TCBME is a wellness ecosystem tailored for Black & Brown youth. We use technology to expand reach and reimagine how culturally competent counseling expertise is codified, replicated & democratized to deliver services equitably. TCBME initiatives include peer-to-peer social selfcare, and a tech-driven variation on mental health first aid training.
Creating Safe Spaces
The Hermitage Philadelphia
The Hermitage Philadelphia is aiming to establish a not-for-profit retreat center for Community Mental Health professionals at the historic Hermitage Mansion in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. The Hermitage Philadelphia will offer a variety of free to low-cost wellness services in a welcoming, hospitable and non-clinical atmosphere to promote rest and peace.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care:
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care
Food Connect
Food Connect’s mission is to bridge the gaps at the intersection of hunger, food waste, and health by measuring and evaluating the impact of our feeding programs with data-driven technology.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care
First Greens Farm
First Greens Farm's vision is to establish the first of several 10,000 sq. ft. indoor hydroponic vertical farms. Growing indoors will provide local consumers with nutrient dense leafy greens 365 days of the year; grown in clean water and no soil! First Greens Farm will be able to germinate, grow and harvest daily, all while utilizing vacant buildings that proliferate in our neighborhoods.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Cares
Healthy Heart Philadelphia
Healthy Heart Philadelphia will address health inequity and primordial prevention of heart disease by training high school students in local community schools and via social media platforms. The program will include live workshops, wellness talks, food prep and cooking demonstrations, and online content. Healthy Heart Adults Philadelphia will identify and provide heart disease screening and education services to adults 35 years and above in high-risk areas of Philadelphia.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care
Peds 360+ Corp
Peds 360+ offers a unique, integrative approach to pediatric medicine by providing comprehensive, family-centered care. The Peds 360+ team of healthcare professionals combine allopathic medicine with innovative therapies such as yoga, gardening, and nutrition to promote the overall health and wellness of their patients.
Equitable Access to Nutrition & Care
Team Up to Heal the Heart of the Community
Corrielus Cardiology is a black-owned Cardiac Care Practice that will partner with primary care providers and faith-based organizations to provide competent cardiac care to minority communities. “Team Up to Heal the Heart of the Community” will create a centrally-located heart health hub, which includes web/app platforms, telehealth, and a vibrant collaboration with local orgs to provide health education/screenings and raise heart disease awareness.
Supporting Community Connections
Supporting Community Connections
Building Healthy Communities within Families (BuildHCF)
Building Healthy Communities within Families (BHCF) is dedicated to addressing the mental health needs of families, educating on ways to reduce violence, strengthening the family dynamics, accessing educational resources, and building community networks. BHCF has ever lasting community connections with the school district, local non-profits and community orgs, and will provide services through pop-ups and workshops.
Supporting Community Connections
Every Heartbeat Counts
Every Heartbeat Counts aim to raise awareness about heart health, promote heart health prevention, and advocate for patients and high-risk community members diagnosed with degenerative heart conditions through classes, workshops, and resources hosted in partnership with aligned community wellness initiatives.
Supporting Community Connections
Nightlife to Wholelife
Nightlife to Whole Life is a Community Development & Wellness App that aims to meet people in the nightlife activities they are interested in, while addressing core issues of isolation that lead to heart and mental health decline, with a “Nightlife to Whole life” framework. This platform enables organizers to post nightlife events & opportunities, but also includes mindful, engaging health and wellness content from diverse providers. App includes personalized content and impact tracking.
Supporting Community Connections
The Wellness Co-op
The Wellness Co-Op will promote opportunities for all residents to gain consistent access to quality health and wellness resources that are often considered "complementary" to traditional treatments. The Wellness Co-Op will be owned by a collective group of local wellness-oriented businesses and residents who are invested in integrating the pursuit of individual health and wellness goals with the need for fostering safe and healthy communities. Services will be facilitated by local wellness providers at local public spaces.
Supporting Community Connections
The West Philly G'Hood Network
The West Philly G'Hood Network is a civic-minded social movement, facilitated and supported by easy to access social-technology platforms, and offers a modern update to the ancient wisdom. The WPGN program integrates structured "in real life" (IRL) community activities that promote family development with tech platforms (URL - Zoom, Social Media, SMS, and Tableau/ArcGIS Visual Mapping) to reconnect the "village" necessary for positive physical, mental, emotional and behavioral health outcomes.