The partnership will promote active living among residents of the Kalihi Valley area of Honolulu. This project will develop linkages with an existing Community Action Plan and Mayor's Vision Team; conduct youth-led mapping projects and needs assessments; develop a walk to shopping program; re-establish community gardening programs in public housing developments; beautify and restore bicycle and pedestrian facilities; and establish bicycle repair, distribution and advocacy programs.

If successful, this project could serve as a model for improving opportunities for active living in public housing communities as well as in urban areas that have been subject to years of neglect. In addition, it will help identify how to infuse culturally-appropriate active living messages and programs into a majority Asian/Pacific Islander population.

The project focuses on the community of Kalihi Valley, a mixed urban and residential area that includes the state's two largest public housing projects and a third smaller public housing complex. Kalihi Valley has been declared a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) and a Health Personnel Shortage Area (HPSA) for Primary Care, Mental Health and Dental Care. Over one-third (35%) of residents are foreign born, and the population is at increased risk of poor health due to high rates of diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, obesity, substance abuse and high cholesterol. Kalihi Valley is also a largely immigrant community, serving as the first stop for many Asian and Pacific Islanders moving to the United States.

This organization was one of 25 demonstration projects selected by Active Living by Design, a national program of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).