PolicyMap Around the Web: February 2019
This month, PolicyMap has been cited as a source in a Forbes article about Opportunity Zones and in an academic paper about microblogs and community health. A large foundation and a state agency have also launched PolicyMap embedded interactive maps.
The Rhode Island Foundation, the largest funder of Rhode Island’s nonprofit sector, launched a custom interactive map from PolicyMap to help guide investment in the state’s Opportunity Zones. The map features data on community characteristics, institutions and assets, lending, housing, and businesses to inform the types of development that will best suit the needs of Opportunity Zone-designated areas.
The Hawaii Department of Health also launched a custom interactive map from PolicyMap for the Snap-Ed Nutrition Education program. The map features a wide range of data on health conditions and medical facilities, food access, socioeconomic status, and agricultural resources.
In an article “Opportunity Zones Offer Powerful Potential For Investors And Communities”, Forbes contributor Joshua Pollard cites PolicyMap’s explanation of how areas were deemed eligible to be Opportunity Zones before being designated by state governments.
Applied Research in Quality of Life
A paper, “Micro Quality of Life: Assessing Health and Well-Being in and around Public Facilities in New York City” by Dr. Justin Hollander of Tufts University, Henry Renski of the University of Massachusetts, and Cara Foster-Karim and Andrew Wiley, both of Tufts, shows how microblogs and other social media platforms can be used as data sources to analyze social issues, and guide public policy. The paper uses public health indicators from PolicyMap to compare the health statuses of the largest cities in the country.
Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior
A paper, “Process Evaluation of Strong Hearts, Healthy Communities: A Rural Community-Based Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Program,” published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, evaluates the effectiveness of a program to prevent cardiovascular disease for women living in rural areas. Data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System on PolicyMap was used to estimate the number of women eligible for the program.