(INDIANAPOLIS) — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Health Means Business campaign named the Indiana Healthy Community Initiative, from the Wellness Council of Indiana, one of the 10 winners of the inaugural Healthy10 Awards, in the category of education and workforce.
The Wellness Council of Indiana (WCI), a program managed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, created the Indiana Healthy Community Initiative in 2015, in an effort to drive positive health outcomes through individual community partnerships, and thereby encourage more business development and economic growth statewide. The Indiana Healthy Community Initiative, similar to the WCI’s workplace-focused AchieveWELL certification, offers a roadmap of best practices and guidance to community partners – including businesses, government and community organizations, and citizens – to create a healthy population.
Communities such as Greenfield/Hancock County and Muncie/Delaware County were early adopters of the Indiana Healthy Community Initiative, and a number of other Hoosier communities are in various stages of participation.
“We’re honored to receive the Healthy10 Award for our Indiana Healthy Community Initiative,” said Grace Brothers, president of the Wellness Council of Indiana Board of Advisors. “Bringing together business and community leaders to improve the health and well-being of Indiana residents is the forefront of our mission. Building an environment that supports healthier lifestyles at work and at home creates a greater impact for the individual, our companies, and our state. This national recognition reinforces the value our efforts are bringing to improve community wellness.”
The Health Means Business Healthy10 Awards were created by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as a way to honor 10 outstanding business-led initiatives or cross-sector collaborations between local businesses and traditional and non-traditional partners to improve community wellness and access to economic opportunity.
“The Indiana Healthy Community Initiative shows what true cross-sector collaboration looks like in action,” said Marc DeCourcey, Senior Vice President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. “This comprehensive partnership is helping improve the quality of life for the people of Indiana.”
The U.S. Chamber Foundation announced the winners of the Healthy10 Awards on February 16 at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. Several representatives from Indiana were on hand to accept the award, including Chuck Gillespie, executive director of the Wellness Council of Indiana, Dr. Jerome Adams, Indiana State Health Commissioner, and Jane Ellery, Ph.D., associate professor of wellness at Ball State University and senior fellow at the Project for Public Spaces.
Learn more about the awards program here.
Visit www.wellnessindiana.org to learn more about the WCI and the Indiana Healthy Community Initiative.
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About the Indiana Chamber of Commerce
The Indiana Chamber partners with 24,000 members and investors – representing over four million Hoosiers – to achieve the mission of “cultivating a world-class environment which provides economic opportunity and prosperity.”
About the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation is dedicated to strengthening America’s long-term competitiveness. We educate the public on the conditions necessary for business and communities to thrive, how business positively impacts communities, and emerging issues and creative solutions that will shape the future.
About the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
The U.S .Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.
