Toolkit for Building Health Equity launched to Help Southeastern Minnesota's changing population thrive
WINONA, Minn., Nov. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- With changing demographics bringing new cultures and vibrancy to places across Minnesota, the city of Winona has become home to one of the leading organizations helping build an equitable and prosperous future for all community members. As diversity continues to grow in towns and cities both urban and rural, businesses and organizations are seeking new ways to build equity and inclusivity into their policies and practices to meet the needs of current and future employees and customers. Meeting this need, Project FINE has recently released their "Equity Toolkit: A Resource Guide". It provides practical resources to support diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and serve as a solid foundation for those who want to work on building equitable cultures within their businesses or organizations.
The toolkit developed by Project FINE with significant engagement input from community partners, including an advisory group made up of 17 refugees and immigrants from Winona, Goodview, Rollingstone, Lewiston, Altura and St. Charles. These advisory groups provided insight into emerging needs in the community, and also served as an effective model for cross-cultural integration, as people from different backgrounds come together to share ideas and develop relationships with each other. With information about assessment tools, policy development, training resources and best practices for the workplace and engaging constituents, the toolkit fits businesses needs of all shapes and sizes. "We hope the toolkit can serve as a starting point for those interested in pursuing advances in equity and inclusion. said Fatima Said, Project FINE Executive Director. "And with a little help, together we can build a more inclusive, and vibrant community to be proud of."
Support from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota helped make the toolkit a reality, with both organizations committed to addressing Minnesota's long-standing challenges with health inequities, despite being one of the healthier states in the nation. "Racial and health inequities on a community and national level limits opportunities and leads to fear and further inequity," said Bukata Hayes, vice president of Racial and Health Equity at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. "The power of this toolkit is that it was born from deep listening to their own communities, helping cultivate a belonging culture that will build those community connections that are very difficult to create, but crucial for health and happiness socially and economically."
The Equity Toolkit is freely available online at www.projectfine.org or you can request a print copy by contacting their office at 507-452-4100.
About Project FINE
Project FINE (Focus on Integrating Newcomers through Education) is a nonprofit organization that has been serving Winona County and the surrounding area since 1990. They serve as a connection point for refugees and immigrants, helping build contributing individuals, healthy families and a stronger, more respectful community for all.
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota
For nearly 90 years, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota (bluecrossmn.com) has supported the health, wellbeing and peace of mind of our members by striving to ensure equitable access to high quality care at an affordable price. We are on a mission to inspire change, transform care and improve health for the people and communities we serve by reinventing both ourselves and the broader system. Our 2.5 million members can be found in every Minnesota county, all 50 states and on four continents. As a proud nonprofit organization, we believe working to advance wellness for all Minnesotans is the greatest investment we can make. Our goal is nothing less than for everyone to be able to achieve their full health potential, regardless of race or other socially defined circumstances. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, which serves more than 107 million members across the U.S.
SOURCE Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota; Project FINE
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