Shamanta Lopez, 16. Photograph by Caitlin M. Kelly.
This semester, through a Duke University service-learning course, ten undergraduate and graduate students learned first-hand about a significant public health issue—pediatric obesity—through working closely with ten youth enrolled in Duke’s Healthy Lifestyles Program to tell their stories. The resulting first-person multimedia profiles created in the Documentary Engagement course, taught by Documenting Medicine director Liisa Ogburn, will be shared in an upcoming event that is free and open to the public. Two students in Duke’s MFA in Experimental and Documentary Arts program—Caitlin Kelly and Joel Wanek—were among the participants.
Monday, December 3, 6–7 p.m., healthy refreshments to follow
Edison Johnson Recreation Center
600 W. Murray Ave.
Durham, North Carolina
One in three children in North Carolina are overweight and suffer health problems, poor quality of life, and social isolation. The Duke Healthy Lifestyles Program, which has served over five hundred families since its inception in 2006, seeks to tackle this challenge by offering caring providers, family-centered treatment programs, highly trained educators and researchers, and strong community partnerships. Treatment is based on empowering kids and families with the skills and knowledge needed to live a life of healthy eating and active lifestyles.
For more information about the project: http://www.onlyakid.org/