3:30 p.m. Conference Registration

4:00 p.m. Pre-Conference Workshop 1

1) Accelerometry 101, Katie Schmitz, PhD, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and David Berrigan, PhD, MPH, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health

This session included an update on the state of the art in accelerometry as well as a hands-on practical session on how to obtain and interpret data from two commonly used accelerometers: the Actigraph and the Actical.

2) Using Active Living Research to Impact Public Policy
Harold Goldstein, DrPH, Center for Public Health Advocacy
Frances Kuo, PhD, University of Illinois

Research has enormous potential to impact public policy, yet that potential is rarely realized. This two-part workshop suggested ways that scientists can increase the impact of research on policy.

3) An Introduction to Using Crime Data in Active Living Research: Finding Useful Sources and Avoiding Common Problems, John Eck, PhD, University of Cincinnati, and Robert Brown, PhD, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

Active living researchers interested in how unsafe environments influence behavioral choices frequently have to use crime data. There are a number of sources of these data, but the advantages and limitations of these data are often unknown to researchers unfamiliar with crime research. This session, presented by two researchers who specialize in the use of crime data, described a) the variety of sources of crime data that can be used, b) the types of questions these sources can address, c) the challenges to obtaining crime data, d) the problems inherent in these sources, and e) strategies on how to address these problems.

5:30 p.m. Workshop Dinner Buffet

6:30 p.m. Pre-Conference Workshop 2

1) Active Living Leadership Policy Workshop
Maya Rockeymoore, PhD, Moderator, Active Living Leadership
Maine's School Siting Process, Darren Springer, JD, MS, National Governors Association
Safe Routes to School: Cities and Schools Working Together, Leon Andrews, National League of Cities
Form-Based Zoning Codes: A Tool for Walkable Neighborhoods?, Judy Corbett, Local Government Commission

Elected and appointed officials can play critical roles in setting, promoting and implementing policies that create healthier places for children and families to live, learn and play. This session provided up-to-the minute information about what elected and appointed state, county and local officials are doing to make changes to support active living, healthy eating, and access to healthy foods. It also provided an opportunity for dialogue about the important linkages between research and policy that are needed to help reverse the childhood obesity epidemic.

2) Evaluating Active Living Environment and Policy Changes in Communities: Concepts, Strategies and Methods, Larry Green, Judith Ottoson, Laura Brennan Ramirez, and Cheryl Kelly

This session highlighted the evaluation plans and methods for determining the effectiveness of two community-based active living initiatives. The Active Living by Design (ALbD) initiative establishes innovative approaches to increase physical activity through community design, public policies and communication strategies. The evaluation is intended to provide recommendations for building community design initiatives to increase physical activity, including relevant policy and environment changes as well as complementary promotional and programmatic activities. These recommendations will be designed to specifically address environments for children and relatively disadvantaged populations.

3) Assessing Environmental Perception for Active Living Research, Jack L. Nasar, PhD, FAICP, The Ohio State University

Substantial research is underway on the relation of the physical surrounding to active living, much of it using objective physical measures of the environment. Though important, this approach will produce an incomplete picture, because human perceptions shape behavior. Thus, it is important to learn about human perceptions of environmental factors which are associated with increased or decreased likelihood of physical activity. This workshop surveyed and evaluated the various options for measuring perceptions of specific environments and alternatives for study designs and methods. It used examples from the environment-behavior field to illustrate methodological choices; recommended and demonstrated those approaches of most relevance for active living research.

8:00 p.m. Welcome Reception

Live Rock'n'Roll Music and Dancing featuring Forgotten Space with Jim Sallis