Decide on two neighborhoods: This could be where you live now and where you grew

Decide on two neighborhoods: This could be where you live now and where you grew up, it could be where you live now and another neighborhood in Buffalo, ideally the two neighborhoods are near each other geographically (but this is not required). Ideally, these are also neighborhoods you can access/visit while doing ‘research’ for this paper. Explore the neighborhood: Yes, this will be some place you are familiar with but I want you to see it through new eyes. Notice things like: potholes, stop signs, other signs (are there stop signs, stop lights, yield signs, signs about slow down for children, lawn signs for a political candidate, other signs by local government or residents indicating atmosphere of neighborhood), billboards (think about what they are and are not advertising for and who they are geared to or telling they are not welcome), what food options are there (farmer’s markets, convenience stores, grocery stores, health food stores, etc.), what governmental organizations are there (police stations, jails, prisons, court houses, libraries, public schools) what community organizations are there (Boys and Girls Club, YMCA, private schools, Knights of Columbus, senior centers, community centers), what other businesses are there (payday loans, banks, car dealers, bars, churches, etc). Specifically you should pick two stores. Perhaps one is a Dollar General and one is a Whole Foods; one may be a Dollar General and the other a Macy’s. You may consider taking pictures, writing down price differences, or some other way of capturing the difference. Please be aware some stores may not like or want you taking pictures or notes in the store, so use your best judgement on this. If you don’t feel comfortable taking notes in the store than you can use a screenshot of an online store after visiting the store in-person. Don’t skip the step of physically going to the store, you will notice things differently in the store. Research: Look up the county health department and see if you can learn anything more about health outcome differences between the two neighborhoods. See if there are any academic articles on your city that talk about geospatial differences, particularly health differences but any would be relevant. Find out what the demographics of the neighborhoods are based on the last Census. Define your neighborhoods: Be specific in describing which neighborhoods you have chosen and why. What are the geographic barriers (i.e., street names that define a specific neighborhood – this may be a few blocks or an entire town, depending on how you understand and conceptualize neighborhoods. If you are really stuck go back to your notes when we talked about how neighborhoods and cities are defined.) [at least one paragraph] Then write a paragraph on each neighborhood – use your notes. What is in the neighborhood, describe it. Are there more health food stores or is it a food desert/swamp? Are there virtually no signs or sidewalks? Are there lots of community services? [one paragraph per neighborhood] Write a paragraph on the differences between the stores. The minimum wage in Buffalo is $13.20 an hour, that averages to $26,000 a year if you work 40 hours a week every week of the year. The average apartment in Buffalo is $1,000/month. And the average people per household is 2, with one being under 18. Use this data to calculate a rough budget and think through how you would make purchasing decisions at the stores you visit. Think about the Unnatural Causes video we watched during Class and Health. Think about other factors like race, gender, income, neighborhood, and other social determinants while writing. Describe health implications: What health implications are likely based on your neighborhood examination? Look back at your class notes and think about what we have talked about thus far – how are the neighborhoods being shaped by race, gender, orientation, class, sociogeography? How long are people likely to live in each neighborhood (if possible add the numbers)? [at least two paragraphs – one per neighborhood] Compare and contrast the neighborhoods. Do you think both neighborhoods have the same health implications? Why or why not? Why might more investment have been put into one neighborhood versus the other? [at least one paragraph] Conclusions: Based on all of this what conclusions do you draw about differences between your neighborhoods? What could be done to lessen or alleviate these disparities? Or alternately make more neighborhoods like the ones you chose? What are key take-aways about the intersections between various social determinants of health in your neighborhoods? [at least one paragraph]