This document summarizes lessons learned and opportunities for integrating positive youth development and health promotion. It discusses priorities like limiting screen time and encouraging physical activity. Challenges mentioned include setting clear goals, balancing agency and collaboration needs, and determining the right type of scientific evidence. Key opportunities listed are promoting brain health through fitness, empowering parents, and creating community messaging and choice nudges to support healthy lifestyles. The document emphasizes that scientific information is needed to guide good practice and policy.

1. Integrating and Promoting Health
and Well Being with Positive Youth
Development
Patrick Tolan, Ph.D.
Youth-Nex Center, University of Virginia
pht6t@virginia.edu

2. Most complex problems
have a simple solution….
…it just happens to be wrong!
- Mark Twain

3. Lessons Learned
•
•
•
•
Priorities-70% no Recess
Early and Often-Habits
Multiple Opportunities
Built In OpportunityNudges
• Health
Care, Education, Commu
nity/After School
• Messaging
Challenges
• Clear Goals-Mantras
• Get it Right vs. Get It
Done
• Agency Needs, Agenda
vs. Collaboration Roles
• Role of Evaluation
• Usability
• Type of Evidence
“Coopetition”

4. Types of Scientific Evidence
• Inferences from Descriptive Studies
• Prescriptive Rosters of Programs
• Summarize Best Practices Guideposts
• Benchmarks for Practice
• Methods of Managing, Evaluating
• Adaptability/Usability

5. Recognizing Models are Not Actions
It is one thing to call for, as did the prophet Amos,
“Let justice roll down like mighty waters,”
….and quite another to work out the irrigation
system.
-William Sloane Coffin

6. Key Opportunities
• Fitness May Promote
Brain Health
• Eating as Health
Behavior-Must Eat
• Connection to
Self-Control
• Parental
Aides/Empowering
• Youth Capability
• Quick Fix Lifestyle
• Micro Environments/
Retrofits
• Community Messaging
• Choice Nudges
• Practitioner Guidelines
• Empirically Based Tool
Boxes
• Business - Food
Supply, Employee
Health as Cost

7. TJ
The facts are coming! The facts are coming!

8. Scientific Information is Our Best
Hope for Good Practice/Policy