PEOPLE, PLANTS, & THE PLANET: A MULTI-METHOD STUDY TO DEVELOP, IMPLEMENT & EVALUATE A FOOD & CLIMATE CHANGE INTERVENTION TO EMPOWER ADOLESCENTS TO MAKE HEALTHY & SUSTAINABLE PLANT-BASED FOOD CHOICES.

The long-term goal of this projectis to reduce the prevalence of obesity and associated chronic diseases among adolescents. The shorter-term goals and supporting objectives for this proposal include:Goal 1: To examine the influence of adolescents' climate change knowledge and beliefs on their food choices with the goal of informing the development of an educational intervention to increase plant-based foods (i.e., fruits, vegetables, whole grains) and subsequently reduce the prevalence of chronic diseases among adolescents. This curriculum will not support excluding food groups from adolescents' diets, rather will support the inclusion of more plant-based foods (i.e., fruits, vegetables, whole grains). This curriculum will be responsive to the recent New Jersey climate change education requirement for K-12 schools.Goal 2: To develop, implement, and pilot-test an innovative planetary health curriculum to increase plant-based foods (i.e., fruits, vegetables, whole grains) that support the prevention of chronic disease among adolescents.