Editor's Note: The views and opinions expressed in all blog posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Redwood City Pulse or its staff.
If you follow the research, the future of health looks bleak in America:
- by the time Americans reach 65, 80% will have at least one chronic health condition
- … 68% will have two or more chronic health conditions
- 80% of Americans are Insulin Resistant
- Nearly 75% of Americans aged>65 have hypertension
- nearly 50% of Americans aged>20 have high blood pressure
- 45 million currently living Americans will die from Alzheimer's
- 45% of the US adult population has fatty liver disease
- 20% of 5-year-old children have fatty liver disease
- …
Unfortunately, local data doesn't look more comforting either. Redwood City (RWC), Redwood City School District (RCSD), Redwood City Education Foundation (RCEF), and Redwood City Together (RWCTogether) – a community organization combining the most important regional power brokers under one umbrella – have a collection of statistics under their section Why Our Work Is So Important:
- RCSD is the most segregated school district on the Peninsula (Washington Post)
- RCSD promises 100% of kids can read at grade level, but results are 50% off
- a majority of children aren't reading at grade level – math is even worse
- careads.org is rating RCSD at the lower end
- 44% of their 5th graders are overweight
- 25% of children are obese
- 19% of youth have asthma
- 15% of children ages 2-11 drink at least one soda a day
- 56% of children ages 12-17 drink at least one soda a day
- 34% of RCSD students are English Learners (EL)
- 20% of families are healthcare insecure
- 10% of families are food insecure
Health starts in childhood. Mistakes can be prevented early, and quality food and exercise can be the cure. RWC2000 was founded over 30 years ago before many of these problems even existed. Researchers and cynics might ask the same question: did these organizations prevent these statistics, or did they cause them? Are the same organizations that promised to "nurture and support our children" and to ensure "children and youth are succeeding in school" the same organizations that have been failing those kids all along?
But enough about the wretched plans of the past. The hope has always been that gender equality, diversity, and equity in leadership would fix all of these problems. But even with new, diverse leaders in many places, that promise hasn't panned out in local education, nor has it made much inroads on other Peninsula boards. But do not fret when human leadership is failing us. Maybe hooking them up to Artificial Intelligence (AI) will fix it all.
We invented, therefore, the newest and most ethical AI ever and named it Simon-AI. Then we fed Simon-AI all the available data, studies, and research about Education, Health, Longevity, Food, Exercise, Transportation, Climate Change, Air Pollution, and Children in general. After that a consortium of experts started to ask Simon-AI some serious questions about 2024. And – as every smart project manager would do – Simon-AI also assigned each answer, topic and responsibility to a person.
Simon-AI says: Attack The Asthma
Has anybody ever noticed that the word "Car-sih-nuh-JEN-ick" starts with the word car? Coincidence? One of the unhealthiest places for children to be is inside a car. These cars are generally not hermetically sealed from car exhaust, and that 'new car smell' isn't exactly healthy either. The 101 Express Lanes caused even more congestion and increased pollution in the area by another 20-25%. And yet Caltrans and SMCTA keep bringing more pollution to NFO through their formula: more pollution = more equity.
Simon-AI predicts for 2024 that C/CAG and SMCTA will finally stand up against more highway widening that has already harmed 19% of our children.
The Human Intelligence (HI) in charge: Council member Alicia Aguirre is also on the board of SMCEL JPA and will stop the wasteful spending on the next set of highway widening and expensive interchange projects. Asthma cannot afford another Highway Boondoggle.
Simon-AI says: We Are What We Eat
Some of the highest risk factors for children's health are:
- The Standard American Diet
- The standard car-centric and sedentary lifestyle
- Tobacco incl. suckling on zip-drives
Simon-AI predicts that in 2024, the members of RWCTogether will start working together to ensure that kids learn more about the danger of sugary drinks (soda, chocolate milk, fruit juice, or energy drinks). They will teach them and their families what refined sugars are, what refined grains are, what processed foods are, and why these are all so bad. They will tell all kids how to read and understand nutrition labels and let them know about the power of organic produce. Other countries – like Japan – have been doing the same for many years already.
HI in charge: Kim Griffin and Ivan Martinez from the Sequoia Healthcare District should coordinate this effort at all schools.
Simon-AI says: Exercise through Transportation
Children need to move more. The child poverty rate around RCSD means that kids cannot afford to get to school by Uber or Lyft. Their parents won't be able to buy them gym memberships either. So what is the best solution to this monetary and sedentary problem?
Simon-AI predicts that in 2024, RWCTogether will finally implement Safe-Routes-To-School and Transportation Equity by providing a real bike lane network leading to all our schools. Let's stop with all the bluffing.
HI in charge: soon-to-be Major Lisette Espinoza-Garnica, whose voice should become much louder in Transportation Equity discussions for children.
Simon-AI says: Note to RWCTogether
RWC2020 has had the same Mission & Visions for over 20 years; they assumed their diversity would be their strength. But having a mantra like "Why Our Work Is So Important" for basically 30 years would indicate "our work" was never started.
Simon-AI predicts that in 2024, RWCTogether will finally start that important work and push all its core partnerships to make those long-promised improvements.
HI in charge: Executive Director Rafael Avendaño won an SVBC 'Bicycle Person of the Year Award' for asking for a crosswalk; imagine the awards he will get once he delivers a solid bike lane network and more healthy school lunches in 2024.
We will be following the progress our leaders – together with Simon-AI – are achieving this year. Technically, Simon-AI 01b is still a beta version, but we have been learning so much already that we will feed Simon-AI with more data and ask it again in the near future.
