The Active Living Research program: six years of grantmaking

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Environmental Science
• Policy Studies

Background:

• Limited knowledge in 2001 hindered efforts to increase physical activity through policy and environmental changes.
• The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation launched Active Living Research (ALR) to address this knowledge gap.

Purpose of the Study:

• To stimulate and support research informing environments, policies, and practices for active living.
• To build the evidence base on environmental and policy factors influencing physical activity.
• To foster interdisciplinary researcher collaboration and facilitate policy change.

Main Methods:

• Funded 121 grants totaling $12.5 million to build the evidence base.
• Supported new, diverse, and multi-disciplinary investigators.
• Facilitated research application through conferences, publications, and policy coordination.

Main Results:

• Independent evaluations confirmed ALR achieved its goals of building evidence, capacity, and informing policy.
• ALR successfully supported research on physical activity determinants.
• Progress was made in fostering collaboration and translating research for policymakers.

Conclusions:

• Active Living Research (ALR) effectively addressed the need for evidence in promoting physical activity.
• The program's success led to its renewal with an expanded mission to combat childhood obesity.
• ALR demonstrated a viable model for research-policy translation in public health.