Celebrating Children's Environmental Health Day

The Benton-Franklin Health District is dedicated to creating a healthier, more equitable environment for our community and for generations to come. It's the small steps every day that we can all take that pays off as we work together to protect our environment and those that live in it.

To provide a safe and healthy place for our next generation, we have to focus on those most vulnerable, like our children. It is our duty to protect and nurture our children’s physical, mental, and social well-being, and a large part of this is making sure that all children have access to clean air, clean water, safe food and products, stable climates, and healthy places to live, learn, and play. 

This year, on October 13th, the Benton-Franklin Health District is excited to celebrate Children’s Environmental Health Day (CEH Day)! CEH Day is an annual celebration of children’s environmental health successes and a day to shine a light on the issues and challenges that affect our little ones.  

Children face increasing rates of chronic diseases, mental health challenges, and developmental concerns linked to environmental hazards and climate change, and children from lower-income communities and communities of color are placed at disproportionately higher risk. It is time to place children at the center of our decision-making to protect their health and well-being, and the children that follow.  

The Benton-Franklin Health District has been dedicated to children’s safety and environmental health through several programs. For years, BFHD has been home to the Safe Kids Benton-Franklin Coalition, which focuses on preventing injuries and deaths in children, including those from environmental factors like accidental poisoning. More recently, BFHD has added a School Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) program that focuses on ensuring safe school environments for our community’s children. The School EH&S Program is dedicated to improving many of the issues promoted during Children’s Environmental Health Day (CEH Day), like reducing environmental hazards in schools that can negatively impact the health of children, affect student performance, concentration, and attendance1.  

In the future, BFHD also plans to engage staff to address environmental issues like climate change related issues like wildfire smoke, toxic algae, and extreme weather events, all of which have the potential to impact our children’s development.  

On Children’s Environmental Health Day (CEH Day) BFHD congratulates the efforts of our staff and those around us that are dedicated to bringing awareness, education, and action towards the challenges facing our children!
Join us and the Children’s Environmental Health movement in celebrating CEH Day to move toward a healthy and equitable future for our children! There are plenty of ways community members can get involved with CEH Day, such as requesting a proclamation from your mayor, county commissioner, or governor, posting on your social media (CEHN’s Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram), sending an e-note or postcard to your congressional leaders about CEH Day or taking a walk with the kids in your life.

 You can also share our Benton-Franklin Health District social media posts, on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.  

Learn more about CEH Day and get inspired at: cehday.org 

More information about BFHD’s child safety programs can be located here, including Safe Kids Benton-Franklin, or School Environmental Health & Safety Program.  

 1. Buchanan, B. (2007). Sick buildings, sick students: Poor air quality and other environmental irritants can lead to health concerns for your students and staff. American School Board Journal, June, 48–50.