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Bright Cities

Bright Cities

The Bright Cities program presents cities with practical opportunities to integrate neurotoxic exposure reductions into their sustainability, health, and resilience planning —which builds communities that are safe for babies’ brains.

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Role of Cities

The Role of Cities

Cities have a critical role to play in reducing neurotoxic exposures for pregnant women and babies, and for the community at large.

Cities are able to implement change more quickly and decisively than state or national governments—making them vital partners in our work to protect babies’ developing brains.

We work with cities to create exposure reduction programs that harmonize with their existing priorities, so that the work of protecting babies’ brains becomes part of their day-to-day business.

All babies—regardless of their genetic code or their zip code—deserve to live in neighborhoods that are free from toxic chemicals. Together, we are building cities that proactively ensure healthier babies and brighter futures.

Bright Cities

The Bright Cities program provides grants and tailored recommendations to cities that are committed to equitably reduce community exposures to neurotoxic chemicals.

More than 35 cities have designed and completed projects that reduced harmful exposures to neurotoxic chemicals. Our three main areas of focus are: 1) healthier air and environments; 2) nontoxic and environmentally-preferable purchasing; and 3) increasing access to organic and healthy food.

HBBF accepts requests for proposals on a quarterly basis and awards cities between $5K and $35K grants to execute the proposals.

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Inequitable impact

The Inequitable Impact

Babies of color are disproportionately impacted, particularly by lead exposures in homes, and water and air pollution in their communities.

A review by the Journal of the American Medical Association demonstrated that exposure to air pollutants increased risk of preterm birth by an average of 11.5%. Moreover, of the 10 reviewed studies which considered race in their analyses, 8 found that Black mothers were at an increased risk for preterm births.

The Bright Cities program is committed to addressing the systemic racism of neurotoxic exposures, and intentionally directing funding and resources to improve the lives of babies of color and their families.

Bright Cities Testimonial: Salem, MA

How Salem MA Provided Thousands of Pounds of Organic Food to Local Families

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Partner Organizations

Our tailored work in these cities has made an impact for more than 5,000 children

The Resources You Need