The UC San Diego Center for Community Health (CCH) has been at the forefront of public health and health equity for over two decades. Our origins date back to 2001, when CCH partnered with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to pilot the 5 a Day for Better Health program in San Diego and Fresno. UCSD CCH oversaw the San Diego and Imperial region pilot, laying the groundwork for what would become one of California’s largest and longest-running nutrition education and obesity prevention initiatives. The program aimed to empower low-income Californians to make healthier choices by increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, promoting physical activity, and improving food security—ultimately working to prevent obesity and reduce the risk of chronic diseases.

Following the success of the pilot, CCH collaborated with CDPH, CDSS, the Public Health Institute, and other partners to expand the program into the Network for a Healthy California. This statewide initiative was implemented through a system of 11 Regional Networks, with UC San Diego CCH serving as the Regional Network for San Diego and Imperial Counties. Over time, the initiative evolved into NEOP (Nutrition Education and Obesity Prevention) and is now known as SNAP-Ed and CalFresh Healthy Living. As a Regional Network, CCH played a key role in leading nutrition education, advocacy development, and systems change strategies across California.

In addition to these efforts, CCH became the Inland Desert Training and Resource Center in 2015, supporting local health departments in building capacity, sustaining, and enhancing SNAP-Ed programs. Guided by the social-ecological model, our work has focused on individual behavior change, community engagement, cross-sector collaboration, and policy transformation—ensuring long-term improvements in public health and health equity.