Michael P OLeary [1]

Baltimore City Health Department (BCHD) was recently funded by the Northeastern IPM Center (NEIPMC) to translate, reproduce and distribute Integrated Pest Management "Do-it-Yourself" Booklets for low-literate Spanish speaking Latinos. BCHD has created a short companion IPM video that will improve IPM awareness and comprehension for low-literate residents. It provides vocal instructions and visual demonstrations on the benefits of IPM and how to practice IPM in the home. The video was designed to complement the booklet, but may also be used as a stand-alone resource. It may be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2MPoByymQE

With continued NEIPMC support, BCHD will translate the video into Spanish, distribute it to organizations and community groups serving Latino residents in Baltimore City, and provide copies throughout the region to state health departments and groups such as the Northeast IPM Center and National Center for Healthy Housing. Translation will omit references to Baltimore and reference general urban conditions to make the video applicable to all urban regions.

Latinos demonstrate a unique need for quality information and instruction on how to safely and effectively manage residential pests. Beset by low incomes, language and literacy barriers, and a propensity to not read labels, Latinos are predisposed to use widely accessible and promoted, inexpensive, dangerous and unhealthy, chemical pest control products.

BCHD will work with Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) faculty and two bilingual students to translate the video, test translations on Latino clients of the Esperanza Center (partner on previously funded initiative) and BCHD clients, incorporate voice over and captions/sub-titles in the video, and produce the finished product. This will be the third video production partnership between BCHD and MICA.

By funding this Spanish-translated video, the Northeast IPM Center will produce an effective, enduring educational tool that will significantly reduce literacy and comprehension gaps among Latinos and will empower them to safely and effectively practice residential IPM.

This initiative will have two objectives, 1) adaptation of the existing English instructional IPM video into Spanish, which entails Spanish audio dubbing and incorporation of Spanish chapter headings throughout video; and 2) distribution of the Spanish IPM video regionally and locally to organizations and community groups in Baltimore City and Maryland which serve Latino residents, and to urban centers throughout the region via state health departments and organizations such as NCHH and NEIPMC. Target audience, activities and short-term, intermediate and long-term impacts are also noted in the Logic Model appended to this proposal.

Translation will omit current references to Baltimore City and substitute language that will make the video relevant to urban environments everywhere. The current IPM instructional video can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2MPoByymQE

In broader terms, the anticipated impacts of the translation and distribution of this video speak directly to two educational activities that will lead to the adoption of IPM by homeowners as specified in the National IPM Roadmap. This video will:

1. Provide educational opportunities for IPM specialists to learn [obtain] new communication skills [tools] that enable them to engage new and unique audiences having specific language, location, strategy, or other special needs;
   And through its distribution and use the video will:


2. Create public awareness and understanding of IPM programs and their economic, health and environmental impacts, through education programs in schools, colleges, and the workplace, and through creative use of mass media.

Proposal