Sex Industry and Sex Workers in Nevada

Las Vegas has long been known as the symbolic center of the commercial sex industry. Nevada is host to the only legal system of prostitution in the United States. From the early legalization of quickie divorce and marriage to the marketing of its large resorts, sexuality has been a key component of Nevada’s tourist economy. If trends continue, for good or for ill, the sex industry will be an even larger part of the economy in the future. The sex industry refers to all legal and illegal adult businesses that sell sexual products, sexual services, sexual fantasies, and actual sexual contact for profit in the commercial marketplace. The sex industry encompasses an exceedingly wide range of formal and informal, legal and illegal businesses, as well as a wide range of individuals who work in and around the industry. This report will review the context in which sexually oriented commercial enterprises have flourished, discuss general trends in the Nevada sex industry, and make policy recommendations

Strengthening Democracy, Increasing Opportunities: Impacts of Advocacy, Organizing, and Civic Engagement in Los Angeles

Analyzes the policy impacts and monetary benefits fifteen Los Angeles County community organizations achieved for marginalized groups with foundation support in 2004-08. Presents effective strategies used and recommends greater roles for local funders

Improving Legal Competencies for Obesity Prevention and Control

Our purpose is to offer action options that will help to improve the legal competencies of public health practitioners and policy decision makers with respect to drafting, interpreting, implementing, and enforcing laws and regulations that are relevant to the effective prevention and control of obesity. The accompanying assessment paper provided a foundation for this agenda by first establishing that legal competence for obesity prevention and control is important for both health professionals, who with proper training can effectively interject health considerations into decision- making processes, and non-health professionals involved with relevant policy and legal work, who with proper training can effectively incorporate health considerations into their decisions. The paper acknowledges apparent gaps in not only health professionals\u27 understanding of legal tools relevant to obesity but also policymakers\u27 recognition of how obesity relates to their decisions. In addition, this paper set forth specific competencies each of these two broad groups should have to strengthen their legal preparedness for obesity prevention and control. To improve these competencies within and among the relevant professionals in these two broad groups, our framework identifies critical knowledge, skills, values, analytical approaches, and communication strategies. We also suggest mechanisms by which public health professionals can interact with professionals from other relevant areas and increase the capacity to address the obesity epidemic. Our framework involves four action items: (1) options to improve the identified competencies; (2) approaches to strengthen the training of current and future professionals to apply laws and authorities; (3) tools to increase legal competency; and ( 4) suggestions for the evaluation of the effectiveness of legal competency to address obesity