Open Letter to Mayors

Children’s health prevention must become a key focus of municipal projects, on par with educational success, a safe school environment, and quality of life.

Through the Les Repères du Goût Training Center, we have been working for several years with school districts that have made this policy decision. The results are measurable: an improved school climate, better classroom behavior, support for teachers, children taking on more responsibility, and local stakeholders being valued.

Failing to incorporate health prevention and sustainable food standards into a municipal project today amounts to choosing inaction.
On the contrary, taking action means investing in the long term: in our children, our schools, and our shared way of life.

Because prevention among children is neither a slogan nor a campaign issue, it must take center stage in the local public debate.
This issue calls for action—right now.

Municipal Elections: Our Children's Health Can't Wait Any Longer

In every municipal election, the stated priorities are well known: public safety, urban planning, taxation, and the region’s appeal. These are legitimate issues.
But one fundamental issue continues to be pushed to the sidelines: the health and well-being of our children.

For several years now, health and education professionals have been sounding the alarm, but their warnings have not been heard clearly enough. Chronic fatigue, attention disorders, poor dietary habits, and tensions in social interactions: these issues are no longer marginal. They leave children vulnerable, complicate teachers’ work, and place a heavy burden on families. Failing to act today means accepting that these difficulties will become entrenched.

Municipalities cannot simply stand by and observe. They have both the responsibility and the means to take action.
Schools, institutional food services, and community organizations—as well as local businesses, artisans, and farmers—together form a local ecosystem capable of supporting a genuine public policy focused on nutritional prevention, taste education, and civic engagement.
This involves making clear policy choices: giving all children simple, concrete guidelines to help them better understand themselves, eat better, and live together more harmoniously. A calmer, more attentive child means a more peaceful school, supported teaching staff, and a more cohesive community.

With municipal elections approaching, citizens expect more than just statements of intent. They expect specific, visible, and measurable commitments.