Book Deserts in Greenville County, SC Greenville First Steps September, 2016 Research for this project funded by the Margaret Linder Southern Endowment Fund
What is a book desert?
Food Desert Research Food deserts are defined by the USDA as low- income census tracts where a substantial number or share of residents have low access to a supermarket or large grocery store. Census tracts are designated as low-income if more than 20% of the population lives below the poverty level or if the median family income for the tract does not exceed 80% of statewide median family income
Why food deserts matter Research has shown that low Greenville County’s Food Deserts according to the USDA access to supermarkets create barriers to healthy, low-cost food In the United States, increased access to supermarkets is associated with Lower prevalence of overweight and obesity Improved fruit and vegetable consumption Better diet quality
From Food Deserts to Book Deserts Making the assumption that inconvenient access to free or low cost books causes a barrier to literacy and school readiness Read Greenville and its partners should target neighborhoods with high poverty and low access to books in an effort to address and eliminate book deserts and their detrimental effects on children and the Greenville community
Location of Families Living in Poverty
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