Down East Partnership for Children will present the Healthy Kids Collaborative as a part of the 26th annual Emerging Issues Forum on Feb. 7 in Raleigh.

Selected for its innovative strategies combatting the childhood obesity rate, the nonprofit organization will present to the nation’s top business, nonprofit, academic and professional health care groups.

Established in 2007, the Healthy Kids Collaborative supports healthy lifestyles through a partnership with more than 50 area business, government, health care and civic organizations by increasing access to nutritional foods, opportunities for physical activity and health care resources and materials for families.

Rocky Mount Mayor David Combs will discuss at the forum strategies and steps the collaborative has taken in Nash and Edgecombe counties to combat early-childhood obesity, how these efforts can be replicated, along with the potential economic impact.

“Healthy, active children are more likely to be successful in school, have higher self-esteem and develop long-term educational goals,” said Henrietta Zalkind, executive director of the nonprofit group.

Featured speakers for this year’s forum on health include CNN’s chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta; Andrew Witty, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline; Gov. Bev Perdue; and Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, practicing physician and CEO of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The Down East Partnership for Children is located in Rocky Mount. For more information, visit its website at www.depc.org or call (252) 985-4300.