health promotion urban spaces paz.ppt

Berta Paz Lourido, PhDUniversity of the Balearic Islands, bpaz@uib.es

Health Promotion & urban spaces

from the social determinants perspective

It is known that…Cities can play a critical role indetermining health and healthequity through the provision ofbasic goods such as health andsocial services.

By 2030, six out of every 10 peoplewill live in cities.

By 2050, seven of every 10 peoplewill do.

The nature of urban change differswithin and among regions.

The process of urbanization isoften accompanied byimprovements in indicators ofhealth and life expectancy.

But there is a unequaldistribution of health both withincountries and within cities.

The next question…?What are the attributes of urbangovernance, urban daily livingconditions (social and physicalenvironments) and climatechange that contribute to urbanhealth inequities?

Urban planning

and design

(physicalenvironment)

Environmentalchange

(climate)

Urbansocial

conditions

Urban Governance

EvidencesThere is a reciprocalrelationship betweenurban social conditions andthe built enviornment.

The poor or disadvantaged almostalways live in the worst housing orworst neibourhoods.

And they are less likely to accesspublic spaces and goods as aresult of social and physicalbarriers.

Therefore, good urban planningcan help offset socialdisadvantage, while bad urbanplanning can exacerbate it.

Urban planning can help mitigateclimate change, depending uponhow energy-efficient and carbon-intensive the cityʼs buildings, urbanbuilt form and tranport system are.

The nature of the physicalenvironment can also assistpeople in adapting to climatechange.

The effects of climate changeand other forms of environmentaldegradation can exacerbatehealth inequities that are rootedin social and economicconditions.

When the natural and builtenvironments and social andeconomic conditions are wellintegrated, the product is bothimproved health and greaterhealth equity, and even morebroadly, higher and more equitablelevels of human development.

This is to the benefit of thecitizens, their communities, localbusiness and employers, the cityand indeed the nation as awhole.

In rich countries, children frompoor socioeconomic classessuffer more injuries and deathsfrom road crashes than theircounterparts from high incomegroups.

The disruption of naturalenvironmental systems, includingclimate change, has profoundimplications for the health andsurvival of people globally.

Crime and violence are morepronounced in urban areas, andspecially in slum areas.

A social determinants approachsuggest that improving livingconditions in areas such asincome, housing, transport,employment, education, socialsupport and health services iscentral to improve the health ofurban populations.

The overall quality of the urbanenvironment can have impactsupon physical and mentalhealth.

Many recrational facilities(recreation centres, youth centres,parks, physical fitness facilities,bicicle rentals, swimming poolsand gyms) are unequallydistributed, with poorbeighbourhoods at a strongdisadvantage.

Therefore…The urban physical form, its socialinfrastructure, the added pressureof climate change and the role ofgovernance could determineequitable health benefits fromurbanization in the context ofglobalization.

Urban planning and design have aparticularly role in terms ofinfluencing the urban physicalenvironment and thus influencinghealth inequities.

The health sector need to stablishpartnerships with other sectorsand civil society to carry out abroad spectrum of interventions.

Strong political commitmentto better urban planning andgovernance is crucial to createthe intended improvements insustained living conditions andhealth equity.

Berta Paz Lourido, PhDBpaz@uib.es

UIB