Public Health
Louisville, KY Confronts Obesity From All Angles
A grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has Louisville thinking differently. "...it's not just about smart growth, it’s not just about transportation, it's not just about parks or better nutrition, it’s about all of those things and more."
Killer Cities
Urban design is increasingly linked with poor health conditions. Grist's Sarah Goodyear explains how cities are literally killing people.
New Yorkers Get Daily Exercise Just By Getting Around
New Yorkers get most of their physical activity from walking to the subway or running errands, not jogging or going to the gym, says a new report from the New York Dept. of Health.
A City of Healthy and Unhealthy Neighborhoods
The dividing lines in the cities of today are not so much about neighborhoods, but rather the relative health of those neighborhoods, according to this piece from The Globe and Mail.
Supermarkets Designed to Make You Fat
Access to healthy food is a major issue in public health. But just because there's a grocery store nearby doesn't mean health will improve. One entrepreneur looking at supermarket design says the way stores are laid out negatively affects health.
The Effect of Light on an Environment
Natural and artificial light have a significant effect on the experience of hospital patients and can actually reduce stress and hospital time, says Rosalyn Cama, an interior designer and researcher specializes in health care design.
Building A Healthier Environment
The built environment plays a big role in public health, and the professions involved in creating the built environment need to pay more attention to building healthy places, argues Clark Manus, president of the American Institute of Architects.
L.A. Plans to Fix its Streets
Los Angeles County is in the process of writing a "Model Streets Manual", with funding coming from an unlikely source: The Department of Public Health.
Designing Out Obesity
An emerging design movement is trying to counteract obesity in American cities.
Widening Waistlines Weigh on Developing Cities
Cities across the developing world are dealing more with rising obesity rates as urbanization occurs, reports TheCityFix's Jonna McKone.
Tree Cover Linked with Healthier Babies
A study of tree cover and pregnant women suggests that women living in areas with more trees are less likely to give birth to undersized babies.
Looking at Urban Design Through a Public Health Lens
New York City's Health Commissioner has urban design in his sights as he seeks to improve public health in the city.
Planner Malpractice?
Amanda Thompson, planning director of Decatur, GA, suggests that it is a good thing there isn't such a thing as "designer malpractice" or planners would be sued for the horrible impact their work has had on the public health.
Frederick Law Olmsted's Other Career
A new essay by Thomas Fisher details Frederick Law Olmsted's lesser known work in the realm of public health and sanitation.
Architects and Designers Explore Urban Pandemics
Viral pandemics can devastate cities. In this review of pandemics of the past and present, this piece from Places suggests that urban design can play a much more important role in public health and pandemic prevention.
Urban Living Linked To Heightened Risk of Schizophrenia
For some time researchers have noticed more instances of non-affective psychosis in urban populations than in rural groups. Now the American Medical Association has found "certain elements of city living raise the risk of developing schizophrenia."
The Global Challenge of Unsafe Water
Unclean and unsafe water is an increasingly vexing problem for the world's cities, which are struggling to meet the needs of rapidly growing populations. But there has been some positive work in developing countries.
The Light Rail Diet
A new study from The Journal of Preventative Medicine says that drivers in Charlotte, North Carolina who switched to riding the Lynx Light Rail lost an average of 6 1/2 pounds.
Gallup Charts "Well-Being" And Commute Times
And the result is fairly obvious - longer the commute, lower the reading. Well-being is a measurement of both physical and mental health, including ailments such as back pain and anxiety. No mention of modal type (e.g, driving, biking, transit).
Residents Who Live Near Public Transportation Live Healthier, Longer Lives
Study indicates that public transit improvements and more transit oriented development can provide large but often overlooked health benefits.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
