A strategic approach for urban health

Urban risks and opportunities play a growing role in the health of humans everywhere.  Despite vast improvements in the health of urban dwellers, inequities and health-harming exposures are still pervasive, new and unexpected obstacles are constantly evolving and emerging in cities and towns, and urban areas drive our most pressing global challenges – issues like climate change and resource depletion, migration and inequality.

Urban areas can be engines for health and wellbeing, equity and sustainability when we approach urban health strategically, as an integrated, long-term societal project, rather than a collection of isolated initiatives. Only when we do this can we unlock their true potential.