Dr. Neal Kaufman explains how the design of everyday places -- including schools -- can have profound impacts on public health. The best schools, he says, are located in the center of neighborhoods, where kids and parents can walk and play together.
"Healthy place-making revolves around the idea that the places where people live, work, learn, and play can have a profound impact on the individual's well-being. Not only do places have to be free of toxins and have clean air and water, but they also have to be where human relationships are nurtured and where individuals can get enough physical activity and exercise as part of their everyday activities. They're places where individuals have access to appropriate fruits and vegetable, and where people have the opportunity to just run into their friends and make social connections and have a sense of place. And the way that you design and site buildings and organize the activities in those buildings either inhibits those things from happening or enhances them. When it's done right, you have a place that promotes health."
Thanks to Josh Stephens
Read the full story: Well-Designed Learning Centers Offer Immense Health Benefits for Families & Children
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
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FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
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Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
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City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello