Public Health

New Jersey Groups Come Together to Tackle Childhood Obesity

The New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids is leading an effort to make time for physical activity and put healthy food on children's plates, Beth Fitzgerald reports.

March 23, 2012 - NJ Spotlight

On the Public Health Risks of Urbanization

Eric Jaffe looks at the findings of a recent article in the medical journal The Lancet, which predicts massive public health challenges in China resulting from the country's urban influx of migrant workers.

March 16, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Tools For Measuring Health Impacts Being Prescribed More Often

Eric Jaffe reports on the growing use of "health impact assessments" (HIA), which are used in a similar fashion to environmental reviews, to determine the public health side effects of major projects.

March 9, 2012 - The Atlantic Cities

Gallup Ranks Most Obese Metro Areas

Here is a list you presumably do not want to find your city on: the most obese metro areas in the country. Dan Witters breaks down the results that Gallup has recently released as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index.

March 8, 2012 - Gallup Wellbeing

The Doctor Is In: How Medicalization Effects Contemporary Planning and Architecture

Giovanna Borasi & Mirko Zardini examine the state of pervasive anxiety afflicting the urban populations of the West and how "medicalization" and an ambition for total well-being are effecting architecture and urban planning.

March 7, 2012 - Places

NYC to Pilot New System for Monitoring Sewage Discharge

New York City is taking steps to manage the dumping of raw sewage, Mireya Navarro reports.

February 23, 2012 - New York Times - Green Blog

Conference Points to Place, Not Race, As Health Determinant

Lecturers call race a "surrogate" for socioeconomic factors that determine health outcomes, reports Beth Fitzgerald.

February 22, 2012 - NJ Spotlight

What the Feds are Doing to Connect Housing Policy to Health Policy

NewPublicHealth recently published an interview with HUD’s Raphael Bostic on the nexus between Housing Policy and Public Health, and the steps the Feds are taking to improve people's health through housing.

February 13, 2012 - New Public Health

Effort to Make NYC Streets Safer Paying Dividends

Jane E. Brody reports on the safety features New York City has instituted as part of an ambitious effort to completely re-engineer city streets.

February 8, 2012 - The New York Times

Mastering the Art of Stairway Persuasion

A new study shows that a friendly reminder of the health benefits of taking the stairs can cause a sustainable increase in their use, writes Jeannine Stein.

February 7, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

How the Built Environment Became a Leading Cause of Death in the 21st Century

Writing for the Well blog, Jane Brody traces the direct link between 20th century development patterns and the leading causes of disease and death. Put simply, public health is the biggest challenge facing planners today.

February 1, 2012 - The New York Times

The Threat of Poor Urban Design to Public Health

Scott Carlson profiles the work of Dr. Richard J. Jackson, chair of Environmental Health Sciences at the UCLA's School of Public Health, one of the leading voices calling for better urban design for the sake of good health.

January 23, 2012 - The Chronicle of Higher Education

Mapping Transportation and Health in the United States

What is the relationship between car travel and health outcomes in the United States? Ariel Godwin and Anne Price challenge the claim that more time in the car decreases your health by looking at the impacts of education, income, and employment rates.

January 16, 2012 - Anne Price

Why Infill Development May Be Bad for Your Health

A new study has created unexpected tensions between public health advocates and smart-growth-oriented urban planners.

January 12, 2012 - California Watch

Super-Healthy City Gets First McDonalds

Loma Linda, California has an average lifespan higher than most cities, and a significant population of vegetarians. Last week, the city council approved the first McDonald's in town. Will it have an impact on the community's health?

December 19, 2011 - The Los Angeles Times

The Intersection of Health and Urban Planning

In Vancouver, B.C., Trevor Hancock is helping the city make the connection between the built environment and the health of the citizens.

November 28, 2011 - The Globe and Mail

Does Living in a Poor Neighborhood Harm Your Health?

A study conducted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the 1990s found that living in poor neighborhoods can actually hurt your health.

November 19, 2011 - TheCityFix.com

Housing Crisis Making Americans Ill

A new survey from the American Journal of Public Health found that people who have fallen behind on their mortgage payments are more likely to be suffering from depression.

October 21, 2011 - The Wall St. Journal

Nature Essential to Counteract Modern Life

Richard Louv says we're drowning in a "sea of circuitry" and in desperate need to reconnect with greenery and nature in our living spaces to sooth our souls.

October 15, 2011 - Citiwire.net

Healthy Travel Modes: Correlations, Causality and Caution

Driving makes people fatter and less healthy, right? Fanis Grammenos warns planners and urban designers that the answer is not so simple, and misusing the statistics will weaken effective debate.

October 13, 2011 - Fanis Grammenos

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.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.