Health forum and lecture planned

Pre-registration - now closed

Waterloo - Better building designs can result in better health, says a public health physician and health promotion consultant who will deliver a Hallman Community Lecture on Thursday afternoon. Trevor Hancock, described as among the 10 best health futurists in the world, will give a public talk entitled "It's The People, Stupid! Reflections on the Impact and Ethics of Designing Built Environments as if People Mattered".

The community lecture, part of the Healthy Communities Knowledge Exchange Forum, takes place at 3 p.m. on Thursday in the CEIT building room 1015. Admission is free, pre-registration - now closed

The two-day forum, which takes place all day Thursday and Friday morning, is hosted by UW's faculties of applied health sciences and environmental studies. It will bring together more than 100 professionals for an exchange of action-oriented knowledge aimed at making local communities healthier. Sessions will focus on walkable communities, community design, community connections, community growth and healthy food access. The participants represent public health and planning professions, community-based agencies and local academic institutions.

"The forum brings together an impressive group of agencies and people from across the region to focus on the future of our local communities," says organizer Troy Glover. "As reflected in the sponsors and participants, the forum is special because of its social relevance to a wide variety of stakeholders, which represents a growing coalition dedicated to making our local communities healthier."

In his talk, Hancock will focus attention on the health impacts of the design professions, from the people who design door handles to those who plan buildings and cities. He has worked for local communities, municipal, provincial and national governments, health care organizations and the World Health Organization.

"The most important outcome measure of a built environment is its impact on the health, well-being, quality of life and ultimately the level of human development of those who live, learn, work or play in those environments," Hancock says. "Good design can lead to good health but equally, poor design can lead to poor health." He stresses that the design professions should share with the health professions the ethical duty to do no harm — to improve the health, well-being and quality of life of those who live in the built environments they design.

In his presentation, Hancock will explore the implications of his perspective for the design professions, as well as for the colleges and universities that train professionals and do research on built environments. He will also look at the implications for the public and private sector organizations that employ design professionals and for the people who end up living, learning, working and playing in the environments they design.

Hancock is a public health consultant for British Columbia's provincial government. His research interests include health promotion, healthy cities and communities, healthy public policy, environmental health, health policy and planning and health futurism.

The forum is being presented by UW's Healthy Communities Research Network and the Waterloo Region Healthy Communities Coalition. The event is also sponsored by the Public Health Agency of Canada and Waterloo Region Public Health.

"Waterloo Region Public Health is pleased to be a co-sponsor for the Healthy Communities Knowledge Exchange," says Katherine Pigott, manager of healthy communities and policy for the public health branch. "The way we plan and build our towns and cities can transform our lives for the better by improving our physical health and the way we relate to our neighbours and fellow residents. We're looking forward to a stimulating exchange of ideas among academics, practitioners and citizens. We're also excited about finding ways we can work together in the future so we can plan and design our communities so we want to live in them for the rest of our lives."