Healthy cities of/ for the South
Abstract
Healthy cities hinge on quality built environments, equitable access to health-generating services such as clean water, fresh air and nutritious food, and the absence of crime and violence. In combination, these factors lessen exposures to risk and improve the quality of urban life. The revival of interest in the relationship between health and the city springs from the recognition that the burden of disease is shaped by unequal patterns of individual consumption and distorted by unhealthy physical and social environments. The chapter draws from cases across the world to highlight macro interventions such as awareness programmes by the World Health Organisation, meso-level initiatives by city governments to improve urban environments, and micro responses that depend on improved education and social capital.
Citation
Herrick, C. Healthy cities of/ for the South. In: Parnell, S.; Oldfield, S. (Editors) Routledge Handbook on Cities of the Global South. Routledge (2014) ISBN 978-0-415-81865-0 [Not yet published-preprint only]