Health and Well-Being

The theme Urban Health and Well-Being highlights three main areas of interest. Healthy mobility, healthy buildings and cities, and healthy water systems. These are key to raising the overall health of citizens and mitigating the impact of climate change in our urban societies. We aim to bring together experts to build better societies of the future. Share our knowledge and yours through Urban Insight.

“We absolutely need to work together to plan and design communities and cities for future generations.”

How can we transform the ways we use energy and transportation, grow our food, build our houses, and develop our infrastructure in order to limit global warming to 1.5°C in the next decade? Isabelle Putseys, Expert Leader at Sweco, shares her insights.

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Isabelle Putseys

Report: Healthy water cities – From sewer to health booster

IPCC’s latest report highlights the need for societies and businesses to prepare for a new climate. Meanwhile, freshwater and sewage systems in European cities are becoming outdated and in 10–20 years sewage infrastructure might collapse due to material failure.

To secure a future with sufficient clean water and successful water network management that prevents system failures, we propose three water strategies that deal with health challenges at the same time.

Children playing with water in a fountain

Report: Healthy buildings, cities and you – How to design future living environments

The pandemic has greatly affected health in general, and the way we live, work and communicate. It has raised awareness of the importance of designing cities to promote the health and well-being of the people living in them. 90% of people’s time on average is spent indoors. This report shows how attention to a healthier indoors, a more balanced natural outdoor urban environment and increased physical activity can result in a city that benefits both mental and physical health for its inhabitants.

A house where ground floor unites the landscape and community and the upper part is a continuous wooden roof structure

Report: Healthy streets and cities

According to the UN, about 70 percent of the global population – 7 billion people – are expected to live in cities by 2050. If the way we design our cities does not change as the number of inhabitants increases, health issues will continue to grow. In this report, we investigate key design strategies to remodel streets as health incubators and consider restructured mobility frameworks as a factor vital in the transition to healthier and sustainable cities.

streetview, houses, people

Article: The Happy, Healthy, City. A Dream or Tomorrow’s Reality?

Sweco experts examine our past and present to imagine a near future in which cities are hubs of health and happiness. Many urban environments are stressful and hazardous, they can be toxic environments detrimental to our health and climate. How can we transform our urban living spaces for the better?

a green city vision

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