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Mary E. Northridge, PhD, MPH1, Elliott D. Sclar, PhD2, and Emily M. Karpel, BA2. (1) Dept. of Sociomedical Sciences/Mailman SPH, Columbia University, 722 W. 168th St., Room 1123.6, New York, NY 10032, (212) 543-9307, men11@columbia.edu, (2) Urban Planning Program/GSAPP, Columbia University, 413 Avery Hall, New York, NY 10027
The squalid conditions of urban life in the industrialized cities of the 19th century which gave rise to infectious disease outbreaks, social unrest, and class conflict also gave birth to the modern professions of urban planning and public health. Both disciplines had their roots in a social justice mission to help ameliorate these urban blights. Today many of these same urban problems are again fully manifest, only now the scale is global. The loss of close collaboration between these fields that characterized the post-World War II era has limited our ability to design and implement interventions and policies that could translate into improved health for burgeoning urban populations. While the base of theory and scientific evidence that connects the design of the built environment to population health has yet to be fully elaborated, the work completed to date is sufficiently plausible to act upon. At Columbia University, we are pressing ahead by creating an interdisciplinary curriculum on the built environment and public health. In this new program, we are developing an undergraduate course on "Urbanism and Public Health," designing 4 core interdisciplinary courses on history, theory, methods, and tools, and writing a textbook with our postdoctoral scholars and close colleagues entitled, “Towards the Sustainable City.” Our ultimate goal is to reshape the training and education of a new generation of practitioners, scholars, and scientists who can effectively meet the challenges of the rapidly urbanizing cities of the 21st century, and work towards ensuring they are more sustainable, healthy, and equitable.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Environment, Urban Health
Related Web page: www.arch.columbia.edu/UP/
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.