Healthy toronto by design: The role of public health in shaping a healthy city

Context: Chronic diseases, obesity and sedentary lifestyles are the main health challenges facing today's cities. Toronto Public Health (TPH) is playing a leadership role in influencing the development of healthy public policies that integrate social, environmental and economic factors in building a healthier, more equitable and liveable city.

Approach: TPH has taken an integrative approach based on a Healthy Toronto By Design framework that involves collaborative work with diverse municipal departments, community and academic partners. The strategies used to embed a health lens in city planning and policy development include: leveraging the power of partnerships to address the complexity of health issues; building the evidence base on built environment and its impact on health; integrating civic engagement into public policy development process; and participating in policy development across governments and beyond the public health sector.

Results: TPH has developed a number of policy directions and tools, including improving active transportation infrastructure and creating guidelines for an Active City; making Toronto a more Walkable City; creating healthier apartment tower neighbourhoods through removal of zoning barriers; advocating for increased access to affordable housing; integrating health and equity considerations in Toronto's Official Plan for land development, using mapping tools to identify low income areas with food deserts, park-deficient neighbourhoods, and elevated risk from heat-related climate change impacts; and developing a built environment decision-making support tool.