Built Environment 101

The built environment is a term used to describe the man-made objects or spaces that form a community. These can include buildings, roads, sidewalks, parks, schools, work sites, and homes. It can also encompass services provided to a community, such as public transportation, water, and sanitation.

How are the built environment and health connected?

The built environment impacts the health of the public by creating spaces that either promote or prevent good health and well-being (Design for Health, 2017).

The built environment can...

• Influence rates of physical activity through community design efforts like planning for sidewalks.
• Impact levels of fruit and vegetable consumption through development.
• Limit human exposure to air pollutants through land use planning. Public health experts are working with planners, developers, engineers, and transportation authorities, among others to intentionally design communities in ways that advance health equity, prevent disease, and improve overall health (NACCHO, 2017).

What is equity?

Harris County Public Health (HCPH) defines health equity as a state in which every person has the opportunity to attain their full health potential and no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of socioeconomic or environmental conditions. One example would be providing individuals with a bicycle that meets their needs rather than providing the same bike to everyone.

Source: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Health Community Design Examples

To better understand how built environment can help to make a community healthy, explore the examples of design principles and benefits found locally in the Houston and Harris County area.

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention Healthy Community Design Principles and Benefits (CDC)

Healthy Community Design Worksheet

For more information on what healthy community design looks like, click on the worksheet created by HCPH below.

References

1. Design for Health. (2017, November). Integrating Health into Comprehensive Planning. Retrieved from Resources: http://designforhealth.net/integrating-health-into-comprehensive-planning/
2. National Association of County and City Health Officials. (2017, November). Healthy Community Design. Retrieved from Programs: Community Health: https://www.naccho.org/programs/community-health/healthy-community-design
3. Adapted from: Public Health Institute. (2013). Health in All Policies: A Guide for State and Local Government. Retrieved from http://www.phi.org/resources/?resource=hiapguide
4. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017, November). Healthy Community Design Checklist Toolkit. Retrieved from Healthy Places: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyplaces/toolkit/