Urban Public Health

Abstract

This book will orient public health scholars and practitioners, as well as professionals from related fields such as the social sciences and design professions, to the tools and skills needed for effective urban health research, including foundational concepts, data sources, strategies for generating evidence, and engagement and dissemination strategies to inform action for urban health. The book brings together what the researchers are learning through ongoing research experience and their efforts to inform action. Chapters also feature brief contributions from other urban health experts and practitioners. The book highlights throughout the public health importance of urban environments and the critical need for diverse interdisciplinary teams and intersectoral collaboration to develop and evaluate approaches to improve health in urban settings. Urban health professionals are often charged with working in ways that take a systems perspective and challenge conventional silos, while also engaging in more traditional public health actions and research strategies. The text is infused with themes emphasizing the importance of place for health, the potential to link evidence with action, and the critical need to attend to health inequities within urban environments. By providing a primer on the range of activities and capacities useful to urban health researchers, the book supports reader in their own professional development and team building by covering a range of relevant skills and voices. The primary audience includes trainees at the undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral levels who are interested in creating actionable evidence and in taking evidence-informed action to improve health within urban settings.