Abstract Background As dealing with the complexity of urban living conditions becomes more and more evident and urgent, it is fundamental to promote cross-sectoral interventions that allow cities to become more inclusive and supportive of health. The Emilia-Romagna region, Italy, has promoted a participatory initiative to structurally integrate health into urban planning tools, identifying a framework of tailored urban indicators linked to locally perceived population health issues. Methods Through internal discussion and systematic literature research, a set of urban planners, epidemiologists, and public health experts from regional offices, local health services, universities, and environmental protection agencies identified the urban and health dimensions most suitable for embedding population health into city planning. The result was summarised in a preliminary working paper, which included a matrix of associations between urban features and health dimensions framed according to the DPSEEA framework. Its applicability was then tested in a participatory process (March-May 2024) involving urban planners and public health departments of 7 different sized municipalities. Results A group of epidemiologists identified local-level computable indicators for the health dimensions already included in the matrix or added at request. Each municipality focused on specific topics based on local priorities: 3 groups assessing their already-approved urban plans and looking for computable urban indicators; the others integrating their under-construction plans with local health indicators. Conclusions The need for professional contamination and cross-sectoral interventions is significant. Epidemiological support is pivotal in integrating different professional languages and reading health data. The outputs of this experience will contribute to a technical document outlining how to incorporate health promotion into urban planning tools and practice while actively considering the local context. Key messages • Although the development of a common vocabulary can be difficult, multidisciplinary collaboration is essential in promoting a model for integrating health promotion into urban planning. • Local municipalities’ involvement in the experimentation can improve the model’s applicability by taking into account territorial specificities.