Built environment and health

Abstract Health data are often presented on maps to demonstrate existing patterns, revealing health inequities across different urban contexts. In attempting to understand underlying factors associated with geographic variations in population health profiles, this chapter introduces general concepts, methods, and established protocols that can help explain how variations in urban built environment, and thus urban form, contribute to health patterns. The chapter briefly introduces how connections between place and health have shaped populations throughout recent historic urban development phases, and frames the compositional and contextual characteristics of places and access to resources that might influence health, with a focus on built environment. A brief overview of the main connections that have been explored between built environment and health are provided, while reviewing key concepts and methods. Recent developments are discussed, including sociospatial processes, with residential-based views of context being replaced with more dynamic paradigms, thereby accounting for daily mobility and corresponding activity spaces. Use of novel technologies, and the potential for intervention research are discussed, along with examples of established protocols and procedures that can be used to improve not only the understanding of how urban form shapes health, but also the ability to generate evidence that will help to shape the cities of tomorrow.