18.1.2021, EUPHA section “Urban Health” newsletter, incl. recent developments in Germany

The European Public Health Association (EUPHA, https://eupha.org/) maintains a number of different sections, including one on “Urban Health”(UH), https://eupha.org/urban-public-health.

The latest UH section newsletter features a range of topics, incl. – among others – “European Public Health Week [2020] resources”, “Recent publications and resources from section members”, and “Call for papers for special issue of Sustainability”.

Extraction from my contribution to the newsletter, “In difficult times, Sustainable Urban Health gaining ground in Germany” (text shortened, and links omitted):

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For several years, institutions and individuals in Germany have sought to strengthen Sustainable Urban Health (Nachhaltige StadtGesundheit) as a field of activities …“City of the future – healthy and sustainable metropolises” is a research program sponsored by Deutsches Stiftungszentrum; this includes a range of research groups, a series of conferences, and a dedicated book series … Although 2020 made us captive participants of a global crash course on “Health in all Policies”, colleagues and I feared that the year would provide little progress towards rational Urban Health thinking. Fortunately, it turned out that this was not true:

• In May 2020, the Universität Duisburg-Essen / Medical Department founded the Institute for Urban Public Health (InUPH), supported by Berg Foundation for 5 years …
• The German Federal Center for Health Promotion … features a glossary of professional terms concerning prevention and health promotion. A glossary entry on Urban Health was updated recently .,.
• In Oct 2020, several universities (Hamburg: UKE Medical School, and Hafencity U; Bielefeld U) jointly organized an online seminar, with >200 participants enrolled …
• Since 2019, the “Hamburg Patriotic Society of 1765” … has hosted a transdisciplinary working group on Sustainable Urban Health … a platform for urban planners, health (and other) professionals as well as civil society in Hamburg … meetings aim at information exchange, debate and project development …
• Since mid-2020, there is also a scientific working group on Urban Epidemiology (Stadtepidemiologie) in Hamburg …
• Complementing a 2018 predecessor …, a second Hamburg book … is being prepared … Again, the aim is to integrate across local/regional history, governance, prevention, health promotion and care as well as Health in all Policies and to discuss their interrelations …

In … summary, there is an ongoing process towards consolidating Sustainable Urban Health in Germany, with Hamburg striving to be a positive epicentre. If readers are engaged in a similar local or regional process …, please get in touch. My colleagues and I are interested in broadening the exchange with researchers and practitioners elsewhere, e.g. by jointly preparing a workshop at EPH 2021 …