Invited talks
Putting Healthy Urbanism into Practice
In this talk for the School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP) Speaker Series at University of British Columbia, I describe three key messages of healthy urbanism with examples of how they can be applied in practice. I also discuss the barriers and enablers to practicing healthy urbanism such as framing health for built environment audiences and development economics.
Vancouver, Canada, October 4, 2023.
C:lab Urban, Buro Happold, invited talk on healthy urbanism, London, England, July 26, 2023.
Place Shaping Session, City of Westminster, invited talk on healthy urban design, London, England, April 26, 2023.
Podcast on Healthy Urbanism
In this podcast, I am interviewed by Ross O’Ceallaigh of the Green Urbanist. This conversation covers personal reflections about urban living and the basics of healthy urbanism. We spend a lot of time talking about how healthy urbanism relates to planetary and ecosystem health. We also get into details on the ‘business case’, new models of development and a mutual love of community-led housing.
Listen to the podcast and read more on the Green Urbanist substack for Episode 62 (February 2023) using the link below.
18th International Conference on Urban Health, Workshop, World Health Organization, Panellist and presenter on ‘Capacity development for urban health – What capacities should we prioritize to enable a holistic and coordinated approach to urban health practice and policymaking?’, Valencia, Spain, October 27, 2022.
18th International Conference on Urban Health, Workshop, UN Habitat, Panellist at workshop on ‘Gamechangers | Innovative tools enabling urban health with young people’, Valencia, Spain, October 24, 2022.
Launch event of Healthy Urbanism
A hybrid (online and in-person) launch event called ‘Urban Health Inside Out’ was held at University College London in July 2022 to launch my book on Healthy Urbanism. A panel of speakers discussed their experiences of working to support health through the fields of urban design and planning, public health and property development.
The event was chaired by Prof Yolande Barnes, Chair Bartlett Real Estate Institute, UCL with speakers: Prof Julian Agyeman, Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, Tufts University; Kieron Boyle, Chief Executive, Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation; Dr Helen Pineo, Associate Professor in Healthy and Sustainable Cities, University College London; and Julia Thrift , Director, Healthier Place-making, TCPA (Town & Country Planning Association).
Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities (UK Government), Pathfinders Workshop on Health and Wellbeing, invited talk on healthy urbanism, online, July 26, 2022.
Planning London Healthy Places Network, Network Meeting, invited talk on healthy urbanism, London, UK, June 22, 2022.
Sustainable Urban Development MSc, Reunion Programme, University of Oxford, invited keynote talk on healthy urbanism, Oxford, UK, June 9, 2022.
What role for the built environment in healthy cities?
The Global Centre for Healthcare and Urbanisation at Kellogg College, University of Oxford held a public seminar on healthy cities. I spoke about reframing our understanding of healthy urban environments, focusing on the need to improve the design quality of new development in England.
Other speakers included Iona O’Carroll and Rosie Rowe. The event was chaired by Lord Richard Best. April 2022.
Public Health Voices webinar series, UCL Health of the Public, invited talk on ‘Urban Health & Climate Change’, London, UK (online), March 29, 2022.
Building Healthy Cities, India’s Smart Cities Mission, invited keynote on Conceptual Framework and Determinants of Urban Health and its Relevance in Urban Development and Smart City Mission, International (online), February 16, 2022.
How can we build the healthy home of the future?, Creative Perspectives on the Health of the Public Seminar Series, UCL Health of the Public, invited talk about healthy housing, London, UK (online), July 22, 2021.
Education of the Future Spatial Planning Public Health Workforce, Health and Wellbeing in Planning Network, invited talk on education for urban planning and health, International (online), July 2, 2021.
Sustainable Urban Design and Human Health, United Nations Youth Association and SDG Student Ambassadors, invited keynote speech on healthy urbanism, Copenhagen, Denmark (online), June 10, 2021.
Meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Building Communities, invited talk on building healthy communities, London, UK (online), March 23, 2021.
Inclusive Design workshop for Network Rail, Design Council, invited keynote speech on healthy and inclusive design, London, UK (online), March 4, 2021.
Net Zero is Not Enough, Future of London. invited talk about THRIVES Framework, London, UK (online), November 18, 2020.
Moscow Urban Forum, invited talk about the THRIVES Framework in session on ‘Active Design. Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle in a Megacity’, International (online), November 12, 2020. Recording available.
Towards healthy urbanism
Conscious Cities Festival 2020, The Centre for Conscious Design, invited talk about the THRIVES Framework in session on Ecosystems, International (online), October 22, 2020.
The Bartlett Together Festival, Bartlett Faculty of the Built Environment, UCL, invited talk on ‘Cities, Epidemics and Planning’, London, UK (online), October 2, 2020.
Kindness and healthy urbanism
Being Kind: How Much Does Social Sustainability Matter?, Simon Fraser University, invited talk about THRIVES Framework, Vancouver, Canada (online), October 21, 2020.
Part of Pandemonium: Urban Studies and Recovering from COVID-19, a lecture series presented by SFU Urban Studies in collaboration with SFU Public Square and financially supported by the Initiative in Sustainable Urban Development. More information.
The Planning Hour Series, Planning Institute of Australia, invited talk about THRIVES Framework, New South Wales, Australia (online), September 10, 2020.
Future Leaders program, Future of London, invited talk about on THRIVES Framework for Health and Wellbeing training, London, UK (online), August 5, 2020.
Inclusive and sustainable economies rapid mini-series: The future of place in a post-pandemic world, Public Health England, invited talk about the THRIVES Framework, England (online), August 4, 2020.
THRIVES Framework
Design for Health and Wellbeing Roundtable, Design Council, invited talk about the THRIVES Framework, England (online), July 2, 2020. Other speakers were Mayaan Ashkenazi, Jacqueline Bleicher, Deborah Szebeko, and Aditya Kasliwal.
16th International Conference on Urban Health, Pre-conference workshop, Wellcome Trust, Workshop presentation on ‘Conducting effective transdisciplinary research’, Xiamen, China, November 4, 2019.
Department of Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, invited lecture on policy-makers’ use of urban health indicators, Beijing, China, May 28, 2019.
Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control, invited lecture on ‘How can urban health indicators promote health through urban policy?’, Beijing, China, May 22, 2019.
Transport for London Inclusive Design Development Program, Design Council, invited lecture on Inclusive Design, London, April 26, 2019.
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Continuous Professional Development conference, invited talk on ‘Cities, Health and Wellbeing’, London, UK, April 3, 2019.
Leveraging the urban planning system to shape healthy cities
Dean’s Symposium: Urban Health, State of the Science, Boston University, invited talk on ‘Urban planning: leveraging the urban planning system to shape healthy cities’, Boston, MA, USA, December 6, 2018. My talk appears at 36 mins.
Launch of Living with Buildings: Health & Architecture, Wellcome Collection, Wellcome Trust & Design Council, panelist ‘Building healthy places’, London, UK, December 3, 2018.
Meeting of the London Healthy Place Network, invited lecture on ‘Cities, Health and Wellbeing’, London, UK, October 18, 2018.
Building Healthy, Equitable Communities: The Role of Inclusive Urban Development and Investment, Salzburg Global and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, panel member on urban planning, Salzburg, Austria, October 12, 2018.
World Green Building Council, invited talk at webinar on ‘Questioning co-benefits: do people and planet go hand in hand?’, London, UK (online), October 4, 2018.
Planning and Development Conference, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, invited talk on ‘Cities, Health and Wellbeing’ with Yvonne Rydin, London, UK, June 19, 2018.
University of New South Wales, invited lecture on ‘Urban Health Indicators – Just how useful are they in creating healthy cities?’, Sydney, Australia, March 22, 2018.
Planning Institute of Australia, invited lecture on ‘Planning for Liveability & Healthy Outcomes’, Melbourne, Australia, March 14, 2018.
Academy of Public Health for London and Kent, Surrey, Sussex, invited lecture on ‘Urban planning and public health’, London, UK, August 22, 2017.
Healthy Cities Stakeholder Engagement Workshop, Dubai Land Department, presentation on ‘BRE Healthy Cities Index – Application in Dubai’, Dubai, UAE, January 23, 2017.
Healthy Planning workshop, Town & Country Planning Association, ‘The Value of Healthy Places – for Developers, Occupants and Society’, London, UK, December 1, 2016.
UK Construction Week, panel member in session on ‘A Tale of Three Cities: London’, Birmingham, UK, October 20, 2016.
Developing Healthy Neighbourhoods: Build-in health or build more hospitals, Bristol Health Partners, ‘Development Economics for Health’, Bristol, UK, October 18, 2016.
Construction Summit, Construction Industry Council, invited talk on ‘Smart Cities, Open Data: A data driven future’, London, UK, September 20, 2016.
Stories that push boundaries
BRE Women’s Network and Institute of Civil Engineers, speaker and chair of ‘#BEinspired: Stories that push boundaries’, London, UK, September 20, 2016.
Building a City, Heritage of London Trust, invited talk on ‘Sustainability in conservation and heritage planning’, London, UK, June 17, 2016.
Annual Public Health Conference and Exhibition, Local Government Association and Associate Directors of Public Health, workshop facilitator and speaker on ‘Using the planning process to shape healthy environments’ with Michael Chang and Andre Pinto, London, UK, February 3, 2016.
Delivering Smart Cities, Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), invited talk on ‘Complexity in city systems’, London, UK, January 27, 2016.
Beijing-London Green Buildings Seminar, China Britain Business Council, invited talk on ‘UK approach to sustainable development’, Watford, UK, November 2, 2015.
Connected Cities Conference, Building Research Establishment, invited talk on ‘Healthy Cities: Using data mapping to inform healthy urban planning and design’, London, UK, September 15, 2015.
University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership, invited talk on ‘City leadership and policy for change’, Cambridge, UK, July 6, 2015.
Research and innovation in sustainable construction
Construction Climate Challenge, Volvo Construction Equipment, invited talk on ‘Research and innovation in sustainable construction’, Gothenburg, Sweden, June 24, 2015.
China-UK Urbanisation – A New Model, Building Research Establishment, invited talk on ‘UK approach to sustainable urbanisation’, Watford, UK, June 17, 2015.
Prospects for Standardising Sustainable Urban Development, University of Westminster, invited talk on standards, London, UK, June 12, 2015.
European Smart Cities Conference, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, invited talk on ‘Smart Cities’, London, UK, May 12, 2015.
Innovation Forum Leaders’ Conference, Innovation Forum, invited talk on ‘Planning healthy cities’, Cambridge, UK, April 16, 2015.
Future Cities Roundtable, World Cities Network, Arup, and BRE, roundtable presentation on ‘Cities as Systems’, Cannes, France, March 11, 2015.
UK Smart Cities All-Party Parliamentary Group, invited talk on ‘What do Councils want from Smart Cities?’, London, UK, March 9, 2015.
Changing Cities: Building a Healthy Future Together conference, Medsin, invited lecture on ‘Planning for health’, Newcastle, UK, November 15, 2014.
City of Mikkeli, invited talk on ‘Sustainable development and BREEAM Communities’, Mikkeli, Finland, September 27, 2013.
Planning Aid for London, invited talk on ‘Sustainability and planning’, London, UK, May 23, 2013.
RTPI South West conference, Royal Town Planning Institute, invited talk on ‘Creating successful masterplans’, Poole, UK, May 17, 2013.
Design Event, Buckinghamshire Oxfordshire and Berkshire Councils, invited talk on ‘Sustainable communities’, Oxford, UK, April 10, 2013.
South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership, invited talk on ‘Sustainable communities’, Milton Keynes, UK, December 11, 2012.
RTPI North West conference, Royal Town Planning Institute, invited talk on ‘Designing for climate change adaptation’, Warrington, UK, November 7, 2012.
Swedish Green Building Council, invited talk on BREEAM Communities, Stockholm, Sweden, October 26, 2012.
FutureBuilt, invited talk on ‘Using BREEAM Communities in Norway’, Oslo, Norway, June 8, 2012.
Climate Change Supported Learning Group, Planning Officer Society, invited lecture on ‘Developing sustainable communities’, Watford, UK, April 5, 2012.
GreenUp, invited talk on ‘Sustainable development through rating systems’, Valencia, Spain, March 1, 2012.
Broadland District Council, invited talk on ‘Neighbourhood planning and BREEAM Communities’, Norwich, UK, February 21, 2012. Politicians in Planning Conference, Royal Town Planning Institute, invited talk on ‘Planning for Sustainable Energy’, London, UK, November 6, 2010.
Academic conference presentations
Chang, M., Bridge, S., Pineo, H., Hammerschmidt, S. Regulatory or Market-Driven Approaches to Healthy Places? Panel discussion at National Planning Convention, American Planning Association, online, April 28, 2023.
Pineo, H. Book Talk: Healthy Urbanism: Re-defining the Meaning, Form and Creation of Healthy Cities. Workshop delivered at 18th International Conference on Urban Health, Valencia, Spain, October 24, 2022.
Moore, G., Pineo, H. Reflections on taking a participatory, action-orientated approach to healthy urbanism. Oral presentation delivered at Contemporary Issues in Participatory Geography: Challenges, Opportunities and New Directions conference, Royal Geographical Society, online, May 12, 2021.
Pineo, H., Moore, G. Challenges and opportunities of integrating health and wellbeing in new development: A qualitative study of the perceptions of built environment professionals. Oral presentation delivered at Healthy City Design International, London, UK, December 2, 2020.
Pineo, H., Moore, G., Barrantes Chaves, K., Cooper, E. Lessons from healthy urban development: a synthesis of international cases. Oral presentation delivered at Healthy City Design International, London, UK, December 1, 2020.
Pineo, H., Moore, G., Rowson, M., Aldridge, R., Turnbull, E. Training the next generation in transdisciplinarity. European Journal of Public Health, (30) 5. Poster presentation at 16th World Congress on Public Health and 13th European Public Health Conference, online, October 12-16, 2020.
Pineo, H., Zimmermann, N., Wilkinson, P., Davies, M. The value and use of urban health indicator tools in urban planning: a qualitative system dynamics study. Poster presentation at 16th International Conference on Urban Health, Xiamen, China, November 4-8, 2019.
Pineo, H., Zimmermann, N., Wilkinson, P., Davies, M. Impact of urban health indicators in urban planning policy and decision making: a qualitative system dynamics study. The Lancet, (394) S12, Oral presentation at The Lancet UK Public Health Science Conference, London, UK, November 29, 2019.
Turnbull, E.R., Pineo, H., Aldridge, R.W. Improving the health of the public: a transdisciplinary research study. The Lancet, (394) S12, Poster presentation at The Lancet UK Public Health Science Conference, London, UK, November 29, 2019.
Pineo, H. A healthy urban design and planning framework integrating sustainability, equity and inclusion. Oral presentation at Healthy City Design International, London, UK, October 14, 2019. Recording available.
Niu, Y., Pineo, H., Hale, J., Zhou, K., Wilkinson, P., Davies, M., Liu, Q. Urban decision making for health and sustainability in China: a preliminary reflection on fieldnotes from Beijing and Ningbo. Poster presentation at Planetary Health Alliance Annual Meeting, Stanford, CA, September 4-6, 2019.
Pineo, H., Glonti, K., Rutter, H., Zimmermann, N., Wilkinson, P., Davies, M. Census, characteristics, and taxonomy of urban health indicator tools: a systematic review. The Lancet, (390) S70. Poster presentation at The Lancet UK Public Health Science Conference, London, UK, November 24, 2017.
Pineo, H., Bevan, S., Ruck, A., McNab, D., Deidda, C. Translating community perceptions of health and place into local planning policy and monitoring frameworks. Oral presentation at the Healthy City Design International, Salus, London, UK, October 16, 2017.
Pineo, H., Zimmermann, N., Wilkinson, P., Davies, M. Measuring environmental determinants of health: a review of complexity in benchmarking systems. Oral presentation at International Conference on Urban Health 2016, International Society of Urban Health, San Francisco, CA, USA, April 4, 2016.
Pineo, H., Stromberg, I. Using data to help urban planners measure healthy communities. Oral presentation at World Town Planning Day International Virtual Conference, Planning the World, November 5, 2015.