Designing Healthy Communities, Raising Healthy Kids: National Public Health Week 2006

The waves, winds, and rains of Hurricane Katrina irreversibly altered the landscape of the US Gulf Coast. Some communities are rebuilding on existing foundations; others are starting anew, with a virtual tabula rasa. Community leaders have been grappling with intense decisions on how—or in some instances, whether—to rebuild. Despite the sobering trials they face, they are presented with a unique opportunity: to factor health into community design and to rebuild these communities better than before. Imagine having the opportunity to redesign your own community. What would you change? How would you plan development so that achieving optimum health would be a priority? Would roads dominate your transportation options? Would housing be closer to jobs, grocery stores, and retail outlets? Would you preserve more park or farmland? These considerations are paramount to developing communities that can sustain good health. Children can be considered a bellwether for the health of our communities. ; https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2006.086603