Healthy cities take centre stage in urban planning

Following COVID-19, cities are set to play a bigger role in improving health outcomes for their residents, according to North American local government leaders gathered at a recent Cities Today virtual roundtable.

During the pandemic, people have turned to their city governments more than ever as a source of information and support. Municipalities have rapidly launched COVID and vaccine data dashboards as well as services to address knock-on impacts such as emergency food and financial needs.

This is creating the foundations for longer-term programmes amid wider challenges, from loneliness and the drugs crisis in some cities to the health impacts of extreme weather events.

Many citi...