All are invited to the CEDAR/MRC Epidemiology Seminar by:

Professor Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, ISGlobal, The Barcelona Institute for Global Health.

Abstract

Over 50% of the world´s population is living in cities and this is expected to rise to 70% over the next few decades.  Cities are society’s predominant engine of innovation and wealth creation, but also main sources of crime, pollution, and disease.   Partly due to poor urban and transport planning, or the lack thereof, we have cities that are too car dominated.  All the urban planning in the world seems for cars; People do not matter.  This has led to high air pollution and noise levels, heat island effects and lack of green space and physical activity that are all detrimental to health.  For example, a recent health impact assessment in Barcelona estimated that 20% of premature mortality was due to urban and transport related exposures.  Electric cars and/or autonomous vehicles have been mentioned as possible solutions, but they are unlikely to be, and solutions need to be sought elsewhere.

A new long term visioning of healthy urban future is needed that bring health, sustainability and livable at the forefront of urban and transport planning.  Systemic approaches to the current problems and e.g. a shift away from our grey car centric cities towards cities with more public and active transportation and green space are urgently needed. Collaboration between e.g. urban and transport planners, environmentalists and public health professionals is essential to create healthy sustainable and livable cities.

About Professor Nieuwenhuijsen

Mark J Nieuwenhuijsen PhD is a world leading expert in environmental exposure assessment, epidemiology, and health risk/impact assessment with a strong focus and interest on healthy urban living. He has experience and expertise in areas of all cause mortality, respiratory and cardiovascular disease, mental health and cognitive function, cancer and reproductive health, and exposure measurement and modelling of indoor and outdoor air pollution, green space, UV exposure, noise, temperature and physical activity, using new technology such as GIS, smartphones, personal sensors and remote sensing. He is currently PI on the EC funded HELIX, that examines the early life exposome and childhood diseases, EC funded EXPOsOMICs that examines the air pollution and water exposome and health, the EC funded PASTA study, which promotes active transportation through sustainable transport, and the EC funded BlueHealth project evaluating the relationship between blue space and Health. He worked at the University of California, Davis, USA and Imperial College London, UK, and is now professor at ISGlobal, Barcelona, Spain. He edited 3 textbooks on exposure assessment and environmental epidemiology and has coauthored more than 350 peer reviewed papers.

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