One of the world’s leading architects, Norman Foster has argued healthy cities are “tangibly” greener, safer, and more desirable.
Foster is perhaps best known for the “Gherkin” building in London, and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation headquarters (1986) rebuilding the Reichstag (1998) in Berlin after the reunification.
In an interview, he defined healthy cities as more compact, walkable and encouraging residents to exercise more.
“Healthy cities are tangibly greener, quieter, safer, more secure, and more desirable,” Foster told me.
Foster said there is clear evidence the incorporation of more trees into a city will help to absorb more carbon dioxide and can reduce the urban heat island effect at the same time with more shading.
He also cited the work of Dr. Joseph G. Allen at the T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University, who has done an enormous amount of work on green buildings, and they make people happier and healthier.
“What is true of an individual building is also true of the infrastructure and the totality of a city,” said Foster.
“If you went back more than six decades, just as I was starting after university, people believed intuitively, that if you had natural light, you preserved nature, but you respected diversity, then all these things would be good for you.
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“But what was then subjective back then is now scientifically proven to be the case.”
And he said urban projects designed to encourage active travel, like the Millenium Bridge in London can also “create a ripple of economic prosperity and change” by improving the quality of life for residents.
Foster also spoke of policy developments in cities like Singapore, where couples are offered financial incentives if they live within walking distance of their parents, as social connectivity can help improve quality of life.
In terms of looking to future urban design trends, Foster said he would encourage the “rediscovery” of many of the features found in traditional cities.
“We have to rediscover the skill of creating urban spaces which encourage good neighbourliness,” he told me.
“We also have to rediscover those traditional virtues and translate them with an awareness now of our ability to reduce pollution to reduce congestion, and syphon off some essential traffic.
“Then we can integrate successfully high-quality public transport and develop more zones for the traditional pedestrian.”
Last year, the Norman Foster Institute joined forces with the global healthcare company Bupa to carry out new research on climate resilience and health in cities.
The partnership aims to equip the next generation of architects with the education and training to design cities that support people's health and encourage other stakeholders to get involved with this agenda.
Foster said part of the mission of his Institute is to help educate the civic leaders of the future on combatting climate change, health and air quality, which overlaps with Bupa’s ongoing efforts in improving the health of citizens.
“I have learned a tremendous amount through this partnership,” said Foster.
“I've realised that issues like biodiversity have significant potential to reduce the risk of infectious diseases and pandemics.
“We are not talking theory. We are talking practice and through this partnership, we are getting these messages out to the next generation of architects and urban designers.”
Bupa’s chief sustainability and people officer, Nigel Sullivan added in an interview working with the Norman Foster Institute is a “really good fit” for the healthcare provider.
“These young architects have a big role to play in designing the cities of the future, cities that need to promote healthier lifestyles and support people to adapt to the effects of climate change,” added Sullivan.
New research by Bupa has highlighted the lack of green space in the U.K.
The research found around one in five children from major U.K. cities grow up without a garden and one in four go to a school with no green space at all.
And when looking at the health benefits of green spaces, over 95% of people surveyed in the UK said that green space improves their mood and reduces anxiety.
Bupa has also recently expanded its Healthy Cities app programme.
It’s now available in 24 countries including the UK, Spain, Poland, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Chile, Mexico, Brazil, amongst others.
The app encourages participants to unlock investment from Bupa into the restoration of the environment in urban areas by taking part in physical activity.
“We basically want to get communities, customers and our own people involved in this healthy cities programme, as the more people joining, the more investment will be unlocked to make cities healthier places for people to live” added Sullivan.
“Last year, it was available in 24 countries and we have 100,000 people involved, who did 10 billion steps. And our target is to get half a million people involved this year.”
