The Value of Urban Design in relation to Healthy Ageing Author

The Value of Urban Design
in relation to
Healthy Ageing
Author: Sule Onur
Kadikoy Municipality
Manager of Strategy Development Department
&
Healthy Cities Project Coordinator
Rijeka,December, 2007
sule.onur@kadikoy-bld.gov.tr
Quality of Life
1.Behavioral competence:
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Physical health
Functional health
Cognition
Time use
Social behavior
2.Psychological well-being :
the set of
evaluations made
by an individual
about inner life,
including positive
and negative
affects and overall
happiness.
3.Perceived quality of life:
the set of subjective
evaluations made by
an individual about
domains of life such
as housing and
neighborhood or
family and friends.
4.Objective environment:
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the physical environment :natural and man made
the personal environment : composed of
significant others
the small groups:
with whom the individual interacts
face-to-face
suprapersonal environment :characterized by the
aggregate of persons in the proximal locale of the individual
Institutional and normative cultural forces:
which the individual is exposed.
to
4.Objective environment:
4.1.Physical environment
importance of the physical environment to
elderly is in general defined as:
 Physical environment affects the
quality of life
 Living environment exerts impacts on
elderly persons’ attitudes and behavior
4.Objective environment:
4.1.Physical environment
Physical living environment and elderly persons’ physical
and psychological health are related because, in general
it is argued that :
 Poor environment makes life more difficult for the elderly
 Poor housing conditions and hygiene cause disease &
accident
 Feel more socially isolated
 Noisy and crowding environment leads to poor health
 Poor environment causes more psychological stress
 Lost sense of hope causes chronic strain
And good urban design:
has the potential to create:
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better public health
greater social equity
enhanced land values
a more vibrant local economy
reduced vehicle emissions
More sustainable use of non-renewable
resources.
Four key domains of neighborhoods
that may affect the health of elderly
people is highlighted:
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environmental stressors
environmental pollutants
safety/mobility/Access measures
Social and economic environment.
3. Safety, mobility and access:
3.a. Connectivity
well connected cities, towns
and neighborhoods can:
enhance land values
make local shops and facilities
more viable
enhance people’s safety and
security
encourage more walking and
cycling, leading to health benefits
reduce vehicle emissions through
fewer cars being used for non-trip
works
3. Safety, mobility and access:
3.b. Safety
reduces social isolation within
neighborhoods.
3.c.Access to basic services
enhanced by public transport and street connectivity
puts value to health status of elderly
new urbanism
The common approach of new urbanist design
based on the principles of planning and
architecture that work together is maintained
as:
 to create human-scale, walkable
neighborhoods, appropriate architecture
 to develop planning for mixed use and
balanced development of such as housing
and jobs
 to support regional planning for open
space.
3.d.Density vs urban sprawl
High urban density
allows a greater
number of public
amenities and
transport facilities to
be located within
walking distance
3.e. mixed use
 allow effcient use of parking and
transport infrastructure
 lower household expenditure on
transport
 increase the viability of local
shops and facilities
 encourage walking and cyclingthus reducing emissions
 enhance social equity
 increase personal safety
 offer people convenience,
choices and opportunity which
lead to a sense of personal well
being
3.f. adaptability
 extend the useful economic
life of buildings and public
spaces
 increase the diversity of
uses and users in public
space, and the length of
time it is used for
 encourage the conservation
of non-renewable resources
 contribute to economic
success over time
3.g.disability:
Self reported problems
with negihborhoods:
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functional loss,
excessive noise
inadequate lighting
heavy traffic
limited access to
public transportation.
4.Social and economic
environment:
It is defined as a macro-environment
including the norms and values
operating in the individual's culture so
that the attitudes of the general
populace to the elderly make it easier
or harder for them to function.
4.Social and economic
environment:
 Crime
 Discrimination
4.Objective environment:
4.2.Personal environment
It includes groups whom the
individuals interact face to face and it
refers to the social networks, or
support systems.
4.2.1. public realm
A high quality public
realm is thought to :
 increase the use of public
space and support
associated business
 encourage greater
participation in
community and cultural
activities
 enhance personal safety
integrated decision-making
in urban design:
An integrated approach to urban design
decision-making is said to:
 allow more opportunities for greater
numbers of people to benefit from urban
design, over a longer term and at a larger
scale
 by working with complementary economic,
social and environmental policies, allow
urban design to produce the greatest
possible benefits
User Participation
in urban design
User participation in urban
design activity is said to:
 improve the fit between
design and use needs
 develop a sense of
community and ownership
over the final result
 offer cost savings by
encouraging greater user
support for change
By User Participation
 users have essential expertise and information that
can assist the design process
 realistic, more informed public expectations and
understanding can develop
 people can see how their individual needs or concerns
fit into the wider picture
 people may feel a stronger sense of ownership over
the end result
 a stronger sense of community may develop
 the interests of people whose needs might otherwise
be ignored are protected.
local character in urban design
urban design that respects and supports local character can :
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attract highly-skilled workers and high- tech business
help in the promotion and branding of cities and
regions
potentially add a premium to the value of housing
reinforce a sense of identity among residents, and
encourage them to help actively manage their
neighborhood
encourage the conservation and responsible use nonrenewable resources
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References:
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M.Powell Lawton, Miriam Moss, Elizabeth Moles; The Suprapersonal Neighborhood Context of Older People ,Age Heterogeneity and Well-Being
Judith C.Hays, Bruce M.Bruchett, Gerda G.Fillenbaum, Dan. G.Blazer; Is the APOE e4 Allele a risk to person-environment fit ?; Duke
University Medical Center
Krystyna Jaracz RN MA PhD, Gunnel Gustafsson RN LicMSc and Elisabeth Hamrin RN BM PhD; Research Paper : the life situation and
functioanal capacity of the elderly with locomotor disability in Sweden and Poland according to model by Lawton.
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MA Piirainen Arja & PhD Raij Katariina, Coping at Home, 08.03.2006 ;Tohoku Fukushi University – Laurea University of Applied Sciences
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Thank you for your attention