City of Well-being: A radical guide to planning

Hugh Barton is Emeritus Professor of planning, health and sustainability at the University of the West of England, and the author or editor of a series of innovative books including Sustainable Communities and Healthy Urban Planning (both 2000), Shaping Neighbourhoods (2010), and The Routledge Handbook of Planning for Health and Well-Being (2015). He is a recognized international expert, acting as special advisor to the World Health Organization Healthy Cities movement. A town planner by training, he has spent most of his career teaching planning, urban design and sustainable development at the University of the West of England, Bristol. His research and consultancy has focused on low carbon urban form, inclusive appraisal processes, and the integration of health and well-being into planning. Since 'retirement' in 2012 he has continued writing, and participating in academic and professional engagements, while devoting time to community activism, music-making, tennis and a growing number of grandchildren.

Contents List of Figures Preface Acknowledgements I Orientation Prologue: contrasting city scenarios 1. Putting people at the heart of planning Introduction: the purpose of planning Time-bombs of health, climate and urbanization Planning at the cross-roads Reflection 2. A framework for understanding Towards an eco-system model of cities The settlement health map Interpretation of the health map Conclusion: ethics for planners II Inspiration 3. Shafts of light from the past Classical designers and the city of Priene The Mediaeval city: Siena Grand designs: Paris re-imagined Ethical entrepreneurs and Saltaire 4. The emergence of modern planning The public health revolution Ebenezer Howard and Garden Cities The pioneers in Britain and America Planning as civic design The British new towns Gaining the country but losing the plot 5. Beacons of hope Introduction: Healthy Cities Copenhagen: city of cyclists Kuopio: city of lakes and forests Freiburg: city of short distances Portland: breaking the neo-liberal taboo Lessons from inspirational cities III Cognition: understanding people and environment 6. Spatial planning for physical well-being Obesity, health and physical activity Active travel - walking and cycling Active recreation Healthy diet Cautions and counsels 7. Planning for mental and social well-being Nature, greenspace, sun and sound Social networks and community Healthy, diverse neighbourhoods Social capital and empowerment Spatial planning recommendations 8. Planning for place equity Social justice and health inequalities Planning for all Work, income and spatial policy Housing and living conditions Movement and accessibility 9. Climate change and settlement planning The science of climate change Greenhouse gases, energy and planning Sustainable energy strategy Human ecology 10. The local ecology of cities Ecological resilience Green infrastructure Air quality and planning Sustainable urban water systems Biodiversity Local food production IV Navigation: a route map for healthy planning Criteria for judging healthy urban policy 11. Reality check: the economics of land and development The life-cycle of a plot Players in the development game Land and housing markets How land values shape the city Urban renewal and managing the market 12. Sustainable urban form Understanding urban form Centrifugal and centripetal forces Decentralization versus the compact city Polycentricity and linearity Five key urban form decision areas 13. Healthy neighbourhood design Introduction: the significance of locality The shape of neighbourhoods Spatial analysis and density The quality of place Conclusion: urban design 14. Urban dynamics Introduction: strategic planning issues Understanding the economic base of a city Population and housing Matching economic activity and population Transport infrastructure and economic development V. Perspiration: land, power and the planning process 14. The governance of land Is planning really necessary? Private and community prope