Healthy Cities Research Initiative

The environments in which we live, work, and play are critical to our health, development, and well-being. Evidence shows that urban environments influence our behaviours and impact our biology. With 81% of Canada's population living in cities, understanding the health promoting potential of cities is an important area of research that can have a big impact on health across population groups.

Urban environments have the potential to become engines of good health and health equity. Governments and communities can harness this potential by promoting physical activity, healthy eating, social connectivity, economic opportunity and injury prevention, as well as access to health services, clean air, nutritious food and green space.

The Healthy Cities Research Initiative (HCRI) will help us understand which solutions will work best to achieve these outcomes – as well as how cities can put these solutions into action – in ways that will be impactful, sustainable and equitable. The HCRI is co-led by seven Institutes:

• Institute of Population and Public Health (IPPH) – lead strategic Institute
• Institute of Aging (IA)
• Institute of Gender and Health (IGH)
• Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR)
• Institute of Indigenous Peoples' Health (IIPH)
• Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis (IMHA)
• Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes (INMD)

HCRI funding opportunities

HCRI goal and objectives

HCRI Linkage Tool

Date modified:

2023-01-20