The presentation of the +Actiu project took place last Wednesday 20th March at the Tecla Sala Art Centre in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, with the aim of making the project publicly known, generating synergies with local entities and the population in general, and inviting people to be part of the project’s Community of Practice, an essential part of the co-creation process that it’s aimed to define solutions for an active and healthy city for people with chronic pathologies.
The event was attended by around 50 people, including experts from different backgrounds – urban planning, health, sport, innovation – with whom several issues were discussed, trying to link and contribute from their expertise to the objectives of the project and propose ways to achieve healthy environments: the need for collaborative and interdisciplinary work, community participation in the processes of creation and design, the incorporation of the intersectional gender perspective in the design of space or the use of technology as a facilitator of processes.
The day was intended to be not only a time for joint reflection, but also for experimentation and participation, so, after the first block of presentation and round table discussion, an active break was introduced with a 4-minute tabata (a series that combines several high-intensity exercises) and a moment was dedicated to networking among the attendees. The second block was focused on the Community of Practice, to invite the audience to be part of it, and also encouraged joint reflection on what are the barriers and limiters of physical activity in cities using images of different spaces in the neighbourhood.
A remarkable moment for +Actiu that will certainly contribute to the positive outcomes of the project!
Some of the inspiring ideas that emerged from the debate that deserve mention:
📊 There are no healthy people without healthy environments, and the urban environment influences 75% of our health, which is why the design of public space in our cities is key.
👟 The Social and Active Prescription invite the use of public space as a means for socialisation and physical activity, which is essential especially in neighbourhoods where public space plays a key role.
🤝 The community must be part of the process of creation and construction of the city to generate engagement and encourage a sense of belonging and appropriation of the space.
⌚ Technology is a means to encourage these processes and not an end in itself, and gamification applied to the use of public space is a great example of this!
🏛 City councils are an active part and a key player in these processes and should promote these practices as well as put the necessary resources into the creation of walkable, inclusive and active cities.
With the participation of: Mariona Violán Fors, Simón Lee, Ninoska Juan Alvarez, Sebastiaan van Herk, PhD and Susana Pinto, and of course a big thank you to the whole team that makes this project possible: marta rofin serra, Ruth Gow (Healthy Cities.), Paula Jakszyn and Mercedes Gil Lespinard from Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute – IDIBELL Catalan Institute of Oncology, Jordi Vilaró and Mireia Daura i Vidal from Blanquerna – Universitat Ramon Llull, with the collaboration and support of Sandra Ruiz Peralta and Ajuntament de l’Hospitalet, and the funding of Barcelona City Council and Fundación ”la Caixa”.
