Healthy Communities by Design for All Ages

On September 25, 2009, Snohomish County Long Term Care and Aging co-sponsored a forum entitled “Healthy Communities by Design for All Ages.”  This forum is one of a series of forums on aging readiness supported by the Washington Association of Area Agencies on Aging and conducted by area agencies on aging around the state.

What Is Healthy Community Design?

Healthy community design is planning and designing communities that make it easier for people to live healthy lives. Healthy community design offers important benefits:

• Decreases dependence on the automobile by building homes, businesses, schools, parks and places of worship closer to each other so that people can more easily walk or bike between them.
• Provides opportunities for people to be physically active, have access to healthy foods, and be socially engaged as part of their daily routine, improving the physical and mental health of its citizens.
• Allows persons, if they choose, to age in place and remain all their lives in a community that reflects their changing lifestyles and changing physical capabilities.

Forum presenters discussed why we need healthy community design, what that means, and how we can have it in our own communities.

View some of the PowerPoint Pesentations from the forum:

• Brian Saelens: Why Create Healthy Communities - Research Evidence (2.5 MB)
• Christie Baumel:  Climate Change Planning (1.9 MB)
• Dr. Gary Goldbaum:  Why Create Healthy Communities (1.1 MB)
• Mark Hinshaw:  Preparing for an Aging Society (5.7 MB) - coming soon
• Marysville Healthy Communities 2009 Summary (5.0 MB) - coming soon
• Philip Hurvitz:  Research Perspectives on Healthy Communities (0.6 MB)
• Liz McNett Crowl:  Healthy Communities in Skagit County (3.4 MB)
• Roland Behee:  Community Transit (1.3 MB)

If you have questions or need additional information, please email Susie Starrfield or call (425) 388-7218.