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Foodscapes

Shaping built environments to nudge healthier everyday food habits

Sector

Food Systems

Region

Global

Timespan

2020-

Photo courtesy: Novo Nordisk

Food security is the backbone of a healthy community, however, divestment in the public realm, dwindling social programs, and many other factors are impacting people’s health. Gehl partnered with Novo Nordisk to identify how public space, food places, and public life intersect to create a neighborhood’s unique foodscape conditions, in an effort to improve poor health outcomes.

Credit: Gehl
Credit: Gehl

Interventions that make the healthy choice, the easy choice

The general health of a population rests on food security. It is broadly understood that reduced access to fresh ingredients or prepared meals is a leading cause of lifestyle diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and more. Factors such as disinvestment in public spaces, social isolation, and inadequate infrastructure worsen these challenges.

By examining the role of the built environment and community in shaping a neighborhood’s foodscape, Gehl supported clients in creating actionable solutions to improve access to healthy, affordable, culturally appropriate food for vulnerable groups and in disinvested communities. Gehl created a Foodscapes framework and toolkit through a cross-cultural approach, that could be scaled-up and applied to other communities with similar contexts. The framework uses a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods to understand the lived experience of accessing healthy foods.

Gehl’s people-first methodology ensured that solutions were specific to local conditions, shifting communities with different needs from lack of access and undernourishment to healthful routines. From local to global action, Gehl is helping cities find innovative ways to invest in people, programs and policies that foster resilient food systems, equitable access to good food and an enhanced quality of life.

Credit: Público

‘People-first’ includes you

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