The Urban Design Science for Health Lab was established in 2022 to advance the scientific study of built environments and population health. The lab brings together urban design and public health to investigate how the physical characteristics of places relate to human behaviour, health and well-being.

The research programme is based on the view that urban design can contribute more effectively to population health when environmental characteristics are clearly defined, rigorously measured and linked to health through appropriate scientific methods. The lab therefore combines substantive research on environments and health with methodological work aimed at strengthening the evidence available for design and planning.

Research Programme

Urban Environments and Population Health

The lab investigates relationships between built environment characteristics and a broad range of health outcomes. Research addresses cardiometabolic health, mental health, physical functioning, healthy ageing, and health inequalities. The lab pays particular attention to how built environment-health relationships vary across populations, socioeconomic contexts, and geographical settings.

Active Living, Mobility and Sedentary Behaviour

A major area of research examines how neighbourhood design, street networks, and destinations relate to walking, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour. This work considers both established measures of neighbourhood walkability and alternative approaches to characterising spatial structure. Research also examines how built environment conditions may influence opportunities for active living across different population groups.

Workplaces and Health

The programme extends beyond residential neighbourhoods to the environments in which people work. Research examines workplace layout, surrounding built environments, physical activity, sitting, work performance, and worker well-being. This area contributes to a broader understanding of how workplaces across the daily activity system may influence health and behaviour.

Public Open Space, Urban Nature, and Health Equity

The lab studies parks, greenspaces, and other public open spaces. Research considers their availability, accessibility, spatial qualities and potential relationships with physical activity, mental health, and well-being. An important component of this work concerns inequalities in access to health-supportive environments and the development of improved approaches for assessing their characteristics.

Urban Design Science and Spatial Methods

A central objective of the lab is to support urban design as an empirically grounded scientific field. Research examines how urban form can be conceptualised and measured, how spatial scale influences observed relationships, and how evidence from population studies can be translated into urban design relevant knowledge.

Methodological approaches include spatial analysis, space syntax, environmental assessment, epidemiological research, and evidence synthesis. These approaches are used not only to identify associations but also to examine the strength, specificity and limitations of the evidence supporting conclusions about built environments and health.

Emerging Methods and Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The lab also investigates emerging approaches that may extend the analytical and decision-support capabilities of urban design research. Current work includes parametric urban design and the evaluation of large language models (LLMs) and other AI applications.

These technologies are treated as research tools rather than as ends in themselves. Their value is assessed in terms of scientific validity, accuracy, spatial specificity, transparency, and ethical responsibility. This approach allows emerging methods to be incorporated into the wider research programme without replacing established scientific principles.

International and Interdisciplinary Scope

The programme is not defined by a single city type, country, population, or health outcome. Research has addressed diverse urban settings and populations across Asia, Australia and the Americas. International comparisons offer opportunities to examine whether environmental-health relationships are consistent across different geographical, cultural, and socioeconomic contexts.

The lab also works across disciplinary boundaries. Urban design and spatial science offer ways to understand the organisation and characteristics of physical environments. Public health and epidemiology provide approaches for examining behaviours, exposures and health outcomes. Connecting these perspectives is fundamental to developing a stronger evidence base for health-supportive urban design.

Research and Training

Research and postgraduate training are closely connected within the lab. Master’s and doctoral research contributes to established areas of the programme while also developing new questions, methods and applications. The aim is to train researchers who can work confidently across disciplinary boundaries and who understand both the possibilities and limitations of evidence relating built environments to health.

Through research, methodological development, international collaboration and research training, the Urban Design Science for Health Lab seeks to strengthen the scientific foundations of urban design and contribute to environments that better support population health.

The Urban Design Science for Health Lab