1. Developing an urban health research programme using the systems approach Nordin Hasan Director ICSU Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

2. Context Cities have become the dominant habitat of humans. From 2010 more than half the human population on earth were urban. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2014 Revision, Highlights

3. Aggregate urban health data can hide significant health inequities. How do we address inequities? Source: asiasociety.org

4. Unprecedented need and opportunity to: – improve decision- making on human health in urban regions – further improve and promote better decisions

5. Operationally we recognised urgent need for urban health and wellbeing programmes to promote more holistic evidence-based outlooks for decision-making systems and approaches Climate modeling Air Quality 1.modeling 2.monitoring 3.emission inventory Air Quality 1.modeling 2.monitoring 3.emission inventory Epidemiology study: exposure, time-activity, health impacts 1.panel study 2.population study Epidemiology study: exposure, time-activity, health impacts 1.panel study 2.population study Behavior and Vulnerability assessment: social drivers Air quality management : 1.Cost-benefit analysis 2.Short-term intervention 3.Long-term improvement 4.Decision making processes Air quality management : 1.Cost-benefit analysis 2.Short-term intervention 3.Long-term improvement 4.Decision making processes

6. What we wanted to have in our UHW programme Recognition that urban health issues are complex, and require multi-disciplinary approaches Research into urban health and wellbeing that addresses multi-sectoral issues and involve a wide range of stakeholders Adopts a system dynamics approach 6

7. Focus is: How do we encourage researchers and urban planners who have not collaborated to think collectively? How do we get researchers from diverse disciplines and fields of interest to collectively develop a multidisciplinary research project/programme?

8. Science Planning Group members Members Tony Capon, Australia Yong Guan Zhu, China Phillipa Howden Chapman, New Zealand Reiko Kishi, Japan Jaime Montoya, Phillipines Indira Nath, India, Chair Katrina Proust, Australia Nordin Hasan (Ex officio) Method Specialist Barry Newell, Australia ICSU ROAP BHJ Mckellar, Chair RCAP Australia Nor Zaneedarwaty Norman, Malaysia Hizam Jaafar, Malaysia 8

9. – Regional Science Planning Group formed in 2010 – 3 meetings - Kuala Lumpur (2) and Xiamen (1) – On-line consultations at every stage – Plan launched in June 2011 (22 nd Pacific Science Congress) 9

10. Available from www.icsu.org/asia-pacificwww.icsu.org/asia-pacific

11. Need for studies of urban dynamics, including the effects of feedback and human-environment interactions

12. Beyond silos….taking a systems approach Understanding of multiple determinants of health and wellbeing 12

13. Still more variables: feed back loops of drivers/causes 13

14. Recommended implementation strategy Identify institutions keen on using systems approach in work on urban health and wellbeing; Encourage institutions to engage in building capacity Encourage institutions to propose and undertake the pilot projects; Bring this team into contact with potential funding agencies to support the research Use the exemplar pilot studies as a base for outreach program to get city administrators and governors to support and use the systems approach for better evidence-based decision making. 14

15. Implementation of the science plan – began 2012 1.Capacity building – particular attention - utility of the systems approach to a complex problem 2.Development of exemplar research projects – centered on 6 cities (Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila, Pune, Xiamen, Taipei) – serve as examples – how the systems approach can deliver better outcomes 15

16. Pre-scoping Workshop, Hyderabad, June 2012. – Identifying needs and priorities (nutrition and health, waste management, informal settlements, urban transport; vector-borne disease / communicable diseases added in 2nd workshop) – Explored potential research teams with merit and output-oriented focus – Discussed possibilities for research funding and support 16

17. Scoping Workshop Bangkok, August 2012 17 Reviewed concept proposals received (6/8 accepted for development to full proposal) Aims of workshop: clarification of research aims of projects, identification of training activities in systems approaches, identification of the complementary activities required for successful management of pilot projects Agreement of selected projects

18. – Compulsory design features (August 2012): Used systems thinking via the CCM approach Recognise that urban-health problems are multi- sectoral, and solving them require multi- disciplinary approaches, and Projects takes into account the interests of a wide range of stakeholders – Regional Steering Committee formed Chair Prof Javed Iqbal Members Profs Sootiporn Chittmittrapap, Tony Capon, Ramachandran, Katrina Proust, Nordin Hasan (Ex officio) 18

19. Capacity building Proposals and Dynamic Modelling Workshop, Kuala Lumpur January 2013 – Leaders of selected projects with advanced copies of projects proposals – Assistance to finalise proposals for submission to funding bodies – Introduction to dynamic modelling and collaborative conceptual modelling (CCM) methodologies 19

20. Thailand pilot project Understanding sustainable local food production and food security on the edge of an urban area

21. Taiwan pilot project: Planning Green Transportation for Better Urban Health under Climate Change

23. Final remarks The ICSU International Programme Office (IPO) on Urban Health and Wellbeing will be launched in December 2014 Host: Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) Institute of Urban Environment, Xiamen The pilot projects developed by ICSUROAP thus far will be further coordinated by the IPO Approach fits very well as a tool for planning multidisciplinary integrated research the core concept underlying new 10-year global platform for research on global sustainability Future Earth 23

25. 25 Thank you for your attention!