Archivo por meses: junio 2019

La atención a las personas mayores, clave en la planificación de las ciudades del futuro

El informe “Cities Alive: Designing for Ageing Communities” publicado por la empresa ARUP, consultora internacional socia en el proyecto UNI-Health, pone de relieve la necesidad de que el conjunto de planificadores, diseñadores y autoridades locales aboguen por modelos de ciudad que incorporen medidas para adaptarse a las necesidades de las personas mayores.

Las cuatro estrategias que se identifican son: independencia, salud y bienestar, conectividad social y seguridad y resiliencia (noticia completa aquí).

Estas cuatro líneas de trabajo se integran en las tres estrategias que desde UNI-Health estamos desarrollando en el grupo de investigación:

  • Ciudades para pasear: una ciudad que permita pasear, salir a la calle, encontrarse con los vecinos del barrio, hacer la compra o ir a una cafetería, es una ciudad que favorece la independencia de las personas y la autonomía no solo de las personas mayores, si no también de niños y niñas, personas con discapacidad y mejora la seguridad y accesibilidad en cuestión de movilidad.
  • La naturaleza en la ciudad: están demostrados los beneficios que los espacios verdes tienen sobre nuestra salud, desde la reducción del estrés, calidad del aire e incluso está relacionado con los índices de obesidad y sobrepeso en función de la distancia a la que exista un parque de nuestras viviendas y espacios de trabajo. Los espacios verdes constituyen además el lugar de encuentro predilecto para distintas generaciones, favoreciendo lugares de encuentro y actividades abiertas a distintos grupos culturales, deportivos y comunitarios. Por otra parte, también está demostrada la influencia que tienen en la reducción de los niveles de contaminación y la necesidad de incorporar espacios naturales y soluciones técnicas vegetales en las ciudades, para asegurar la resiliencia de éstas frente a los efectos del cambio climático y la isla de calor urbana.
  • Espacios de convivencia: plazas, parques, espacios estanciales de proximidad, seguros, confortables y adaptados para todos los usuarios son necesarios en términos de seguridad, cohesión social y salud. Uno de los mayores problemas de las personas mayores es la soledad no deseada, problema que en grandes metrópolis afecta también a jóvenes, y guarda una relación directa con problemas de estrés, insomnio y depresión. Estos espacios son necesarios, pero para que cumplan su función, han de ser diseñados con ciertos criterios que inviten a la gente a sentarse, encontrarse y disfrutar de la compañía de los demás.

Los beneficios de un diseño inclusivo que responda a las necesidades de los sectores de la población más vulnerables (principalmente personas mayores, personas dependientes, personas con discapacidad, infancia y mujeres, sobre todo en estado de gestación) permiten la creación de espacios inclusivos y saludables para toda la población.

UNI-Health finally arrived to Usera District on June! (Part III)

The festival ended with a workshop session with companies, start-ups and researchers to meet common interests and strategic lines towards healthier cities.

Our partners from Newcastle presented the innovative ideas they are developing at the National Innovation Centre of Ageing. They are focusing on adaptive design and innovation pilot projects of ergonomic furniture, facilities and housing alternatives. PhD Dominic Aitken presented the main results of an interesting work about housing alternatives for elderly and how the whole services of cities have to start adapting offer to this heterogeneous sector of the population. Integrating Elderly VOICE in decission-making and design process puts the focus of the Person-Centered Methodology applied to product and service design, towards more inclusive communities.

The different companies and start-ups explained their products and innovation projects to improve urban spaces. We covered topics such as pavements and accessibility, nature-based solutions, sensors and monitoring, data visualisation and urban renovation.

The presentations showed diverse solutions that are innovating towards healthier
and more sustainable environments and urban spaces.

The session continued with a workshop dynamic to think about further research and product design in the three strategic lines we are considering for healthier cities:

  • Walkable streets
  • Nature in cities
  • Spaces of conviviality

The groups were heterogeneous in order to mix all points of view, including international scope, researchers, companies and health professionals. The results showed the possibilities for different sectors in order to develop new services and products that can answer to the new requirements for our neighborhoods, demographic new challenges and cities.

The results were collected in three strategic lines, available in the exhibition and will open new paths for collaborations, I+D projects and innovative solutions.

UNI-Health Workshop results with companies, health professionals and researchers.

We want to thank you all the participation and support of the following companies and institutions that joined this session:

UNI-Health finally arrived to Usera District on June! (Part II)

Thursday evening we had the presentation of the results of the seminars in Usera District Council. UNI-Health and MAyAB students presented their work to the citizens of the neighborhood, the Social Services team, Madrid Salud and the different representants of associations as well as other collaborators and interested partners that joined us.

UNI-Health presentation for local agents in Usera District Council.

UNI-Health program was introduced by the Director of the project, Prof. Ester Higueras from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. The strategic lines that have been studied during this first edition “Active Ageing Cities” were:

  • Streets for walking
  • Nature in the city
  • Spaces for conviviality

Under these three main topics, students explained the diagnosis developed during these past months about thermal comfort, heat island effect, noise pollution, maintenance of green areas, social equipments and services, transportation system, etc.

UNI-Health students explaining the proposals to make Usera greener and healthier.

Students from Master of Bioclimatic Architecture and Environment (MAyAB) also participated to complete the proposals for improving the healthy spaces in the neighborhood. Prof. Teresa Eiroa and Emilia Román presented the main objectives of this first reapplication of UNI-Health methodology adapted to the master program. In this context, students were asked to create proposals under the structure “Agenda 21” and action lines towards the same three strategies mentioned above.

MAyAB reapplication of the UNI-Health methodology
in order to consider health issues in urban renovation strategies.

Many strategies and ideas were highlighted, from the big boulevards that will require further definition for the projects to the little call-to-action proposals such as competitions for greening the balconies or tactical urbanism ideas to introduce improvements from a very first moment and start to raise awareness.

Cristina Gallego and Elisa Pozo, coordinators of the project, highlighted the aim of developing this research and reinforce connections with the neighborhood and local agents.

The event finished in the exhibition hall to show all the results of this program, where we met with neighbors and associations and start thinking about further development and research.

UNI-Health finally arrived to Usera District on June! (Part I)

UNI-Health Team. Itinerary to think about green connectivity in the most dense tissue of the district.

Thursday morning we visited the neighborhood with some of the representants of the Elderly Council, our Newcastle partners and students and UNI-Health ones. The main object of this itinerary was to analyse the connections of green areas in the north part of the district (Almendrales-Moscardó). We started our trip in front of Mercado de Usera (Usera Metro Station) and continue our way through the street Marcelo Usera until we reached Olof Palme Park. At this point, we made a little stop to talk about the things we have notices in this walk. First, it was very interesting to notice how green spaces are usually percieved as fresh and healthy areas, whereas this district is surrounded by the main pollutant roads of Madrid plus the Heat Island Effect, that increase the problems associated to air quality and heat stress. The street of Marcelo Usera was perceived as noisy and dirty, but the shops and activity were identified as interesting and vibrant points to be maintainted and reinforced, maybe with more pedestrian places to stay and sit. The elderly completed this perception with some interesting information about some of the spaces and services that are still in the neighborhood after more than 50 years.

The lack of accessibility in this neighborhood is evident and it supposes a challenge. However, this might be something to be solved by technicians but there are other problems in the neighborhood that could automatically change some of the mayor health problems. The lack of responsability for the dog’s poo are one of the main problems in the public space, not only parks and gardens, but streets and squares. This issue appeals to the responsability of the whole community, but some additional measures could be implemented in order to make the behaviour change faster, such as fines.

We continue our trip down park Olof Palme, direction Evangelios Daycare Center. Some spaces such as the Hydrogen Square were evaluated. In this case, it was ashtonishing to see still old phone boxes structures that now just take out space and vissibility. The lack of green spaces and comfortable places to stay is evident. This Square is in fact a crossroad, noisy and unsecure because of the cars.

Continuing down the street Dolores Barranco, we continue to find the same problem of pavements and pedestrian areas, bollards that are also everywhere (in order to avoid cars occupying the space but making it also dangerous to walk) and pedestrian crossings occupied by garbage containers and cars. In any case, everybody showed optimistic about the amount of diverse spaces that appear suddenly in the neighborhood and that could be transformed into a nice staying area to stay in. The rich diversity of cultures of the neighborhood is evident and these spaces could be a great intercultural and intergenerational meeting point.

Finally, we finished our morning trip visiting the Elderly Social Center of Evangelios. There we were welcome by the staff and direction team to explain all the activities and services the elderly have in this center. There were some interesting activities in collaboration with schools and high school centers to promote intergenerational meetings in an exchange session about philosophy, history and psychology, for example. Also a nice initiative that is getting attention is the creation of a urban garden in one of the schools but open to all the associations in the neighborhood, so everybody can take care of this communitary green place.

UNI-Health Teams in front of Evangelios Elderly Social Center