HEARTS

Collaborative Community Design Initiative No. 3

 

The built environment impacts opportunities for walkability, economic opportunity, recreation, play, safety, social cohesion and health—in other words the built environment is a determinant of the health of a neighborhood. As a result, the neighborhoods where we live impact our chances to live healthy lives. In cities across the U.S., including Houston, the distribution of resources and the quality of our built environments, public spaces and neighborhoods are not equal. The socio-economic context of neighborhoods—income, ethnicity, housing, education, and employment—is more often than not directly correlated to the health of the people that call them home. Some neighborhoods have plentiful fresh food options while others are food deserts, some neighborhoods have well-maintained parks while others do not, and some neighborhoods thrive while others decline. 

 

Hearts, the third biennial Collaborative Community Design Initiative, is a toolkit for change developed in collaboration with four partner communities―Denver Harbor, Fifth Ward, Magnolia Park, and Sunnyside—and identified the determinants of health that can be impacted by community design. 

   

The project was funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Houston Health Department’s Community Transformation Initiative 

 

 

Locations: Denver Harbor, Fifth Ward, Magnolia Park, Sunnyside

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Project Team: Susan Rogers, Rose Lee, Mirna Santillan, and Ricardo Sepulveda

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Student Team: Jing Cao, Chris Castaneda, Felipe Cosio, Eunice Liu, Caudy Olmos, Mirna Ovalle, Natalia Sanchez, Tyler Vice, Ben Yu, Benny Zhuang, Juan Pablo Fuentes, John Gardosik, Tiger Lyon, Ashley Hollon

Nanako Hori, Noe Martinez, Hung Pham, Claudia Ponce, Kathleen Roosen, Natalia Sanchez, Preetal Shah, Alfredo Tiznado, David Yao

 

Project Sponsors: National Endowment for the Arts, Houston Health Department Community Transformation Initiative

Completed

 

2013