Dr. Paul Villeneuve: Breathing Life into Cities: The Importance of Greenness and Walkable Neighbourhoods

When: Thursday, May 23, 2024, at 7:00 PM

Where: Blackburn Hamlet Community Centre, 190 Glen Park Drive

The design of cities plays an important role in the health of its residents.  Walkable neighbourhood and access to green spaces has been shown to have direct and indirect health benefits.  Some of these benefits include improved mental health, healthier babies, and reduced risks of several diseases. Nature also plays an important role in exposure to air pollution, noise, and the effects of urban heat island. Dr. Villeneuve will discuss these topics while drawing on some research he has led, including Ottawa-based assessments of associations between greenness and physical activity, environmental exposures studies in and around the Central Experimental Farm, and the benefits of access to parks during the COVID-pandemic.

Dr. Paul Villeneuve is an environmental and occupational epidemiologist, and received his PhD in epidemiology from the University of Toronto. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at Carleton University. Before joining Carleton, he was a Senior Research Scientist in the Healthy Environment and Consumer Safety Bureau at Health Canada. His research activities have focused on estimating the impacts of a number of environmental and occupational exposures on human health such as: air pollution, diesel, radon, electromagnetic fields, cigarettes, radiation, and features of the built environment (greenness, noise, and walkability). He has led many record linkage studies where occupational or survey data have been linked to national or provincial administrative health data and is currently investigating health effects among Canadian workers exposed to ionizing radiation. He also serves on the editorial boards of the Canadian Journal of Public Health, and Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention, and is chairing WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on the Occupational Burden of Disease Estimation.

Admission is free and no registration is required. Refreshments will be served.

People of all ages are welcome.

Looking forward to seeing you!

Questions? Please email barbara@blackburnhamlet.ca