Contributor(s): Professor Tony Travers, Kieron Boyle | How can policy makers and urban health leaders plan through this uncertainty, and how can those plans help to address the changing nature of and existing inequalities in urban health?

To explore this question, we focus on a scenario planning approach undertaken by the Guys’ and St Thomas’ Charity and LSE Cities. Developed using a combination of social and spatial data analysis, existing research, and community input, we will discuss the five scenarios, or imagined futures, and what each might mean for urban health policymaking in years to come.

Living in cities has always carried distinct health challenges. Not only has COVID-19 emphasised issues of poor-quality housing and the importance of access to adequate green spaces, it has also challenged many of the previously considered health benefits of urban life: good public transport links, better employment options, and access to culture and leisure opportunities.

The effects of the pandemic in cities have not been experienced equally and it is vital to remember that those worst affected often have little option over whether they live in cities or not.

Meet our speakers and chair

Kieron Boyle (@KieronJBoyle) is Chief Executive at the Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity.

Tony Travers is Associate Dean of the School of Public Policy and Director of LSE London at LSE.

Suzanne Hall (@SuzanneHall12) is Associate Professor in Sociology and Director of the Cities Programme at LSE.

More about the event

This event is part of the LSE Festival: Shaping the Post-COVID World running from Monday 1 to Saturday 6 March 2021, with a series of events exploring the direction the world could and should be taking after the crisis and how social science research can shape it.

LSE Cities (@LSECities) studies how people and cities interact in a rapidly urbanising world, focusing on how the design of cities impacts on society, culture and the environment. Through research, conferences, teaching and projects, the centre aims to shape new thinking and practice on how to make cities fairer and more sustainable for the next generation of urban dwellers, who will make up some 70 per cent of the global population by 2050.

Twitter hashtags for this event: #LSEFestival