Urbanization and Slums: Infectious Diseases in the Built Environment: Proceedings of a Workshop (2018)
Chapter: Appendix B: Workshop Statement of Task
Appendix B
Workshop Statement of Task
An ad hoc committee under the auspices of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will plan a 1.5-day public workshop that will examine new transmission pathways of microbes in the urban built environment that affect human health. This workshop will feature invited presentations and discussions on the following topics:
- The current state of science of the formation, function, and interaction of microbial communities in the urban built environment that affect human health;
- Specific urban built environment characteristics, spatial heterogeneity, and land-use patterns, as well as social and behavioral factors (host and vector movement) that may alter vector distribution, and increase or facilitate transmission of infectious diseases;
- Critical opportunities, challenges, and knowledge gaps relevant to translating research findings into practical application of shaping urban environments that prevent and mitigate infectious disease outbreaks;
- Innovative strategies, interventions, and policies for creating sustainable and health-promoting urban built environments that consider structural and socioeconomic determinants of diseases;
- Obtaining valid and reliable data to monitor and evaluate implementation and progress of programs and policies; and
- Collaboration and coordination mechanisms among various stakeholders and across sectors in urban planning, public policy, public
health, animal health, environmental health, microbiology, and social and behavioral sciences.
Workshop speakers and discussants will contribute perspectives from government, academia, and the private and nonprofit sectors. The committee will plan and organize the workshop, select and invite speakers and discussants, and moderate the discussions. A proceedings of the presentations and discussions at the workshop will be prepared by designated rapporteurs in accordance with institutional guidelines.
