Shaping healthy active communities toolkit

The Heart and Stroke Foundation has developed a toolkit to help individuals and organizations who are interested in making their communities more supportive of physical activity through active, healthy community design.

Active, healthy community design strategies – such as good public transit, well-maintained parks, and safe, efficient walking and cycling networks − make it easier to get the physical activity Canadians need to promote heart health, prevent stroke and maintain a healthy lifestyle. With Canada’s high rates of physical inactivity and obesity in adults and children, it is more important than ever to build active, healthy design supports into local environments. Residents and community organizations can play an important role in making this happen.

The toolkit includes information on:

• How community design affects heart health
• What works in active, healthy community design
• Local planning processes and opportunities for community input
• Tips and tools for taking action to encourage active, healthy design in your own community
• Canadian communities that are implementing active, healthy design
• What the Heart and Stroke Foundation is doing to support active, healthy design

Click on the PDFs below to download them.

Shaping healthy, active communities toolkit (PDF, 2.20 MB)

Neighbourhood active, healthy design checklist (3 pages, PDF, 63 KB)

Sample PowerPoint presentation (PDF, 2.16 MB)

Shaping healthy, active communities workshop guide

The purpose of this guide is to assist the Heart and Stroke Foundation and other community champions design and deliver a Shaping Active, Healthy Communities workshop in their community. The workshop introduces the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Shaping Active, Healthy CommunitiesToolkit, a resource guide for individuals and organizations interested in making their communities more active, healthier places to live. The purpose of the Shaping Active, Healthy Communities workshop is to:

• Build awareness of the links between community design, physical activity and health
• Introduce the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Shaping Active, Healthy Communities Toolkit
• Show how people can shape and influence their community’s design to support more active, healthier living

Click on the PDFs below to download them.

PowerPoint presentation (PDF, 7.0 MB)

PowerPoint presentation facilitator's notes  (PDF, 286 KB)

Please read the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s position statement on the Built Environment.

Posted April 2010.