IN-HABIT Special Section, Visionary and Integrated Solutions for Inclusive Health and Wellness. Europe and Latin America Dialogue

Abstract

The research project “Inclusive Health and Well-being (IHB) in Small and Medium-sized Cities” (IN-HABIT), launched in 2020 and ending in 2025, focuses on developing visionary and comprehensive solutions to improve IHB at the urban level. With the participation of more than twenty institutions in Europe and Latin America, it carries out its activities in the cities of Córdoba (Spain), Riga (Latvia), Lucca (Italy), and Nitra (Slovakia) as the main cases of implementation in Europe, in addition to the cities of Bogotá and Medellín as cases of replication of actions. The objective of IN-HABIT is to investigate how the use of undervalued resources in each city—culture, food, human-animal bonds, art, and the environment—can improve the SBI of its inhabitants, with an emphasis on gender, equity, inclusion, and social diversity. This use was approached in an integrated manner and was co-created with communities through collaborative platforms, combining technological, digital, and nature-based innovations in public spaces with social and cultural innovations. These actions, which promote sustainability, aesthetic value, and community participation in urban design, were developed within a common framework of analysis and impact measurement.