Urban planning, design and management approaches to building urban resilience: a rapid review of the evidence

Urban planning, risk governance and resilience have become increasingly important pathways to promote and protect public health at the local level. While climate change, inadequately planned urbanization and environmental degradation have left many cities vulnerable to disasters; the COVID-19 pandemic further highlighted the links between health and urban environments, and the relevance of sustainable and resilient planning. As part of the Protecting environments and health by building urban resilience project led by the WHO European Centre for Environment and Health, we conducted a rapid review of the evidence on urban planning, design and management strategies for increasing preparedness and resilience at the local level. Drawing from six databases (2015–2021), we identified a total of 172 scientific articles. Specific local response strategies were identified for six hazard types and eight cross-cutting issues. Findings suggest that institutional innovation, improving early warning, or understanding risks and cascading effects, are important for all hazards, while urban greening and controlling urban sprawl have synergies and co-benefits across multiple hazard types. This compilation of evidence can support local administrations and communities in further integrating health protection considerations into mainstream urban planning and management and help prepare cities to increase hazard preparedness and become more resilient.