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Women's Health and the World's Cities

Eugenie L Birch editor Susan M Wachter editor Afaf Ibrahim Meleis editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:University of Pennsylvania Press

Published:21st Feb '13

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Women's Health and the World's Cities cover

Growing urbanization affects women and men in fundamentally different ways, but the relationship between gender and city environments has been ignored or misunderstood. Women and men play different roles, frequent different public areas, and face different health risks. Women suffer disproportionately from disease, injury, and violence because their access to resources is often more limited than that of their male counterparts. Yet, when women are healthy and safe, so are their families and communities. Urban policy makers and public health professionals need to understand how conditions in densely populated places can help or harm the well-being of women in order to serve this large segment of humanity.

Women's Health and the World's Cities illuminates the intersection of gender, health, and urban environments. This collection of essays examines the impact of urban living on the physical and psychological states of women and girls in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the United States. Urban planners, scholars, medical practitioners, and activists present original research and compelling ideas. They consider the specific needs of subpopulations of urban women and evaluate strategies for designing spaces, services, and infrastructure in ways that promote women's health. Women's Health and the World's Cities provides urban planners and public health care providers with on-the-ground examples of projects and policies that have changed women's lives for the better.

"Women's Health and the World's Cities will hopefully spur a paradigm shift—political, economic, and social—on how we view women's rights to well-being. . . . An outstanding addition to the existing literature on urban and public health."—Journal of Urban Affairs


"Incredibly relevant in setting out to address primary health issues affecting urban women globally. . . . The book provides valuable insight into urban women's health issues worldwide. Thanks to its diversity in topics, there is bound to be an intriguing chapter for readers of all backgrounds—academics, researchers, and philanthropists alike."—Gender, Place, and Culture


"While global women's health has received serious attention from scholars, the profound impact of the environment on women's well-being has been poorly understood until now. Essential reading for anyone working to improve the lives of women."—Nancy Fugate Woods, University of Washington School of Nursing


"Filling a major gap in the literature on urban health, Meleis, Birch, and Wachter have pulled together an impressive collection of essays that promises to spark dialogue and debate across and among disciplines. Readers will come away with a clear understanding of the connections among health, gender, and urban space."—David Vlahov, University of California, San Francisco

ISBN: 9780812222647

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown

352 pages