How to engage citizens into health?
On December 14th 5 groups of students of the University of Technology in Eindhoven pitched their plans to engage citizens into health. This sounds easy but it is not. We live in a society where health is taken for granted until we become sick. Meanwhile we pollute our environment and with that pollute ourselves as the 6th mass source of destruction of all life (including our own) on Earth since our planet was born. Health is an awareness issue that only seems to break through into our mind and behaviour when it is too late.
So how do we engage people who seem to have all kinds of priorities during the day than to contribute to our health? The challenge was presented with the overall understanding that most people live life in a flow without giving a second thought. Health hence is a societal and leadership issue rather than one of personal awareness. It is a societal responsability rather than a source for individual reflection.
Societal responsability can be asked from our regional governance as well as from entrepreneurs who see a challenge to contribute to health also from an economic perspective. These students were asked to develop such plans using gaming as possible instrument and AiREAS and Sustainocracy as source of inspiration together with the theory of their university training.
In januari 2017 they present their results after executing their plan is practical reality.
