Closing Remarks... For Now

Although I began this blog as part of a University project I have enjoyed it and will possibly continue to use it talking about other aspects of planning including health.

In my final post I would like to emphasise on what I said in my first post.... nobody cares about health. I have regularly put up posts about health and its relation to planning but have not received any comments. I have received views from all over the world, showing interest but no comments. This is not very surprising. Planning is a profession that is aimed at changing people and changing behaviours and currently, only some people consider health as being important because our lives have revolved around the easy and not the hard. We must change people's behaviours to health and I can ensure that there are others like me who believe that, although a certain level of personal determination is essential, planners need to be vital drivers in ensuring health considerations is a considerable part of our everyday lives.

To me, this indicates one thing, that health and planning are often considered to be different elements of our world, however, people are not realising the significance of health in our growing urban and globalised environments.

I would like to acknowledge all of my sources once again and also our course Professor Dory Reeves for turning me onto blogging, which I do enjoy when I have free time. I will keep stressing on the importance of health in planning in my future years as a student and as a professional to bring about greater awareness to the degree of control planners have in bettering peoples lives, in terms of health.

So remember, 'you are what you eat' and 'you don't get something from nothing.'

(Source: Google Images, 2011)

(Source: Google Images, 2011)

Get some good motivation... no matter where you find it. Think about it, you will need cardio eventually because if you've seen the movie Zombieland, the number 1 survival rule is.... CARDIO !!

(Source: Google Images, 2011)

Small Community Battles - Te Hana

Small community initiatives are one thing but when a small community, north of Auckland, change their existence and lifestyle it is amazingly inspiring. The Te Hana community has fought to right their wrongs and instill a degree of hope within their community. They have battled through a degraded social image which may have seen the small community abandoned (Te Hana CDC Trust, 2006). What makes it more inspirational is that, to get this far, they have had no government funding and still have been very successful in achieving their dreams.

Image of the Te Hana community at its worst (Source: Te Hana CDC Trust, 2006)

Things have changed, however, the community has been led by the Te Hana Community Development Trust, established in 2002, and has become a unique tourist destination providing an authentic Maori experience, only one hour from the Auckland CBD.

Check out some photos of this beautiful place outside the clutter of Auckland. 

A view from the Marae (Source: Arias, A., 2011).

New Pa site displaying their ancestor's, Princess Te Hana, story (Source: Arias, A., 2011)

The newly developed modern Marae (Source: Arias, A., 2011)

Traditional Maori village developed by the Te Hana CDC Trust (Source: Arias, A., 2011).

Te Hana's relation to health can be seen because to escape the fast-paced Auckland CBD, this type of experience is necessary for relaxation to occur. As mentioned before it is only an hour out of Auckland providing Aucklanders convenience to a serene place with great people, great culture and a place where relaxation can occur. These types of 'getaways' every once in a while can be important to the mental health of people and in this case, a small rural community like Te Hana has created a brilliant, vibrant place for people to relieve mental stress. 

The Te Hana community has also redeveloped their area with a focus on the health of their community. This, to me, is inspirational because, not only are they creating a brighter future for their children but, they are also addressing many facets of life including the health of their community members. To think, such a small community can come so far is amazing and reassuring. Some of Te Hana's health related projects have included:

• Bettering the sewerage treatment and drinking water facilities;
• Encouraging exercise through community classes;
• Supporting the PushPlay programme;
• Improving exercise facilities, such as sports fields, basketball courts etc;
• Promoting child health checks in all schools in the area;
• Promoting a 'Well Child Health Programme'; and
• Reducing smoking in their community

So next time you want to escape the hustle and bustle of Auckland, or if you want to see another side of Auckland, drive up to Te Hana and make a day of it. It provides a relief from mental stress in a place where the air is fresh, the people are friendly and the world is seen in a new light.

Check out this video of Te Hana's journey that my group members and I prepared for a project for one of our Planning papers...

(Acknowledgments to my team members Angela Taganahan, Simon Mitchell, Steven Sanson and Sophie Elwood and myself, Jayesh Parekh.)

References:

• Arias, A. (2011): "Personal Photos."
• Te Hana Community Development Charitable (CDC) Trust (2006): "Te Hana/Oruawharo Community Plan" http://www.zartaj.co.nz/development/tehana.co.nz/uploads/file/Te%20HanaCommunityOutcomePlanReport7_Revisedcopy_090507.pdf (Accessed: 16/04/11).

Good Practice - Instilling Health in Parks

I have found an awesome example of good healthy design practices in Auckland. These facilities are up to date, well designed, convenient and also used heavily by all members of the public. This park is located on the North Shore and I was surprised to see the level of design which has gone into this development focusing on health and exercise.

Leg Press Machine (Source: Taganahan, A., 2011)

The AirWalker, similar to a Cross Trainer (Source: Taganahan, A., 2011).

Machine that works your back, legs, arms and chest (Source: Taganahan, A., 2011).

Personally these machines are a lot more appealing than what was done in Michaels Ave in Ellerslie. However, this seems to show the level of development that can occur if people manage to emphasise on health in parks management and planning. I believe these types of developments is what can make significant strides towards creating awareness about health in planning.

Here are a few examples from cities around the world...

Los Angeles..

AirWalkers installed in a 'Healthy Parks' programme in LA (Source: LA County - Parks and Recreation, 2004)

Washington D.C

New Developments at the Marvin Gaye Park, promoting youth physical activity (Source: Trowbridge, 2010)

Healthy Parks Healthy People programme established by the NSW Government to improve "mental and physical health by spending more time in parks" (Centennial Parklands, 2009).

Creation of parks which are more attractive allows for people to spend more time there (Source: Centennial Parklands, 2009) 

These are only two examples of how parks can be used to promote healthy living and well beings of people. There also seems to be a growing interest by Governments in what types of developments can be done in parks to encourage its use for health purposes.

Here are a few examples of machines that can be used...

                      Sitting Rotator (Source: Outdoor Fitness Inc, 2010)

      Back Extension (Source: Outdoor Fitness Inc, 2010).

Weight Lift (Source: Outdoor Fitness Inc, 2010)

Sit-up Board (Outdoor Fitness Inc, 2010)

References:

• Centennial Parklands (2009): "Centennial Parklands" http://www.upiu.com/health/2010/06/23/Inner-city-needle-park-turned-community-health-catalyst/UPIU-8291277314109/ (Accessed: 30/05/11).
• LA County - Parks and Recreation (2004): "Parks and Recreation" http://parks.lacounty.gov/Parkinfo.asp?URL=HealthyPark.asp&Title=Healthy%20Parks (Accessed: 30/05/11).
• Outdoor Fitness Inc (2010): "Outdoor Fitness Equipment" http://www.outdoor-fitness.com/ (Accessed: 30/05/11).
• Taganahan, A. (2011): "Personal Photos."
• Trowbridge, J. (2010): "Inner City 'Needle Park' Tuned Community Health Catalyst" http://www.upiu.com/health/2010/06/23/Inner-city-needle-park-turned-community-health-catalyst/UPIU-8291277314109/ (Accessed: 30/05/11).

Outdated Practice - Healthy Environment Design

Michaels Avenue Reserve in Ellerslie, Auckland, is a good example of the efforts of the previous Auckland City Council body, as they attempted to create a 'Fitness Trail' around the Michaels Ave. Reserve. In my opinion, although the equipment is outdated and not very inviting to use, it was a good initiative to help people get in tune with their health at the time, however, it has not been maintained or upgraded in any way whatsoever. I wonder if they even remember if this 'Fitness Trail' exists anymore.

Michaels Ave. Fitness Trail (Source: Parekh, 2011)

There are some pro's of the development, however, which should be recognised. These include:

• The Fitness Trail was constructed around the entire reserve building an element of cardio vascular exercise into basic strength training using your own body weight;
• There are a range of different exercises that can help to build and maintain different muscles;



Push Up Bars (Source: Parekh, 2011).

Map of Fitness Trail around the reserve with the range of different exercises outlined (Source: Parekh, 2011).

• In an open space, which is relatively visible during a nice sunny day; and
• Signs encourage users to START SLOW and also how to do they exercises.

Leg and Ab Stretch Sign indicating a beginners and advanced level workout (Source: Parekh, 2011).

These are some very important pro's of the Michaels Ave Reserve Fitness Trail, however, there are also many con's as well. These include:

• No maintenance of the equipment;
• Some equipment is dangerous (like a balance beam which was just a plank of wood);
• Signs have faded and have been damaged;
• The information on the signs only asks a person to do ONE set of exercises per 'fitness stop,' which may not even be enough to warm up a major muscle group; and
• To some extent, many people may not even see it because it is not visible from the main entry near the Ellerslie YMCA.

Plank of Wood as a 'Balance Beam' (Source: Parekh, 2011).

Beginning of the Trail (Source: Parekh, 2011)

Faded sign makes it difficult to understand what to do here (Source: Parkeh, 2011)

All in all, I believe the 'Fitness Trail' was good practice, which has become outdated. When I participated in the trail I completed it within 20 minutes, using the guidelines provided on the signs. I did observe, however, that the trail is used a lot by children and also senior citizens, which was reassuring to see. For this reason, I would say that the idea is awesome and is, to some extent, working but the trail needs to be upgraded and more investment is required.