About the Health and Society Group

We, in the Health and Society Group, see ourselves as embedded in widening circles of engagement with the major challenges facing human and planetary health today. Whether we are studying the domain of people, places, policies, or the planet more broadly, we engage with these domains with the aim to improve health and society.

Our research includes studies on the role that the local environment plays in shaping lifestyle and health practices, the role that friends, family or places play in influencing health-related decisions, and the effects that polices play on population and planetary health. We use science and theory to guide us in our approach, and participatory practices to foster a healthier world.

We aim

  • to advance knowledge on the social determinants of health and how to intervene on those determinants using a social sciences lens
  • to educate, train, and equip students at all levels in the theories, tools, and methods required to improve population and planetary health
  • to conduct internationally-recognised health sciences research with social impact.

The Health and Society Group is part of the WUR-Centre for Space Place and Society (CSPS) that aims to advance creative, critical, and engaging scholarship within and beyond the social sciences with particular focus on earthly, socio-spatial and environmental justice and translate knowledge into practical action in pursuit of a more just and equitable world.

At the core of our research in people, places, policies, and the planet are the social determinants of health, with a focus on environment, lifestyle, and equity.
At the core of our research in people, places, policies, and the planet are the social determinants of health, with a focus on environment, lifestyle, and equity.