Having observed that the health of people living in urban environments is determined by several elements, the WHO launched the Healthy Cities Project in 1988. This large-scope project aims to make health a top priority for decision-makers, and to increase local strategies for health and sustainable development.

According to the WHO, a healthy city is one that is continually creating and improving those physical and social environments and expanding those community resources that enable people to mutually support each other in performing all the functions of life and in developing to their maximum potential. A healthy city is not one that has achieved a particular health status, but rather one that is conscious of health and striving to improve it.