About the project

B-Challenged: Creating a healthier environment for children

B-Challenged: Creating a healthier environment for children

B-Challenged is an European project that wants to help children aged 6–12 years play outside more and eat healthier food. The project works in city areas where many families have less money or fewer resources.

The project uses research and works together with children, families and local groups to plan and make changes that help children stay healthy. The goal is to make places where children live better for play and healthy food, and to reduce unfair differences in children’s health across Europe.

Project objective

  • B-Challenged aims to co-create and implement systemic actions targeting the social and physical environment to structurally improve children’s active outdoor play and healthy dietary behaviours . The project involves:Analysing existing cohort data (IDEFICS/I.FAMILY & ABCD cohorts) – exploring the influence of social and phyisal environmental factors as well as area-level monitoring factors on children’s active outdoor play and dietary behaviours.
  • Mapping the current conditions and needs of children and communities – identifying factors that promote and hinder children’s active outdoor play and healthy dietary behaviours.
  • Co-creating and implementing actions — aimed at changing the physical and social environment in close cooperation with children and key adult stakeholders.
  • Evaluating the effects of the implemented, co-created actions  – analysing its impact on children’s active outdoor play and dietary behaviours.
Project objective
Research approach and impact of the project

Research approach and impact of the project

The project is based on cross-sectoral and multi-stakeholder cooperation. Through joint decision-making, we involve:

  • children and their families,
  • schools and teachers, school pedagogues,
  • non-governmental organisations,
  • local governments and municipal institutions,
  • health care representatives,
  • experts and practitioers in public health and urban planning.

The B-Challenged project not only aims to improve the quality of life of children in urban neighbourhoods, but also to provide ready-made models (i.e., prototypes) of actions that can be implemented in other regions. The research results will be made available to the wider scientific community and urban practitioners, supporting the development of urban health and planning policies.

Additionally, through analysis of existing cohort data and  using participatory action research and methods from systems dynamics, B-Challenged provides a scientifically sound methodology that can be scaled to other regions of Europe.

B-Challenged consortium

The B-Challenged project is carried out by an international consortium with partners from the Netherlands (leading partner), Poland, Germany, Denmark and Spain.