ABSTRACT
Cities and urbanization processes are pivotal determinants of citizens' health and quality of life. Within the “Healthy City” literature, health is not merely confined to access to medical services; rather, it encompasses the quality of the physical environment, environmental resilience, safety, social justice, and the quality of local services. Accordingly, this study aims to evaluate the neighborhoods within the Modares Innovation District based on health-oriented components and to identify intervention priorities to enhance citizens’ health and well-being. This research is applied in purpose and descriptive-analytical in nature. The statistical population consisted of 381 residents, and data were collected via a questionnaire. The conceptual framework is structured across four dimensions: environmental health and resilience, physical-functional aspects, accessibility and transportation, and socio-economic factors. Data analysis was conducted using an independent t-test to compare the health status of the neighborhoods, Pearson correlation to examine relationships among variables, and mean-based analysis to rank components and extract intervention priorities. Descriptive statistics indicate that the overall status of health-oriented components in the study area is relatively favorable. Results from the independent t-test reveal that the Fatemi neighborhood aligns more closely with “Healthy Neighborhood” indicators compared to the Jamalzadeh neighborhood. Furthermore, the Pearson correlation confirms a significant positive relationship between all independent variables and urban health. Finally, accessibility, service infrastructure, and environmental hygiene were identified as relative strengths, while safety, green and open spaces, social participation, and social justice were recognized as areas requiring targeted interventions. Consequently, strategies are proposed to promote citizens’ health and well-being.
Extended Abstract
Introduction
Rapid urbanization has exposed developing societies to a multifaceted array of economic, social, environmental, and public health challenges. According to the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects report, %55 of the global population resided in urban areas in 2018, and this proportion is projected to reach %68 by 2050—equivalent to more than two-thirds of humanity. Cities, as the primary hubs of economic, cultural, and social activity, play a decisive role in shaping human life and health. Nevertheless, intensive development, high population densities, and rapid physical transformations have generated novel and extensive threats to both the physical and mental well-being of urban citizens. Numerous studies have demonstrated that increased building density without adequate provision of open and green spaces is associated with higher rates of mental disorders, reduced physical activity, and increased prevalence of chronic respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Particularly in developing megacities, issues such as air pollution, lack of safety in public spaces, and insufficient walking and cycling infrastructure endanger the everyday health of citizens.
Despite the undeniable significance of health within urban contexts, a fundamental issue persists: in the course of urban development—particularly in emerging economic poles and rapidly growing districts—physical and profit-driven considerations have consistently taken precedence over health and social welfare. Consequently, our urban environments have often been shaped according to principles that not only fail to encourage physical activity and social interaction but may themselves become active threats to public health. For instance, the unchecked proliferation of commercial and office land uses in urban cores, unaccompanied by quality pause spaces and residential environments, has led to increased mental fatigue, reduced sense of place attachment, and the fragmentation of neighbourhood-level social networks. In effect, urban developments that neglect health-oriented considerations have led to diminished quality of life and escalated healthcare and social costs. The expenditures associated with diseases linked to sedentary lifestyles and air pollution consume a significant portion of national health budgets annually, underscoring the urgent need to rethink prevailing urban development paradigms.
In response to these challenges, various approaches have been adopted within urban planning. Classical strategies predominantly focused on expanding medical infrastructure and locating healthcare facilities, while modern urbanism tended to address public transport improvement or green space development in isolation. However, most of these approaches—due to their one-dimensional, sectoral, and predominantly treatment-oriented perspectives—have proven incapable of resolving the fundamental health issues of cities at the neighbourhood scale. The absence of an integrated vision, one that conceptualises health not merely as the absence of disease but as complete physical, mental, and social well-being at the micro-scale of the neighbourhood, has rendered many such development schemes ineffective. Earlier approaches often conflated "health" with "treatment"; however, urban health depends far less on the number of hospital beds than on the quality of breathing air, the feasibility of daily walking, street safety, and the availability of green spaces within walking distance.
In the face of ongoing urban transformations, concepts such as the "healthy city," "healthy place," and "healthy neighbourhood" have attained a pivotal position within urban planning scholarship. These approaches emphasise that health is not derived solely from medical care but is deeply embedded in the quality of neighbourhood environments where individuals live, work, commute, and engage in leisure activities. The World Health Organization defines a healthy city as one that continuously creates and improves its physical and social environments while expanding community resources to enable mutual support among people in performing all life functions. Urban planning, by virtue of its inherently spatial nature, maintains a close nexus with public health through mechanisms including spatial organisation, land-use decision-making, transportation system development, public space design, and environmental quality enhancement. Accordingly, understanding the health status of neighbourhoods and identifying effective strategies for promoting public welfare have become fundamental components of urban planning and design.
The present study undertakes an evaluation of neighbourhoods situated within the Modares Innovation District, with a specific focus on health-oriented indicators. Located in District 6 of Tehran Municipality, this district encompasses the densely populated and high-traffic neighbourhoods of Fatemi and Jamalzadeh. The district is recognised as one of the areas with a primary level of development, having exhibited considerable growth in indicators such as economic activity, employment, and access to information. Moreover, it possesses a concentration of healthcare facilities, mixed-use developments, cultural-artistic corridors, and knowledge-based institutions, thereby holding latent potential to evolve into a health-oriented urban district. However, in such contexts—where the primary emphasis is on economic development and innovation ecosystems—there exists a significant risk of neglecting the physical and psychological quality of life, work-induced fatigue, and the reduction of health-related welfare per capita. Additionally, these areas display entirely distinct spatial, economic, and demographic dynamics, wherein economic development often overshadows everyday quality of life. The present research addresses this gap by localising and empirically testing a health-oriented neighbourhood assessment framework within the context of an innovation district. The primary objective is to demonstrate how rapid urban growth can be reconciled with development strategies grounded in the enhancement of citizens' health.

Methodology
The study adopts a descriptive-analytical research design and is applied in terms of its objective. Data were collected through library research, a comprehensive review of contemporary international literature on healthy neighborhoods, field observations, and a questionnaire-based survey. A simple random sampling method was employed, and the questionnaire items were developed based on the four principal dimensions of the conceptual framework. The study area comprises the Fatemi and Jamalzadeh neighborhoods within the Modares Innovation District, situated in District 6 of Tehran Municipality. The sample size, determined utilizing Cochran's formula, comprised 381 respondents, who were proportionally distributed according to the population of each neighborhood. Subsequently, the collected data were analyzed using SPSS software. Independent samples t-tests were conducted to compare the health status of the two neighborhoods, Pearson correlation coefficients computed to examine inter-variable relationships, and mean-based analyses employed for component ranking.

Results and Discussion
Cities and living environments have always been at the forefront of confronting health challenges, including population density, environmental pollution, and the spread of diseases. In this context, attention to health-oriented indicators at the neighbourhood scale—as one of the key levels of urban planning—has gained increasing importance, since many of the determinants of citizens' health—including air quality, walking opportunities, traffic safety, and daily social interactions—are shaped precisely at this scale. This understanding aligns with the contemporary literature on healthy neighbourhoods, particularly with the Healthy Neighbourhoods Core Framework, which conceptualises the neighbourhood as a multidimensional system encompassing access, interaction, active mobility, green space, inclusivity, and built environment quality.
The assessment of health-orientation status in the neighborhoods of the Modares Innovation District was conducted based on four principal dimensions:
(1) environmental health and resilience,
(2) physical-functional characteristics,
(3) accessibility and transportation, and
(4) socio-economic attributes. Statistical analyses indicate that, overall, the neighborhoods of the Modares Innovation District exhibit relatively favorable conditions with respect to health-oriented urban components. However, the comparative analysis of Fatemi and Jamalzadeh neighborhoods reveals that land-use distribution, urban fabric quality, and functional pressure intensity play a significant role in shaping residents' health perceptions. The relatively superior condition of Fatemi neighborhood can be attributed to its greater physical coherence, public spaces’ higher quality, and more adequate access to the street network. Conversely, the presence of deteriorated urban fabric, high activity density, and traffic congestion in certain sections of the Jamalzadeh neighborhood has contributed to diminished urban environmental quality and, consequently, a lower level of perceived environmental health among residents. Overall, the findings suggest that although innovation district development can enhance urban infrastructure and improve service accessibility, the absence of health-oriented planning principles and spatial equity considerations may culminate in intra-neighborhood spatial inequalities. Therefore, integrating salutogenic urban design approaches with innovation district development policies can play a crucial role in promoting the quality of life and urban health.

Conclusion
This research was undertaken with the aim of evaluating health-oriented components within the neighbourhoods of an innovation district. The results indicate that the overall status of health-oriented indicators within the survey area is relatively satisfactory; nevertheless, this condition does not signify the absence of challenges, but rather reflects the simultaneous coexistence of infrastructural and service capacities with deficiencies in safety, green space provision, social participation, and active neighbourhood-level mobility. In other words, alongside adequate hospitals and service centres, the lack of neighbourhood parks, the absence of safe cycling routes, and deficiencies in pedestrian networks remain as the primary obstacles to achieving a healthy neighbourhood.
The comparison between the two neighbourhoods revealed that Fatemi consistently outperforms Jamalzadeh across most indicators, a disparity that can be attributed to differentials in urban fabric quality, land-use distribution, green space accessibility, and activity intensity between the two areas. Jamalzadeh requires targeted improvements in safety, green/open spaces, social participation, and active mobility to enhance the overall health, well-being, and quality of life for its residents.
From a theoretical perspective, the research findings corroborate that innovation district development does not necessarily translate into concurrent and balanced enhancement of urban health indicators for residents. The concentration of trip-generating land uses within these districts, while fostering economic and scientific opportunities, may concurrently engender adverse consequences including increased traffic congestion, strain on urban infrastructure, environmental quality deterioration, and the erosion of social bonds at the neighbourhood level. This phenomenon, referred to in the literature as the "urban health penalty," manifests unevenly across the two neighbourhoods within the Modares Innovation District.
Consequently, the integration of health-oriented planning approaches with innovation district development policies is imperative—an approach wherein the quality of the physical environment, urban safety, equitable accessibility, sustainable transportation, social participation, and environmental resilience are considered as core elements of urban health. This integration requires multi-sectoral collaboration among the municipality, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, and local institutions. Furthermore, health impact assessments (HIA) should be mandated for all major development projects within innovation districts, with findings made publicly accessible to ensure transparency, accountability, and spatial justice.
Key policy recommendations derived from this study are as follows:
1. Prioritising citizens' health within comprehensive urban development plans: Health should be embedded as a primary objective in all strategic planning documents, with specific targets, dedicated budgets, and regular monitoring systems.
2. Air pollution mitigation through the promotion of public transportation and cycling infrastructure: This includes expanding the bus rapid transit (BRT) network, installing protected bicycle lanes, and implementing congestion pricing for single-occupancy vehicles during peak hours.
3. Enhancing pedestrian pathway quality with due consideration to the needs of elderly and disabled populations: Sidewalks should be widened, levelled, and maintained regularly; ramps, tactile paving, and resting benches should be installed at appropriate intervals.
4. Installing appropriate urban furniture to encourage social presence and interaction: Benches, shade structures, drinking fountains, and small playgrounds should be strategically placed in high-traffic areas to invite stopping and social engagement.
5. Expanding local green and open spaces, particularly in the Jamalzadeh neighbourhood: Vacant and derelict lands should be converted into pocket parks, community gardens, or multifunctional plazas, with priority given to areas identified as green deserts.
6. Establishing community health hubs with resident participation: These hubs should offer screening services, psychological counselling, community sports programmes, and nutritional education within existing neighbourhood spaces.
7. Developing a participatory health monitoring system: Residents should be actively involved in tracking health indicators through citizen applications, periodic surveys, and local working groups, ensuring that policies remain responsive to evolving community needs.
8. Promoting health literacy and resident empowerment through neighbourhood-based educational programmes: Regular workshops on nutrition, physical activity, mental health, and environmental awareness should be organised to equip residents with the knowledge and skills needed for proactive health management and community participation.
Future research directions include longitudinal studies to track changes in health indicators over time as innovation district development proceeds, comparative studies across multiple innovation districts in different Iranian cities, and qualitative investigations to explore residents' lived experiences and coping strategies in the face of urban transformation. Ultimately, this research underscores that a genuinely successful innovation district is measured not solely by its economic and scientific outputs but by its capacity to enhance the health and well-being of all its residents.

Funding
There is no funding support.

Authors’ Contribution
Authors contributed equally to the conceptualization and writing of the article. All of the authors approved the content of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work declaration of competing interest none.

Conflict of Interest
Authors declared no conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all the scientific consultants of this paper.