Q. What is the advantage of registering to the IPEN website?

A. We will send email alerts when IPEN papers are published, and we will send infrequent news about either IPEN-related or general information about built environments, physical activity, and obesity.

Q. How can I adapt the IPEN methods to fit with the culture in my country?

A. We suggest that you translate the core questionnaire items that we have recommended and add items that are relevant to your culture or environment. You can identify these through formative research and should test new surveys for their reliability and validity. Different countries will also have different geographic and census data available. Check out our guidelines for adaptation and translation here.

Q. Why does using IPEN measures and methods matter?

A. The measures and methods we recommend are based on tested materials and techniques. The main aim of IPEN is to be able to compare data from multiple sites. To do this there must be some common core of measures and methods.

Q. Can I post links to papers published on built environments and physical activity that were not included in the IPEN studies?

A. Yes, we would like this website to be a resource for investigators worldwide. You are welcome to send links to your published papers on related topics. We particularly encourage posting papers conducted in low and middle income countries.

Q. What is being done with the information obtained about how the environment affects people’s physical activity or health?

A. IPEN investigators are actively involved in using IPEN and other results to advocate for designing healthier cities. See this paper that provides a rationale and overview of conducting policy-relevant research and this paper that explains the importance of translating built environment research to policy and practice. Briefs and infographics communicate some of the results in ways that are appropriate for policy makers and practitioners. The Council for Physical Activity & the Environment is one mechanism for disseminating IPEN study results more widely. Researchers used data from IPEN Adult to develop evidence-based spatial indicators for healthy and environmentally-sustainable cities using GIS technology. See the 2022 series of papers in Lancet Global Health for more information on evidence-based advocacy initiative.

Q. Why is studying the environment important?

A. By the end of the 1990s there was much evidence to indicate that trying to change individual’s physical activity behavior at a population level was only moderately successful. Environmental studies show more potential for population change, not only because they can reach many people but because the improvements can last a long time. There is now substantial research demonstrating a relationship between the environment and physical activity behavior, supported by many reviews.

Several conceptual frameworks, including ecological models of health behaviours and active living, also support the role of the environment in behavior change.

Q. What is GIS?

A. Geographic Information Systems is a process that links geographic information (where things are) with descriptive information (what things are like). Unlike a flat paper map, where “what you see is what you get,” GIS can have many layers of information. (getting started with GIS)

Q. What do I do if I cannot find GIS data in my country?

A. Typically government agencies store GIS data. Open Street Map is a high-quality GIS resource citizen-science initiative that has collected data in many countries. The data are freely available. See if data are available in your city.

Q. How can I contact IPEN members or post messages to members?

A. Any communication should be sent to the IPEN team to consider and send on. We post conference dates and very relevant links on the upcoming events page. We only accept communications that are directly related to physical activity and the built environment research.

Q. Are there other international studies of built environments and physical activity that are not part of IPEN?

A. Two studies adapted some approaches used in IPEN with other age groups. ISCOLE is a 12 country study of lifestyle behaviors, environments, and obesity among children. HULAP is a coordinated study of environments and physical activity among older adults in the UK and Brazil.