INter-sectoral Health Environment Research for InnovaTions

The aim of INHERIT was to change lifestyles and behaviours to support the transition to more sustainable societies. INHERIT was launched in January 2016 and ran until December 2019. 

INHERIT has identified promising policies, practices and innovations that contribute to lifestyle and behaviour change to achieve a 'triple-win': improve the environment, health and contribute to greater health equity. INHERIT explored initiatives in the areas of living (green space, energy-efficient housing), moving (active travel) and consuming (in relation to food and food waste). INHERIT has selected 12 initiatives for further evaluation, and/or adaptation, transfer or upscaling.

RIVM's role

RIVM has led the work on establishing the baseline knowledge base and developing the common analytical framework and was co-leading the evaluation of promising practices and interventions.  On April 19th 2017, the INHERIT Baseline Report was launched. The report investigates the links between behaviour, health, environmental and social resilience. It looks at what can be done to encourage lifestyles, which protect the environment and promote health equity by focusing on the way we live, move, and consume. It is based on a review of scientific literature and framed by the INHERIT model which is presented in the report.

Learnings and recommendations

In a series of policy briefs, the INHERIT project provides guidance on three critical areas at the heart of sustainable change: integrated governance, behaviour change, and health equity. Each brief draws on learnings from the INHERIT project, including top-line recommendations as well as concrete guidance on how to put these recommendations into practice. The briefs also include on-the-ground examples from around Europe, highlighting lessons learnt and possibilities for scaling-up. The policy briefs are available for download

Funding

The project was funded by the EU European Union (European Union) Horizon 2020 programme and coordinated by EuroHealthNet,  a European Partnership for Health, Equity and Wellbeing.