Dan Burden, considered the nation’s expert on walkability, will conduct a workshop and walking audit of the University District Monday, Jan. 9, and discuss how the area can be made safer for all modes of transportation, from walking to driving.

For residents who know the district well, the event will offer a chance to view the area through a new lens, and to share the experience with others who are passionate about creating and maintaining a safe, walkable, and healthy community.

Members of the UALR and University District communities are asked to participate by registering with UD Director Ron Copeland at rrcopeland@ualr.edu.

Burden, executive director of the non-profit Walkable and Livable Communities Institute, will conduct a workshop beginning at 12:45 p.m. in the Donaghey Student Center Ledbetter Hall A, B, and C followed by a walking audit, where participants can experience first-hand conditions that impact walking and biking in the neighborhood. The event will conclude by 5 p.m.

“In many parts of the country, we have engineered activity out of our daily lives by building streets that accommodate only cars, not people,” Burden said. “Unfortunately, this has negatively affected the health and economic vitality of our communities. We can do better.”

The workshop – highlighting links between economic vitality, public health, and transportation – is sponsored by the University District Partnership, the Arkansas Coalition for Obesity Prevention (ArCOP), and the Walkable and Livable Communities Institute.

“With obesity rates on the rise and the epidemic being most dramatic in the south, it is time to make a change,” said ArCOP co-chair Joy Rockenbach. “Nine of the 10 states with the highest adult obesity rates are southern states. Studies have shown that people are more likely to exercise if they can fit activity into their daily lives because time and schedule are the primary reasons most of us put off exercising.”

She said one in three adults and one in five children in Arkansas are obese.

The aim of the University District partnership is to redevelop the areas around the UALR campus, creating a dynamic urban place and improving the quality of life for all who live, learn, work, and play in the area. Located in the heart of the city and anchored by the UALR campus, the University District community includes the homes, workplaces, and schools for thousands of families, workers, business-owners, teachers and students.