The goal of this class is to give an overview of physical activity and public health policy around the world. What is policy, why is it important for health promotion, and how can we analyze it? What can we learn from a comparison of the different cases? For example, how relevant is the problem of insufficient physical activity globally, in different regions, and in individual countries? What are the most important actors, structures and policies at the global, regional and national level? How is physical activity promotion organized?

This course will employ a case study approach. It will focus on select political entities that are relevant for physical activity promotion policy. We will consider international organizations (WHO Headquarters and WHO Europe), supranational organizations (European Union), as well as select individual countries.