The world’s challenges of climate change, damage to ecosystems, and social and health inequalities require changes in human behaviours at every level of organisation, among governments, business, communities, and individuals. An important question is how behaviour change can be enabled and supported at the scale and speed required. The research reported in this paper describes important lessons for good practice in changing contexts to modify behaviours for a triple win for health, equity and environmental sustainability. Authors synthesised learning from qualitative, quantitative and cost benefit evaluations of 15 case studies conducted in 12 countries in Europe. The case studies address ways of living (green spaces and energy efficient housing), moving (active transport) and consuming (healthy and sustainable diets) that support the triple win. Ten lessons for good practice were identified. These include bringing a triple win mindset to policy and practice in planning interventions, with potential to improve environmental sustainability, health and equity at the same time. The lessons for good practice are intended to support governmental and non-governmental actors, practitioners and researchers planning to work across sectors to achieve mutual benefits for health and environmental sustainability and in particular to benefit poorer and more socio-economically disadvantaged groups.

Green space areas offer several benefits that support our physical, psychological, and social health. However, the level of engagement with green space areas may not be the same across population groups. Using a mixed-method research design, we investigated the use of a green space area and whether and how the area was beneficial for health, social inclusion, and physical activity for all socioeconomic groups in a suburban area in Norway. The study showed significantly increased use of the area from 2015–2018 and that users belonged to different socioeconomic groups. The motivation for using the area was the opportunity to experience nature and to interact socially. While no significant changes in self-rated health, life satisfaction, or levels of physical activity were found, the study indicates that factors such as location, availability, and designated places for social interaction are important motivating factors for use. Users from the lower socioeconomic groups were among the frequent users but were also the least satisfied with the quality and availability of the path. Our findings call for closer consideration of the location and availability of green spaces and that including places for social interaction and relaxation can contribute to increased use of green spaces.

Human consumption and activity are damaging the global ecosystem and the resources on which we rely for health, well-being and survival. The COVID-19 crisis is yet another manifestation of the urgent need to transition to more sustainable societies, further exposing the weaknesses in health systems and the injustice in our societies. It also underlines that many of the factors leading to environmental degradation, ill health and social and health inequities are interlinked. The current situation provides an unprecedented opportunity to invest in initiatives that address these common factors and encourage people to live more healthily and sustainably. Such initiatives can generate the positive feedback loops needed to change the systems and structures that shape our lives. INHERIT (January 2016–December 2019), an ambitious, multisectoral and transnational research project that involved 18 organisations across Europe, funded by the European Commission, explored such solutions. It identified, defined and analysed promising inter-sectoral policies, practices and approaches to simultaneously promote environmental sustainability, protect and promote health and contribute to health equity (the INHERIT “triple-win”) and that can encourage and enable people to live, move and consume more healthfully and sustainably. It also explored the facilitators and barriers to working across sectors and in public private cooperation. The insights were brought together in guidelines setting out how policy makers can help instigate and support local “triple-win” initiatives that influence behaviours as an approach to contributing to the change that is so urgently needed to stem environmental degradation and the interlinked threats to health and wellbeing. This article sets out this guidance, providing timely insights on how to “build back better” in the post pandemic era.

In this study, we aimed to explore how adolescents experience co-creating health promotion measures in four municipalities in Norway. We applied a qualitative design with group interviews (n = 9) among forty-nine adolescents participating in projects related to ‘Program for Public Health Work in Municipalities’ (2017–2027). Additionally, participatory observation of project activities was performed in two municipalities. We conducted a data-driven thematic analysis to analyse the data. The most prominent finding was that the adolescents often expressed feelings of resignation and dissatisfaction. Furthermore, we identified four underlying reasons behind the resignation and dissatisfaction. These were related to long project duration, the experience of not having an influence on the outcome, promises not being kept and lack of information and continuity in their participation. Essential features for meaningful participation were not present, and the findings suggest that the municipalities had limited success in facilitating participation that adolescents perceived as meaningful. The findings indicate that despite good intentions and policies supporting children’s participation, effort placed on implementing such policies in practice is still needed. This study adds knowledge regarding important factors to consider when involving young people in co-creating measures to avoid unintended effects such as disempowering adolescents.

Background: The Norwegian government’s increased expectations that volunteering can be used as a means of integration and the scarce research regarding refugees’ experiences with volunteering is taken as the background for this study. Our purpose is to adopt a salutogenic perspective to investigate whether and how formal volunteering contributes to developing a sense of social inclusion and well-being among refugees in Norway. Methods: Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with 12 volunteers with refugee backgrounds in a semi-rural district in Norway. Stepwise deductive induction was used for analysis. Results: Three themes were identified as a result of the analysis: (1) feeling safer due to increased knowledge regarding cultures, values, and systems and achieving mutual acceptance; (2) feeling more confident when communicating in Norwegian and contributing to society, and (3) feeling more connected via social relations. Conclusions: Our study indicates that participation in volunteering may contribute to social inclusion and that the participants’ resources and volunteering experiences may have a health-promotive impact under certain conditions.

Background: The centrality of human resources in the provision of healthcare suggests that Human Resource (HR) management and the use of Human Resource analytics – use of digital data to better understand, assess, plan and organize the workforce - can play an important role in this. However, data driven decision making in the field of human resource management is lagging, and the appropriation of HR analytics in the healthcare sector is limited.Aim: The current study explores the role of HR departments and the adoption of Human Resource analytics in four municipalities in Norway to obtain insights into what influences the use or lack of use of HR analytics.Methods: Empirical data were generated through qualitative interviews with fourteen individuals working in HR departments, the municipal administration, and the healthcare services. Structurational theory guided the analysis. The findings show that none of the municipalities made extensive use of data to inform decision making related to human resource management or workforce planning.Results and conclusion: Three conditions hampered or made irrelevant the use of HR analytics: a decoupling between the services and HR, a weak data-culture, and HR and decision-making processes involving a plurality of stakeholders. However, there were changes underway in all municipalities related to the role of HR and HR analytics.