In September, five new treasured open spaces joined the original 10 Twin Cities Treasures announced in 2002 when the Embrace Open Space Campaign launched. These are the kinds of places that we need to think about permanently protecting. The new treasures are: Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area in Anoka and Chisago counties; the Minnesota River Valley in Scott and Carver counties; the Mississippi Gorge between downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul; the St. Croix River Valley in Washington and Chisago counties; and the Vermillion River Valley in Scott and Dakota counties. Check the EOS website, www.embraceopenspace.org, to learn more about these endangered places and how you can help protect them.

THE LAST 6%

Remember to watch Twin Cities Public Television's Channel 17 at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 3 for the premiere of The Last 6%: Treasuring Our Open Spaces. This is the most important "reality" television you'll watch this season! It will be rebroadcast at 9 p.m. on Sunday, October 10.

Sanne Magnan, M.D., Ph.D., is medical director at the Center for Tobacco Reduction and Health Improvement, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota. One of the center's programs is "A Healthier You; A Healthier Minnesota," an initiative to bring together Minnesotans to exchange ideas and share expertise in order to create a healthier Minnesota.

What is the connection between community design and health?

It's pretty simple. Science tells us that people who are more physically active are healthier. Paths and trails, sidewalks and street lamps, bike lanes and pedestrian-friendly design alone won't make us healthier. But those who have access to sidewalks and trails are more likely to use them and to be physically active and healthier.

Many of our communities are developing without easy ways to incorporate walking and biking into everyday activities. Building higher density living environments, while preserving and/or restoring our open spaces, as well as integrating sidewalks and trails into inner-city and suburban communities, are increasingly urgent priorities, both for our health and the quality of our communities.

Is community design an issue for urban planners and developers, or is there a role for average citizens in designing healthy communities?

In medicine, physicians and patients need to work together to address problems. Without that shared commitment and cooperation, we can't effectively manage clinical health problems. I believe the same kind of partnership is needed among people who care about health, urban planners and developers, and the people who actually will live in the environments.

Ultimately, the community is not just the buildings but the people who live and work in those spaces. Communities reflect our interests and values. Collaborative planning can help us meet the challenges of designing healthy communities for ourselves and for generations to come.

Recently, you talked about the healthy design of communities needing a "movement." What do you mean by that?

First, I'm referencing the need for a social movement, a shift of cultural and behavioral norms such that people recognize the importance of having opportunities to be more physically active as a means to improving their health.

The second form of "movement" is increased physical activity itself. People need to be less sedentary, moving more and burning more calories over the course of their average day.

Finally, there are efforts by planners, developers and municipal leaders to build environments that are responsive to these interests, a movement in its own right. Together, these movements will result in healthier communities - for ourselves, our families and our neighbors - both now and into the future.