UC San Diego’s Sallis to Discuss Active Cities at Inaugural Metzler Lecture

ATLANTA — James F. Sallis, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego, will be the featured speaker at the inaugural Mike and Terry Metzler Distinguished Lecture on Tuesday, April 10, at 2 p.m. in Georgia State University’s Student Center East (House Salon, 55 Gilmer St., Atlanta).

He will give a presentation entitled, “A Vision for Active Cities: Fueled by Interdisciplinary Research.”

James Sallis

Sallis is the former director of Active Living Research, a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. His primary research interests are promoting physical activity and understanding policy and environmental influences on physical activity, nutrition and obesity. He is the author of more than 500 scientific publications, serves on the editorial boards of several journals and is one of the world’s most cited authors in the social sciences. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, and Time Magazine identified him as an “obesity warrior.”

This talk will present a vision of active cities that demonstrates how many disciplines can contribute to healthier people in cities, including city planning, transportation, education, parks and economic development, in addition to public health. Lessons from more than 15 years of interdisciplinary research will be presented, along with evidence of how this work is helping change policy and practice in many fields. The lecture will end with a consideration of the Atlanta BeltLine in the promotion of physical activity, leading into a general discussion.

The purpose of the Metzler Distinguished Lecture, founded by Georgia State retired faculty members Mike and Terry Metzler, is to feature scholarship, research, policy and programs that promote physical activity for healthy living.

“I can think of no other person in the field of physical activity for healthy living with the expertise and experience to address all four purposes of the Metzler Distinguished Lecture in a single presentation, particularly as the Atlanta BeltLine offers new healthy activity opportunities for so many people in our urban setting,” Mike Metzler said.

This event, hosted by the College of Education & Human Development’s Department of Kinesiology and Health, is free and open to the public. A poster session and light refreshments will be served after the lecture.

To RSVP, visit https://bit.ly/MetzlerLecture2018.

This event will be livestreamed. To watch on the day of the lecture, visit livestream.com/georgiastate and choose the Metzler Lecture or go to the direct livestream link here.