Public Perceptions of Sustainable Physical Activity and Active Transportation: A Pilot Qualitative Study in Gävle and Maputo

Abstract

Sustainable physical activity and active transportation are important for achieving sustainable societies as well as for achieving the sustainable development goal of health and wellbeing for all. The main objective of this pilot study was to investigate the general public’s perceptions of sustainable physical activity and active transportation in the cities of Gävle (Sweden) and Maputo (Mozambique). Twelve semi-structured asynchronous e-mail interviews were subjected to content analysis. Findings indicated that participants knew what physical activity is and that they related it to general health and wellbeing. However, the majority were not familiar with the meaning of “sustainable physical activity” or “active transportation.” Furthermore, they did not know about the relationship between sustainable development and physical activity. The few participants who knew about active transportation said that it could contribute to reducing greenhouse gases. They mentioned barriers to active transportation in their respective cities, however, ranging from laziness (in the case of Gävle) to cultural norms and associations such as linking the use of active transportation to lacking the means to buy a motor vehicle (in Maputo). There is a need to integrate sustainability literacy with the already existing health and public health literacies to provide this knowledge to the general population. To this end, rather than creating new educational programmes for the public, the existing materials can be adjusted to include aspects of sustainability and sustainable health behaviours and lifestyles.