Editorial on the Research TopicThe built environment and public health: New insights Background According to "World Cities Report 2022: Envisaging the Future of Cities, " 56% of the global population is currently living in cities, which is expected to reach 68% by 2050. The rapid growth of cities led to the emergence of various problems, such as environmental pollution, traffic congestion and emissions, and the lack of physical activity of residents (1). Such problems prompted a widespread public focus on the urban environment and health issues. According to World Health Organization estimates, about 24% of the global public health burden can be attributed to the changing environment. Thus, integrating public health issues into the sustainable development of a city has become a significant issue around the world.The built environment, which is a subset of the physical environment, interacts with public health in an intricate way. This relationship, which is highly pertinent to policymaking, fostered interesting academic explorations in recent years (2-4). However, based simply on traditional data and approaches, many relevant issues remain unexamined (5). With the rapid development of science and technology, accurate built environment/health metrics can be assessed using open/big data or advanced instruments, advanced modeling approaches can be tested and applied to the research field, new/traditional theories can be supported or refuted with strong empirical evidence, and rich insights into policy and practice can be discussed with highly consistent or contradictory findings, especially during and after the coronavirus disease