visit. ministry of health promotion sees that its fundamental goals are to promote and encourage ontarians to make healthier choices at all ages and stages of life, to create healthy and supportive environments, lead the development of healthy public policy, and assist with embedding behaviours that promote health. the canadian health network was a "reliable, non-commercial source of online information about how to stay healthy and prevent disease" that was discontinued in 2007. the bc coalition for health promotion is "a grassroots, voluntary non-profit society dedicated to the advancement of health promotion in british columbia". denmark the unit for health promotion research has main focus points around the who ottawa charter. research is one main focus and works to strengthen health within communities, enhance environments that support health and help individuals develop the skills they need to maintain health. staff within the program with both bachelors and masters in public health, as well as other expertise such as: psychology, anthropology, biology, epidemiology, environmental health and more, helps add to the teaching experience. having a diverse staff means increased knowledge in diverse communities as well as increased communication throughout varying socioeconomic groups. with the wide range of research, teaching, and a diverse staff, the goal of health promotion can be achieved more seamlessly. india sanitation was a key focus on health promotion in india. the national urban sanitation policy 2008 was a development that promoted sanitation in urban areas of the country which focused on improving sanitation in community based organizations such as schools and open markets and to overall eliminate the practice of open defectation. health promotion research in ireland the health promotion research centre (hprc) at the national university of ireland galway was established in 1990 with support from the department of health to conduct health promotion related research on issues relevant to health promotion in an irish context. the centre is unique in that it is the only designated research centre in ireland dedicated to health promotion. it produces high quality research of national and international significance that supports the development of best practice and policy in the promotion of health. the centre is a world health organization (who) collaborating centre for health promotion research, has an active multidisciplinary research programme, and collaborates with regional, national and international agencies on the development and evaluation of health promotion interventions and strategies. objectives of the hprc include: the generation and dissemination of health promotion research that is of national and international relevance. the translation of research that will lead to the development of healthy public policy and evidence-informed practice. in 1997, another professional association was created, the association for health promotion ireland (ahpi). the ahpi operates independent of employers’ organizations and works to create opportunities for members to network and to provide them with support. the ahpi is particularly for those who work within or are interested in health promotion, and is the only professional organization that operates as such in ireland. new zealand the health promotion forum (hpf) of new zealand is the national umbrella organization of over 150 organisations committed to improving health. hpf has worked with the cancer society in order to produce a personal development plan for health promoters, which may be helpful to perform personal development reviews, to identify the competencies of individuals and to provide ideas for future development. the health promotion agency (hpa), formed july 1, 2012, is a crown agency established under the new zealand public health and disability amendment act 2012. its board has been appointed by the minister of health. the work of hpa is divided into three main areas: promoting the wellbeing and health of the community enabling health promoting initiatives and environments informing the public on health promoting policies and practices hpa has a variety of programs based around many areas of work, including alcohol, immunisation, mental health, and skin cancer prevention. the agency aims to promote the wellbeing of individuals and encourage healthy lifestyles, prevent disease, illness and injury, enable environments that support health and wellbeing, and to reduce personal, economic and social harm. health workforce new zealand (hwnz) is an organisation that is part of the national health board which provides national leadership on the development of the health workforce. some health promotional programs supported by hwnz include education and training initiatives, and the voluntary bonding scheme, which rewards medical, midwifery and nursing graduates who agree to work in hard-to-staff communities, and sonography, medical physicist and radiation therapy graduates who stay in new zealand. health promotion in new zealand has become an established approach in addressing public problems since the 1980s, through increasing use of intersectoral action, the use of public policy and mass media as promotional strategies, and the increasing control maori have taken over the provision and purchase of health promotion services. an example of health promotional initiatives is the action put in place to reduce childhood obesity in primary schools. research was completed to identify the barriers to improving school food environments and promoting healthy nutrition in primary schools in new zealand. considerable progress has also been made in the health impact assessment (hia) research on the impact of policies on health in new zealand. the approach has an important contribution to make in the strengthening of health and wellbeing in policymaking in new zealand. norway in 2012, norway created the norwegian public health act (pha) in 2012. this act is based on policies of health equity, hiap, sustainable development, the precautionary principle, knowledge-based approaches, and civil society participation. there is a strong focus on promoting health on the local level by giving decision-making power to the counties in order to decrease inequalities and increase a fair distribution of resources across all populations. sri lanka in 2015, the life expectancy of sri lankan people was 72 for male and 78 for female. the disease burden has started to shift towards non-communicable diseases related to lifestyle and environmental factors. the 2012 estimated "healthy life expectancy" at birth of all sri lanka's population is 68 for females, 63 for males, and 65 overall. the development of the sri lankan national health promotion policy is related to the state policy and strategy for health and the health master plan 2007–2016. it emphasises advocacy and empowerment to enable individuals and communities to take control of their own health, as well as improving the management of health promotion interventions across sectors. sweden in sweden, on a national level, health promotion is primarily the responsibility of the public health agency of sweden. however, many regional initiatives exist, for example, within clinical health promotion programs in certain geographical areas. health promotion is also highlighted by the swedish national board of health and welfare as the agency suggests this to be a component in health professionals' curriculum and training, which concerns, for example, registered nurses and physicians. many health promotion initiatives in sweden focus on health equity and thus focus on groups in society that have seen to be experiencing poorer health status. for example, a swedish study suggest that health promotion interventions aiming at empowering adolescents in disadvantaged communities, should enable active learning activities, use visualizing tools to facilitate self-reflection, and allow the adolescents to influence the intervention activities. health promotion in schools has grown because of the link between student health and well-being, so in order to help with their mental and physical health, health promotion has grown in school settings. united kingdom the royal society for public health was formed in october 2008 by the merger of the royal society for the promotion of health (also known as the royal society of health or rsh) and the royal institute of public health (riph). earlier, july 2005 saw the publication by the department of health and welsh assembly government of shaping the future of public health: promoting health in the nhs. following discussions with the department of health and welsh assembly government officials, the royal society for public health and three national public health bodies agreed, in 2006, to work together to take forward the report's recommendations, working in partnership with other organisations. accordingly: the royal society for public health (rsph) leads and hosts the collaboration, and focuses on advocacy for health promotion and its workforce; the institute of health promotion and education (ihpe) works with the rsph royal society for public health to give a voice to the workforce; the faculty of public health (fph) focuses on professional standards, education and training; and the uk public health register (ukphr) is responsible for the regulation of the workforce. in northern ireland, the government's health promotion agency for northern ireland was set up to "provide leadership, strategic direction and support, where possible, to all those involved in promoting health in northern ireland". the health promotion agency for northern ireland was incorporated into the public health agency for northern ireland in april 2009. recent work in the uk (delphi consultation exercise due to be published late 2009 by royal society of public health and the national social marketing centre) on the relationship between health promotion and social marketing has highlighted and reinforced the potential integrative nature of the approaches. while an independent review (ncc 'it's our health!' 2006) identified that some social marketing has in the past adopted a narrow or limited approach, the uk has increasingly taken a lead in the discussion and developed a much more integrative and strategic approach. this development adopts a holistic approach, integrating the learning from effective health promotion approaches with relevant learning from social marketing and other disciplines. a key finding from the delphi consultation was the need to avoid unnecessary and arbitrary 'methods wars' and instead focus on the issue of 'utility' and harnessing the potential of learning from multiple disciplines and sources. such an approach is arguably how health promotion has developed over the years pulling in learning from different sectors and disciplines to enhance and develop. united states in the united states, one of the ottawa charter health promotion actions, developing personal skills, is the core of health education and quite often health education is confused for the whole of health promotion government agencies in the u.s. concerned with health promotion include the following: the centers for disease control and prevention has a coordinating center for health promotion whose mission is to "prevent disease, improve health, and enhance human potential through evidence based interventions and research in maternal and child health, chronic disease, disabilities, genomics, and hereditary disorders". the national institute for occupational safety and health has developed total worker health, a strategy incorporating elements of occupational safety and health and health promotion, to advance the health and well-being of employees. the united states army center for health promotion and preventive medicine "provide worldwide technical support for implementing preventive medicine, public health, and health promotion/wellness services into all aspects of america's army and the army community". nongovernmental organizations in the u.s. concerned with health promotion include: the public health education and health promotion section is an active component of the american public health association. the national commission for health education credentialing offers the certified health education specialist and master certified health education specialist examination, a competency-based tool used to measure possession, application and interpretation of knowledge in the seven areas of responsibility for health education specialists. the exam reflects the entry-level sub-competencies of these areas of responsibility. in the 2020 health education and promotion terminology report document health promotion is defined by green & kreuter as "any planned combination of educational, political, regulatory, or organizational supports for actions and conditions of living conducive to the health of individuals, groups, and communities" this is an activity-based definition rather than the process-based definition from the foundational who ottawa charter for health promotion (1986) and dominate in everywhere except the us. the wellness council of america is an industry trade group that supports workplace health promotion programs. urac (utilization review accreditation commission) accredits comprehensive wellness programs "that focus on health promotion, chronic disease prevention and health risk reduction".