The social determinants of health (SDH) are defined by the World Health Organization as "the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life". These forces and systems include economic policies and systems, development agendas, social norms and policies, and political systems. These conditions can be very different for various population subgroups, and can lead to disparities in health outcomes. The experience of such conditions may simply be unavoidably different, in which case they are considered inequalities, or they may in fact be unnecessary and avoidable, in which case they are considered inequities and therefore appropriate targets for policies designed to increase equity.

The UN Resolution UN A/Res/70/L1 "Transforming our World: the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development," adopted in September 2015, outlined an ambitious vision for a new era of global development from 2016 - 2030. The Agenda, seen as a universal plan of action for people, planet, peace, prosperity, and partnership, serves as a call to action for all countries and stakeholders to form collaborative partnerships in order to address the most pressing social, economic, environmental, and governance challenges of our time.

p>Currently, over half the world's population lives in urban areas, a proportion which is only expected to increase. Urbanization trends present both opportunities for better health outcomes, as well as risks. Urban populations tend to have greater access to social and health services, higher literacy rates, longer life expectancies, and more varied opportunities for economic development than their rural counterparts. Nonetheless, deficiencies in strategic urban planning can lead to social inequities, urban poverty, violent crime, inadequate access to basic services, unmet needs of diverse populations, lack of social cohesion, environmental hazards, and poor conditions that affect safety, mental health and human security. Though the trends of urbanization are highly interdependent, multi-level and complex, the adverse effects of these conditions are increasingly concentrated among the urban poor. These inequities in health status and outcomes pose a great threat to the Region as they erode progress made on other margins in health.

The Region of the Americas is one of the most urbanized regions in the developing world. The health consequences of evolving standards of urban life present enormous challenges, as well as opportunities for visionary changes, for urban populations of the Americas.

The Workers' Health team is committed to promoting workers' health equity in the Region of  the Americas by providing technical assistance through several preventative approaches to:

1. strengthen regulatory frameworks and the leadership of the health sector among Member States;

2. promote workers' health and the development of safe, productive and healthy workplaces;

3. prevent and register diseases, injuries and deaths at work;

4. achieve access to universal health; and

5. support critical economic sectors resulting from the impact they have on workers' health.

We have a broad interactivity with work and health stakeholders to implement the Plan of Action on Workers' Health 2015-2025, with an approach on Health in All Policies. Thus, we can respond to the national, regional and global priorities defined by PAHO/WHO for workers' health, as well as to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 1, S DG 3 and SDG 8.