As Dave Harvey retires from his co-leadership position at Park People, he reflects on the incredible journey since founding the organization in 2011.
Each year, we support inspiring older adults in Metro Vancouver to reconnect with nature by leading events in their local parks—sparking belonging, joy, and wellness in their communities.
Discover how Arts in the Parks is transforming Toronto’s green spaces into vibrant hubs of creativity—and how Park People helps make it all possible.
How colonialism plays out in park practices and how we can work together to embed reconciliation and decolonization.
Discover ways to help you host events in your local parks during extreme heat events.
Each year, Park People Summits bring together our growing network of urban park changemakers to connect, reflect, and explore what’s possible for more inclusive, community-powered parks in our cities.
By donating to Park People, you’ll support vibrant parks for everyone.
Park People
Jul 2, 2025 Toronto, Ontario
Every summer, Toronto’s parks come alive with art, music, theatre, and dance through Arts in the Parks, a city-wide initiative that turns public green spaces into open-air stages.
Presented by the Toronto Arts Foundation in partnership with the Toronto Arts Council, the City of Toronto, and Park People, this unique program animates parks in every corner of the city, from concrete plazas to lush green spaces in Scarborough, Etobicoke, and North York.
Since the program’s launch in 2016, more than 700,000 people across the city have visited 78 parks for over 2,400 free arts events including Japanese Taiko drumming, collaborative mural painting, and African circus performances—to name just a few!
At Park People, our vision for Canada’s cities includes vibrant parks where people and the rest of nature thrive, and where everyone—regardless of income, identity, ability, or age—has equal access to the benefits of public green space.
However, 33 percent of Torontonians don’t live within walking distance of arts and cultural programming, and overwhelmingly, those people are Black, Indigenous, people of colour, and newcomer residents of the city’s inner suburbs.
To close this gap, Park People supports Arts in the Parks by selecting sites in areas where access to free cultural programming isn’t generally as accessible, and where new opportunities for creative park animations abound.
Park People also supports the Arts in the Parks program by drawing on our biggest skill: strengthening the relationships between neighbours and their local parks. To ensure that events are responsive to the needs and interests of their surrounding communities, we bring our relationships with park groups and local leaders into the process early on, helping to shape events that reflect the neighbourhood and invite people in.
“Our role is to connect. Before events are organized, we try to bring together artists and community groups, usually in the park where the event will happen. These early meetings create space for ideas to grow.”
Cindy Hashie, Senior Project Manager at Park People.
These meetings are a chance for everyone at the table to share stories, ask questions, and shape something new, together. Community groups bring valuable knowledge, like when the park is busiest or which language flyers should be printed in, while artists can share their creative visions and learn what matters most to the people who use the park every day.
“We help make the connection so everyone feels comfortable, heard, and respected.”
Ayesha Talreja, Project Manager at Park People.
For Ayesha, one of the most exciting parts of Arts in the Parks is seeing how it inspires event attendees to think about their own creative potential.
Ana Cuciureanu is just one great example: Ana first got involved in Arts in the Parks as the founder of the Friends of Parkway Forest Park, a group also supported through Park People’s Sparking Change program. After seeing how Arts in the Parks brought community-based art into her beloved local park, Ana decided to create her own event through her collective Splash on Earth, which brings together eco-artists, storytellers, and neighbours to make public art using eco-paint made from food waste. Ana’s team has hosted Arts in the Parks events for three years, and even formed a non-profit dedicated to creative climate action.
“Ana understands what it means to collaborate. She’s been on both sides as a community organizer and as an artist. That perspective helps create events that reflect the community.”
Ayesha
Others have followed similar paths, like Christine Malec, who started as a participant in Park People’s InTO the Ravines initiative and now leads accessibility-focused arts programming through Arts in the Park. Her project, Described Toronto, offers audio-based tours of the city for people with sight impairments which are often incorporated into a podcast with rich descriptions of Toronto, its flora and fauna, inhabitants and culture.
These stories remind us that public space and public art are powerfully connected. When people see themselves reflected in what happens in their park, they feel a deeper sense of responsibility to their community, and often, an expanded sense of creative possibility.
Arts in the Parks aims to offer something for everyone, whether it’s Asian drumming or Salsa dancing that invite people to move together, or quiet moments of storytelling under a shady tree. Some events are deeply rooted in local cultural traditions, while others introduce new and unexpected art forms to neighbourhoods that may not have seen them before. No matter the medium, the program’s strength is in how it brings people together, and how it inspires long-term creative partnerships between artists and residents.
“Artists who return to the program year after year often think deeply about how to engage the community. They find creative ways to hear from neighbours and make space for local input in how their work takes shape.”
Of course, there are always challenges: schedules shift, event permits take time, and not every collaboration unfolds exactly as planned. But there is care in the process. And if an event has to move, the program works to make sure the original park still gets something special. The intention is always to honour local relationships and keep the doors open for participation.
As we approach the tenth anniversary of the program, Arts in the Parks continues to grow in both its reach and impact.
Between supporting artists in building meaningful community ties and helping park groups explore their creative side, we’re proud to be part of an initiative that brings joy, connection, and possibility to neighbourhoods across Toronto.
To learn more about Arts in the Parks and find more events near you this summer, visit artsintheparksto.org.
Mark your calendars! Here are a few of Cindy and Ayesha’s recommendations for the 2025 Arts in the Parks season:
July 12 & 13, Aug 9, Sept 6 2025 | 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM | Rowntree Mills Park
Exploring the intersections of nature, community arts and wellness, this public art program will share crafting and movement sessions, led by STEPS Public Art alongside local and Indigenous creators, to reconnect with the land and the Humber River. Learn more
August 16 & 23, 2025, 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM | R.V. Burgess Park
Enjoy music from the Middle East, Mediterranean, South Asia, and more! Four different musical groups will perform modal music, a centuries-old system of music-making practiced by many cultures, with contemporary interpretations and new compositions. Learn more.
September 27, 2025, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM | Lee Lifeson Art Park
Artists will tell original stories inspired by the land and public artwork of Lee Lifeson Art Park, using descriptive and inclusive language that is accessible to a Blind and partially sighted audience. Participants will also experience a touch tour of the public artworks and 3D tactile models of the park. The Story Hour will be recorded live and released on the Described Toronto podcast. Learn more.
Arts, Arts in the Parks
In 2025, 72 community groups and organizations across the country are receiving TD Park People Grants. They’ll be bringing people together in parks and green spaces through creative, inclusive, and environmentally focused events.