This year again, local leaders gathered their neighbours, built connections, and restored nature in projects big and small. The movement continues to expand, and we're pleased to share just some of these impacts in our 2025 Impact Report.
Ready to rally your crew and make a visible difference in your local park? This guide walks you through everything you need to host a successful community clean-up in Toronto
Creative ways to connect people to nature, community, and care for ravines in Toronto.
Parc Jarry in Montreal, Toronto’s waterfront, CRAB Park in Vancouver… People are coming together to protect the places they love.
What could Toronto’s parks look like in the years ahead? Our 2026 Parks Platform brings together ideas from Torontonians and four priorities for a more resilient, joyful and connected city.
Host free, community-led park activities in Toronto with the No-Fee Community Activations Booking. This hour-long virtual session will walk you through the booking: what's eligible, and how to apply step by step.
Hosted by Park People and World Urban Parks, this global gathering will bring together 450+ park leaders from Canada and around the world to share and explore practical and creative park and public space ideas, and seed new relationships, collaborations, and ways of working.
By donating to Park People, you’ll support vibrant parks for everyone.
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Researcher and Political Strategy, Communications & Sustainability Consultant
Fernando Garci-Crespo Santaló is an MA student at IRES working under the supervision of Milind Kandlikar with an interest in environmental economics, sustainable development, electoral politics and public policy. He is deeply passionate about bridging the divide between knowledge, people and power; how researchers can drive public policy and fend off growing populist narratives that cast doubt on the value of science, research and academia.
Beyond his MA, Fernando is working as an researcher on a project analyzing the climate plans of the Pathways Alliance, a consortium of oil companies in the Albertan oil sands pledging to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Prior to IRES Fernando graduated with distinction from UBC with a BA Honours with a double major in Geography & Economics, and worked as a policy researcher for a joint project by the OECD and Global Methane Hub on the mitigation of methane emissions from waste.
Aside from research and academia, Fernando has been involved numerous projects in electoral politics and activism, from local campaigns in Vancouver to projects as far as New Zealand or Newfoundland and Labrador. As part of his work as an activist and political organizer, Fernando has attended various UN international conferences such as COPs or HLPF.