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At Park People, we believe that parks can play a vital role in reconciliation and decolonization. 

We’re inspired by park projects across the country that are focused on rebuilding trust, sharing knowledge and developing true partnerships between First Nations and settlers, such as The City of Quesnel, BC, which restored ownership of Tingley Park to the Lhtako Dene First Nation, or the agreement between the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and Metro Vancouver Regional Parks.

As a national city parks organization, Park People recognizes that when we speak of municipal parks and public land, we are obscuring the fact that, in most cases, the land that we are speaking of is traditional Indigenous territory. That’s why we share our land acknowledgement on our website and at all Park People events.

As part of our own journey, we want to share some insights from our process developing our land acknowledgement.

Do Your Research

It’s essential that your park group undertake thoughtful research to learn about Indigenous issues globally, nationally, and in your city or region.

Find out which territories your park is situated on and the treaties or covenants that were meant to peaceably govern that land. Use nativeland.ca as a starting point.

You may find conflicting accounts of territorial land rights. Reach out to a local band office, municipal Indigenous Affairs Office, an Indigenous Friendship Centre, or an Indigenous university group to understand the history and rights associated with the land in question.

Discuss Your Learning

Set aside time for your group to discuss your land acknowledgement plan and your broader reconciliation goals.

Create space for members to share meaningful land acknowledgements they’ve heard at other events, literature they’ve read, and news and ideas. This will help create a dialogue to shape your groups’ perspective and commitment. These conversations will also help you to identify champions within your group who can help guide future reconciliation efforts.

Write Your Unique Acknowledgement

Reading a generic land acknowledgement that you don’t understand or feel connected won’t further the goals of truth and reconciliation. Work with your group to write an acknowledgement that reflects the unique history and contemporary character of your park.

Consider how your land acknowledgement can leave listeners with something informative and provocative to ruminate on, long after your event has finished.

Make a Clear Commitment

Writing a land acknowledgement is an opportunity for your group to publicly declare its commitment to working towards allyship and working to dismantle the colonial systems that continue to oppress Indigenous peoples, denying their land-rights and way of life.

Add a commitment to the land acknowledgement that articulates how your group is going to put words into action. Find tangible ways your group can impact this complex and ongoing work.

Seek counsel

Once you feel like you have done your research and written a meaningful land acknowledgement, consider sharing it with a respected member of your local Indigenous community to get their feedback.

Be respectful of their time, and don’t expect accolades for this preliminary effort. Use the opportunity to express your willingness to engage with the local Indigenous community on the subject of decolonization.

Bring in Indigenous voices

Consider inviting Indigenous-led organizations to attend and participate in your group’s events and gatherings whenever appropriate. 

Plan in advance how to compensate those who participate by sharing their time, expertise and knowledge.



Make use of these great resources in the next steps of your journey towards decolonizing your park work

Ravines and Resilience – Toronto’s Ravines and Climate Change

Our city and our ravines were shaped by past extreme weather events. Looking ahead, our ravines can help us be more climate-resilient. But first, we need to protect them.

In this webinar, David MacLeod, Senior Environmental Specialist with the City of Toronto, and Carbon Conversations TO explore how these natural spaces can mitigate climate impacts and the steps we must take to protect them.

The webinar is held in English; French subtitles are available.

Bridging the Gap: How the park sector can meet today’s complex challenges through collaborations and partnerships

Park People is excited to launch the 2024 Canadian City Parks Report, our sixth annual edition highlighting the most significant trends, issues, and practices shaping Canada’s city parks. 

Watch our special launch webinar to explore our findings:

  • 6 key insights from interviews with park staff and specialists,
  • 9 case studies showcasing inspiring people, projects, and policies from across Canada,
  • Data from surveys of 35 municipalities and over 2,500 residents.

The webinar features an engaging discussion on the future of city parks, with guest speakers from the City of Victoria and Greenspace Alliance. They share opportunities and challenges in their work around collaborations and partnerships, across city departments, communities, non-profits, and more.

Recording

Panel

Today, Park People launches the sixth Canadian City Parks Report–and the final iteration of this report in its current form, Bridging the Gap: How the park sector can meet today’s complex challenges through partnerships and collaboration.

Last year, we dove deep into the minds of park managers across the country, interviewing over 44 senior parks staff across 30 municipalities about the trends and challenges in the industry. One of the key insights from that process was a need to find collaboration sweet spots to achieve our many collective parks goals. 

This year’s report expands on that insight by showcasing collaborative examples from across the country and through collecting data from 35 Canadian municipalities, over 2,500 residents of Canadian cities, as well as interviews with park staff and professionals.

Key Insights

Through that process we found six key insights related to collaborations and partnerships:

  • Park budgets are not keeping pace with need.
    • Years of insufficient parks operations budgets are challenging city parks departments and coinciding with a slip in resident satisfaction.
    • 78% of cities said insufficient budgets meant inadequate staffing levels, while 75% said it meant delays in park projects or planning.
  • Residents feel disempowered, but want to engage.
    • While residents want to get more involved in parks, city parks departments struggle with limited resources to provide opportunities for long-term engagement. 
    • 83% of cities said that with limited resources it can be difficult to conduct ongoing, proactive community engagement beyond standard consultation on park projects.
  • Mental and physical health benefits are key, but lack proactive programs.
    • Mental and physical health are the top benefits of park use for residents, presenting a big opportunity for cities to further these impacts with specific programs. 
    • 95% and 93% of residents believe parks play a positive role in their physical and mental health, respectively.
  • Departmental structures can promote collaboration–or disconnection.
    • A minority of cities structure their parks departments with operations and design together, potentially leading to gaps between what gets built and how it gets maintained.
    • Nearly ⅓ of cities said their organizational structure makes it difficult for parks staff to collaborate with other divisions/departments. 
  • Partnerships are critical, but cities need policies and structures.
    • City parks departments recognize the benefit of partnerships, but struggle with the policies and procedures to navigate them with ease. 
    • 61% of cities said a barrier to partnerships with nonprofits was an inability to meet municipal standards.
  • Growing park issues require more training and collaborations.
    • There are big issues facing parks and residents want to see cities act, but to do so park staff need more training and collaborations with other city departments.
    • 92% of cities agreed that in recent years parks departments are facing increased pressure to address issues beyond “traditional” parks issues.

In this report you’ll find:

  • A roundup and analysis of the latest park data showcasing trends and challenges  from our surveys of over 2,500 Canadian residents and 35 municipalities across Canada–our most ever surveyed.
  • A library of nine case studies from across the country featuring inspiring projects that provide tangible recommendations for how to spur action in your own city. 
  • A listing of 35 City Profiles with the latest data from parkland provision goals, to parks amenities, to budgets.

Case studies

How does the City of Victoria’s Get Growing Victoria program take a food justice approach to provide gardening supplies to communities at risk of food insecurity, including those experiencing houselessness, Indigenous and racialized communities, seniors, and youth.

How Toronto is transforming future park spaces into temporary public areas through partnerships, letting residents enjoy them now while planning for long-term park development.

How partnerships across city departments and with local community groups helped the City of Charlottetown recover from Hurricane Fiona’s devastating winds.

How Mississauga is expanding parkland in a growing neighborhood to meet future demand through a cooperative, long-term property purchase plan.

How a temporary plaza in Montreal’s Parc Marcelin-Wilson was created to offer a gathering space for youth, with design improvements informed by Metalude’s insights through direct observations and youth engagement.

How an agreement between the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and Metro Vancouver Regional Parks provides a path for shared cultural planning.

How can municipalities move from awareness to action? A conversation with Jay Pitter about Black people’s experiences in parks and public spaces.

How Waterfront Toronto is raising the bar on inclusivity through their Waterfront Accessibility Design Guidelines.

How Nature Canada is building a web of partners at all scales to help Canada achieve its biodiversity conservation goals.

Launch Webinar: Watch the Recording

In questioning the future of our health and well-being, the health of our planet and how connected we feel to the rest of nature–and the equity issues inherent to all this–it’s easy to feel powerless. Multiple unique challenges suggest the need for multiple unique solutions, which may be difficult when there’s so much to pay attention to.  

The new Cornerstone Parks Reports on Stewardship and Park Use allow us to change how we think. What if the same approaches that improve the planet’s health also strengthen its people’s health and happiness? And what if those activities are as within-reach as our local urban park? A growing body of evidence suggests that shared solutions to multiple challenges are at our fingertips.

Source: Park People – Stanley Park, Vancouver

Happy, Healthy, Hands-On

The new Cornerstone Parks Reports on Stewardship and Park Use (High Park ReportStanley Park ReportMount Royal Report) combine findings from 796 individual survey responses throughout 2021 and 2022 to demonstrate large urban parks’ impact on communities’ connectedness to nature and–by extension–their health and happiness

Surveys show that most park users (67%) who visit the large urban parks being studied spend their time participating in social and recreational activities rather than nature-focused ones (33%). And yet, the higher park users rate their nature-connectedness, the higher they report their physical health, mental health, and overall well-being.

People who engage in hands-on, nature-focused activities and park stewardship (over other park activities) report powerful social connections; a sense of belonging, meaning and purpose in their lives; greater physical health; and overall life satisfaction. To summarize, a healthier, happier life may begin with getting our hands dirty.

Source: Les Amis de la montagne – Mount Royal, Montréal

How Cornerstone Parks Cultivate Well-being

Large urban parks like High Park in Toronto, Stanley Park in Vancouver, and Mount Royal in Montreal are essential spaces for city-dwellers to access and connect with nature, including through park stewardship.

“Park stewardship” refers to park-based programs or events that invite volunteers to care for the land we’re a part of and depend on. Park stewardship can include removing invasive species, planting native species, inventorying or monitoring plants and wildlife, or removing litter, among other activities. 

Among Cornerstone Park stewardship participants, 98% of those surveyed said that volunteering as stewards contributes to feeling connected to living things and the environment. Surveyed volunteers also said that participating in stewardship enables stronger feelings of nature-connectedness than engaging in recreational activities (75% vs 51%, respectively). 

Knowing that there’s an association between nature connection and health suggests that participating in park stewardship could significantly impact health more than general park use.

Source: High Park Nature Centre – High Park, Toronto

By the Numbers

Our survey findings show that:

0%

of volunteer stewards said stewardship makes them feel happy and satisfied

0%

said stewardship contributes to their mental well-being

0%

said stewardship contributes to their physical health

In greater detail:

0%

of stewards agreed that stewardship contributes to them developing and maintaining social connections (only 73% said the same about recreational activities)

0%

of stewards agreed that stewardship contributes to their sense of belonging to a community (only 69% said the same about recreational activities)

0%

of stewards agreed that stewardship contributes to a sense of meaning and purpose in their lives (only 74% said the same about recreational activities)

Those participating in park stewardship more often rate their physical health and life satisfaction higher. People who participate in stewardship activities 20 or more times per year rate their life satisfaction the highest–even higher than those who engage in park recreation daily!

Source: Stanley Park Ecology Society – Stanley Park, Vancouver

Health and Happiness for Whom?

Unfortunately, our findings also show that some communities are less engaged in park stewardship. The majority of those who participate in stewardship identify as cis-gendered women (68%), able-bodied (86%) and white (76%). 

With many communities under-represented in these parks and their programs, not everyone can access the health and social benefits experienced by park stewards. 

Park user surveys also revealed that nature connections are weaker amongst specific demographics:

0%

of park users who identify as a visible minority felt strongly connected to nature (73% of white park users said the same)

0%

of park users born outside of Canada felt strongly connected to nature (73% of those born in Canada said the same)

People with a disability also felt significantly less connected to nature than their able-bodied counterparts. In both 2021 and 2022, 0% of park stewards surveyed indicated that they had a visible disability.

If certain communities are left out of stewardship programs and feel generally disconnected from nature, it’s reasonable to assume that this may impact their health.

Mind the Gaps 

Large urban parks have a meaningful opportunity to diversify their visitors and stewards. With current gaps in mind, founding Cornerstone Parks High Park, Stanley Park, and Mount Royal prioritize innovative programs that engage equity-deserving communities in park stewardship. The proof is in the numbers. From 2021 to 2022:

0%

increase in the number of newcomers participating in stewardship at Cornerstone Parks

0%

increase in the number of stewards who are BIPOC

This increase in inclusivity is thanks to innovative programs like:

Source: High Park Nature Centre – High Park, Toronto

What’s Next for Cornerstone Parks 

The Cornerstone Parks program is currently announcing new partnerships that maximize the impact and influence of Canada’s large urban parks. They include the Darlington Ecological Corridor* in Montreal, Quebec; the Everett Crowley Park Committee and Free the Fern in Vancouver, BC; and the Meewasin Valley Authority in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.  

The Cornerstone Parks network is excited to grow with them and measure how their stewardship work improves the lives of their diverse communities, all while helping their cities adapt to current and future crises such as climate change.

A Way Forward

Environmental health, human health, and equity are complex. But we can work smarter, not harder, with solutions that nurture ourselves, the planet, and each other simultaneously. If we follow the evidence that participating in environmental stewardship leads to better health and greater happiness–and if we commit to extending those well-being benefits to more equity-deserving communities–the solution-seeking potential of our actions is multiplied.

To get our hands dirty is to reclaim power, especially in times of change. Canada’s large urban parks are the sites that show us how. Through innovative programs, they connect communities to nature and each other. The closer every Canadian is to a Cornerstone Park, the closer they are to tangible solutions: for now and for the future. 

Dive deeper into the findings of our Cornerstone Parks Reports on Stewardship and Park Use, and follow us as we expand our network of Cornerstone Parks. 

Cornerstone Reports on Park Use and Stewardship:

Park People launches the fifth annual Canadian City Parks Report, Surfacing Solutions: How Addressing Conflict and Reframing Challenges as Opportunities Can Create More Equitable and Sustainable Parks.

Over the past five years of the Canadian City Parks Report, our goal has always been to tell a story—the story of where city parks are going and where they need to go. 

This year, we took an even deeper approach to gathering these stories. We sat down for interviews with 44 senior parks staff across 30 municipalities, who generously shared with us the challenges they are facing, the projects and people inspiring them, and their vision for the future of city parks.

In the report, we weave together the themes we heard from those conversations with the data we gathered from our surveys of 35 municipalities and over 2000 residents of Canadian cities. 

Key Insights

Dive into the pdf to read about our key insights on trends and challenges in city parks:

  1. Plan for higher park use  –  Preparing for the new normal of a higher baseline of park use
  2. Refocus on quality  –  Ensuring the parks we have are performing at their best
  3. Explore new park typologies and funding arrangements  –  Identifying new types of parks for growing, urbanizing cities
  4. Prioritize public education along with naturalization  –  Growing support for naturalization efforts through public education
  5. Systematize climate resilience park improvements  –  Embedding climate resilience within park designs to safeguard the future
  6. Deepen the focus on park equity  – Moving beyond amenity distribution to look at the social side of park equity
  7. Adopt rights-based encampment strategies  –  Working with unhoused communities to find solutions with dignity
  8. Experiment with flexible designs and policies to manage conflicting use  –  Addressing use conflicts so parks can work better for more people
  9. Increase funding and support for community involvement  –  Supporting community involvement beyond one-time capital projects
  10. Find the internal collaboration sweet spots  –  Leveraging departmental collaborations to achieve multiple overlapping goals

Case studies

As cities struggle to find and pay for new park space to meet growth needs, some argue that a shift towards focusing on quality is part of the solution.

Discover Vancouver’s ambitious parks and recreation master plan, using innovative mapping to guide equity-led parkland investment.

Brampton leads the way with its Eco Park Strategy, a citywide initiative focused on naturalization projects that preserve and enhance natural and cultural heritage.

How the City of North Vancouver is working to better engage equity-deserving groups in its longstanding Park Stewards program, including people who are underhoused, newcomers, and at-risk youth.

The Montreal’s Darlington Ecological Corridor bridges urban and natural spaces while addressing both ecological restoration and social needs through meaningful partnerships.

A look into the logistics of collaborative governance in a large urban park with Meewasin Valley Authority in Saskatoon.

Learn more about the District of Saanich’s collaborative approach to tackling conflict over off-leash dog parks.

How cities are navigating the benefits and challenges of privately owned public spaces (POPS) through creative policies and guidelines on design, stewardship, and public programming.

Restoring the Don River’s natural flow, Toronto’s renaturalization project enhances biodiversity, mitigates flooding, and reconnects the city with its waterways.

Public washrooms are a park necessity.. Discover Edmonton’s approach to creating safe, inclusive public washrooms.

Bill 23: A conversation with Michelle Dobbie, Manager Park and Natural Heritage Planning, City of Richmond Hill.

Launch Webinar: Watch the Recording

Happy reading!

A conversation with Jay Pitter about Black people’s experiences in parks and public spaces

This case study is part of the 2024 Canadian City Parks Report, showcasing Inspiring projects, people, and policies from across Canada that offer tangible solutions to the most pressing challenges facing city parks.

Summary

  • Parks and public spaces are sites of systemic racism, leading many racialized individuals to avoid these areas due to fear of discrimination and violence.
  • A significant portion of the public (67%) and cities (66%) recognize the need for parks to address racial justice and equity.
  • Despite growing awareness, only 17% of cities are equipped to address these issues, Jay Pitter’s research offers strategies for enhancing Black cultural identity and inclusion in parks.

Over the past few years, our collective understanding has recognized that systemic racism is prevalent in parks and public spaces. Historically, these areas have been sites where Black, Indigenous, and racialized people face suspicion, surveillance, harassment, violence, and even death.

Year after year, our public survey has shown that about 1 in 10 city residents avoid parks and greenspaces due to fear of discrimination or policing. 

This year, when asked whether city parks should do more to address equity and racial justice, over two-thirds (67%) agreed. Similarly, in 2023, 66% of cities recognized the role of parks in combating racism.

While awareness of these issues is growing, action remains limited. Only 17% of cities feel equipped to address racism, allowing the needs of racialized populations to fall through the cracks.

How can municipalities move from awareness to action? We spoke with Jay Pitter about the BEING BLACK IN PUBLIC SURVEY a bi-national survey, developed by Jay Pitter Placemaking (Lead Investigator: Jay Pitter, Co-Investigator: Professor L. Anders Sandberg) and administered by the Institute for Social Research. Overall, the survey asked “What are the public space policies, design approaches and unspoken social attitudes that both diminish and enhance Black peoples’ experiences when navigating cities?”

This research fills gaps in understanding the Black experience in parks and other public spaces in Canada and the United States. Pitter identified a lack of data, particularly in Canada, on how Black communities perceive and experience these spaces. Many institutions measure narrowly defined ideas of inclusion by tracking safety or the absence of anti-Black violence, but Pitter argues that this is insufficient – mitigating violence should be the bare minimum.

Her research also explores how the historical and ongoing trauma from racism, police brutality, and violence in public spaces as well as, mobility inequity and lack of pathways to economic prosperity affect Black people’s well-being, social belonging, and sense of spatial entitlement.

“At the heart of this survey is filling a gap in what the other stats do not—which is to center Black people as wholly, human, spiritual beings. Previous research and stories often omit the impact of incidents related to lack of safety and restriction. What do those numbers mean? To Black people’s mental health, to Black people’s sense of self, to Black people’s belonging, to Black people’s imagination and aspirations? So, one of my main focuses was to re-humanize Black individuals and communities by creating space for their deep reflection, healing and dreaming aloud.”

Jay Pitter, Award-winning placemaker, adjunct urban planning professor and author

The BEING BLACK IN PUBLIC SURVEY uses a trauma-informed, asset-based approach that emphasizes Black joy and knowledge. Respondents were asked about positive experiences and memories in public spaces, with Pitter emphasizing the importance of learning from successes, not just tragedies.

Pitter also highlighted how Black communities contribute to public spaces.

“I didn’t want to reduce our experience in public to strictly a victim experience, because despite the auction block, centuries of anti-Black public space policy, and disproportionate experiences of violence and homelessness, Black peoples’ labour, placemaking expertise and culture have contributed so much to the form and vibrance of public spaces. We make public spaces lit.“

Jay Pitter

This approach of centering joy and honouring Black peoples’ placemaking contributions is a crucial example of how cities can engage with equity-deserving groups without compelling them to relive histories of oppression. Pitter noted that many respondents expressed gratitude for the opportunity to share their positive experiences and knowledge.

The findings from this study will be shared in an action-oriented report in February 2025, offering insights for cities and institutions on fostering real inclusion for Black communities in parks and other public spaces. Pitter shared some early findings: parks are among the most frequented public spaces by Black individuals and generally score well on physical safety. However, her early findings indicated that parks fall short in fostering Black cultural identity, deep belonging, and inclusive programming. 

Pitter sees significant opportunities for growth, including co-creation of spaces, representation in park leadership, power-sharing, and park events that elevate Black communities.

To learn more about how your city can enhance inclusion for Black communities in public spaces, stay tuned at jaypitter.com for the full report available in February 2025.

Recommendations 

  • Conduct community engagement with racialized communities using an asset based, trauma-informed approach focusing on moving towards conversations around celebrating cultural identity. 
  • Track inclusion in parks through more than measures of feelings of safety or a lack of anti-Black violence and discrimination. 
  • Use storytelling and other qualitative methods to create a more robust understanding of the data including socio-spatial issues and quality of experience in parks.
  • Provide Black communities with opportunities to co-create new parks, policies and park programs to strengthen cultural identity and sense of belonging to parks. 

How an agreement between the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and Metro Vancouver Regional Parks provides a path for shared cultural planning

This case study is part of the 2024 Canadian City Parks Report, showcasing Inspiring projects, people, and policies from across Canada that offer tangible solutions to the most pressing challenges facing city parks.

Summary

  • A cooperation agreement between Metro Vancouver Regional Parks and the Tsleil-Waututh Nation provides co-governance mechanisms for təmtəmíxʷtən/Belcarra Regional Park.
  • The park is part of the Nation’s traditional territory and was the site of an ancestral village.
  • Joint-member committees help coordinate shared decision-making and planning for projects in the park.

In Metro Vancouver, a ground-breaking agreement between a government agency—Metro Vancouver Regional Parks—and the Tsleil-Waututh Nation shows a different way of managing parks and highlighting their past and present cultural value. 

At 2,560 acres, təmtəmíxʷtən/Belcarra Regional Park is two and a half times the size of Vancouver’s Stanley Park and receives 1.2 million visitors per year. The park was also the site of the largest ancestral village within the Tsleil-Waututh Nation. 

təmtəmíxʷtən/Belcarra Regional Park. Credit: Metro Vancouver Regional Parks.

Gabriel George, a Tsleil-Waututh Nation member and also the Nation’s Director of Treaty Lands and Resources Development said that a lot of the Nation’s territory falls into parkland “so it’s been something that historically has isolated us and disconnected us from our land. I think the importance of trying to engage and have partnerships…is an important way for us to exert our rights.”

Mike Redpath, Director of Parks for Metro Vancouver Regional Parks said that Metro Vancouver Regional Parks began working with the Tsleil-Waututh Nation in 2017 on developing a “Cultural Planning and Cooperation Agreement,” which was signed in 2020. The agreement outlines a shared vision, guiding principles, and governance for the park. These include, among others, protection of natural resources, promotion of the site for recreational use, and increased public awareness of Tsleil-Waututh Nation cultural history.

“There’s a strong acknowledgement within the agreement and the relationship that it is public land; however, there was a traditional use of the site and the agreement strives to find a balance between the two,” Redpath said. 

Good governance is a cornerstone of a successful partnership. The cooperation agreement contains two mechanisms for joint-governance: a Leadership Committee and a Technical Committee, which include both members from the Nation and Metro Vancouver Regional Parks. 

Projects are prioritized in an annual work plan by the Technical Committee, which is then approved by the Leadership Committee and submitted during an annual budget process. Each individual project includes an “engagement agreement,” which outlines deliverables and ensures both partners understand roles and responsibilities.  

The agreement also includes economic development policies, such using Tsleil-Waututh approved contractors in the park to support local entrepreneurs. 

“We had an economy in place that was basically stripped from us,” George said. “We had currencies older than paper. We had systems of trade. So we lost that.” He noted that his people used to harvest clams for thousands of years, but then had to “sneak around at night…because they weren’t allowed.” so seeking out these economic opportunities is “our inherent right.”

Although the cooperation agreement was signed just four years ago, there have been several significant projects that have been implemented since then, with more on the way. 

The first was a park renaming in 2021, which changed the park’s name to təmtəmíxʷtən/Belcarra Regional Park. Prior to this, Metro Vancouver Regional Parks had not engaged in any renaming of the regional park system to traditional place names with First Nations communities. 

For George, the term “renaming” doesn’t quite fit, however. “It’s more than that,” he said.

“It’s recognizing the real name of that place. It’s important because we need to be represented. We need to be seen. We need to be heard on our own territory.”

Gabriel George, Tsleil-Waututh Nation member and Nation’s Director of Treaty Lands and Resources Development

Redpath also said it provided Metro Vancouver Parks with a naming precedent that could be used in other places. Indeed, another regional park has just had its name changed from Colony Farm Regional Park to ƛ̓éxətəm (tla-hut-um) Regional Park–a name gifted by the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) First Nation that translates to “we welcome you.”

Another joint project was the just completed installation of a welcome pole in the area of the Nation’s traditional village site. Other projects have included environmental restoration work, interpretive programming, and the development of a Cultural Heritage Study that will better understand the depth of cultural history of the park.

While it took time to implement the agreement, Redpath said it provides many benefits. Staff are “able to pick up the phone and talk to someone at the Nation who’s a familiar face. It helps advance projects together and sometimes faster as well.” 

The willingness to try doing things differently is key to success. “It’s a change process,” Redpath said, adding that it’s a different way of doing business in many ways. He stressed that early and ongoing communication is key for the trust-building necessary for a strong partnership.

“The agreement is a piece of paper, but the relationships and the conversations are really what make it successful.”

Mike Redpath, Director of Parks for Metro Vancouver Regional Parks

George echoed these sentiments. “It can be so easy to not change things,” he said, but it’s important to push outside of comfort zones and do things differently. “You can’t fix all the issues, but when you approach the work, think about what kind of legacy you can create.”

“I think for Indigenous Nations, parks can be important places to occupy and to reclaim,” he said, adding that they’ve seen big successes in some of their relationships to their parks. “This is our home. We think of it as an extension of our community.”

Recommendations 

  • Ensure regular ongoing communication touchpoints, such as individual project agreements, so roles and responsibilities are clearly defined.
  • Explore the use of jointly-staffed formal committees to allow for shared governance.
  • Take the necessary time to establish good communication and trust between partners to ensure long-term success.

How Waterfront Toronto is raising the bar on inclusivity through their Waterfront Accessibility Design Guidelines

This case study is part of the 2024 Canadian City Parks Report, showcasing Inspiring projects, people, and policies from across Canada that offer tangible solutions to the most pressing challenges facing city parks.

Summary

  • Although many municipalities flag that increasing accessibility of parks is a priority, there are still many Canadians who feel excluded from city parks. 
  • Waterfront Toronto established a permanent Accessibility Advisory Committee made up of individuals with disabilities to review the design of all future projects.
  • Incorporating a diverse range of lived experiences into the design review process is critical for the creation of inclusive public spaces. 

Designing for inclusivity and accessibility is top of mind for many municipalities. From our surveys, 78% of municipalities indicated that universal accessible design is a high priority in their work. And while many municipalities look to provincial accessibility guidelines to meet basic standards, our 2022 public survey revealed that 10% of city residents say that insufficient accessibility features discourage them from visiting and enjoying city parks. This suggests that parks are still not working for everyone. 

Waterfront Toronto, a tri-government agency, noticed gaps in existing provincial and municipal accessibility guidelines when designing new public spaces, specifically spaces around water. Some of these gaps include standards around the design of boat launches, boardwalks, beaches and water entry points.

Waterfront Toronto knew that in order to create truly accessible public spaces they needed to learn from, listen to and involve the people who understand accessibility challenges and opportunities the best – people living with disabilities. 

Waterfront Toronto assembled an advisory committee made up of individuals with professional and technical expertise, most of whom are people living with disabilities, to guide the development of their new design guidelines. The guidelines aim to go above and beyond existing requirements and ensure waterfront settings can be enjoyed by all. Notable requirements include standards that all beaches must have accessible pathways into the water and boat launches for adapted canoes and kayaks must be provided.

The process of including community members with lived experience in an advisory committee is not a novel engagement practice. But what really sets this work apart is that the guidelines incorporated a permanent mechanism to include those with lived experience in all future projects. 

The advisory committee emphasized the guiding principle of “nothing about us without us”, and the idea that no single voice speaks for the entire disability community. The committee members also highlighted the importance of implementation. 

Waterfront Toronto’s Accessibility Advisory Committee on a site tour with Waterfront Toronto staff (l-r Bruce Drewett, Pina Mallozzi [WT], Kasia Gladki [WT], Chris Stigas, Roman Romanov, Vail Zerr [WT], Dan Euser, Diane Kolin). Credit: Waterfront Toronto.

One of the ways Waterfront Toronto addressed this was to create a permanent accessibility committee that reviews all future public realm projects and will advise on future updates to the guidelines. This follow-on committee, known as the Accessibility Advisory Committee, is made up of individuals with professional expertise, advocates and caregivers, most of whom identify as a person with a disability, who receive an honorarium for their time. When composing the committee, Waterfront Toronto sought people with a range of disabilities and experiences to try and represent the diversity of accessibility needs. 

For any new parks or public space projects, the Accessibility Advisory Committee is engaged at least twice in the process. The committee provides feedback within the early stages of the design phase to flag any accessibility concerns and again once the construction is complete, with additional opportunities for input as needed. This “roll through” of complete projects identifies any potential areas for improvement. This feedback will be implemented as amendments to the guidelines and applied to future projects, but Waterfront Toronto has also committed to accommodating the feedback at the site when a retrofit or repair is needed. 

The guidelines set out a new standard for inclusively designed public spaces by filling gaps and going above and beyond current requirements, and proactively seeking out those with lived experience to guide projects on a long-term basis.

Enhancing accessibility to blue spaces ensures that everyone has access to the restorative power of nature. And while the implementation of the new guidelines ensures that people with disabilities can participate in these public spaces, accessibly designed spaces are good for everyone. 

“We know that to create a vibrant waterfront that belongs to everyone, we must have a strong commitment to accessibility in everything we make and do. With the support of the Accessibility Advisory Committee we are making accessibility another area of true design excellence.”

Pina Mallozzi, Senior Vice President, Design at Waterfront Toronto

Recommendations 

  • Ensure that a diversity of individuals with disabilities are consulted in community engagement processes as no one person can speak for an entire community.
  • Provide engagement opportunities for people with disabilities to visit physical spaces so they can help identify accessibility-related barriers that may be less obvious in the design process.
  • Involve community members with lived experience as early in the design process as possible to ensure feedback can be meaningfully incorporated into the project. 

Further Reading