Jane’s Walk 2008 a huge success!

Over six thousand people took part in Jane’s Walk 2008 – wandering through 141 neighbourhoods in eleven Canadian cities – Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Guelph, London, Toronto, Thornbury, Ottawa, Charlottetown and Halifax – plus Salt Lake City Utah.

Inspired by urban activist Jane Jacobs and her grassroots approach to city-building, the walks help put people in touch with their environment and with each other, bridging social and geographic gaps and creating a space for cities to discover themselves. 

Jane’s Walk is a simple idea that can be adapted to all kinds of different communities. Each Jane’s Walk is created and designed by neighbourhood volunteers, and can take many forms.  Some tours look at urbanism and the built environment; some wind their way through parks and ravines; some introduce walkers to vibrant street life; and some focus on a neighbourhood’s social history and hidden stories.  Many tours combine all this and more—which can sometimes be hard to fit into an hour and a half.  In 2008, tours ranged over many different kinds of urban landscapes, from social housing slated for redevelopment, to areas with a rich architectural and cultural heritage, to teen hangouts and secret gardens.  Tour guides often get creative and bring in other residents to tell their stories; sometimes they even incorporate participation or theatrical elements into their walks.

If you are interested in bringing Jane’s Walk to your community, either by offering a walk or programming a series of them, get in touch to learn more.

The life and work of Jane Jacobs, a Toronto resident from 1968 until her death in 2006, continue to inspire citizens and planners to look closely at how people live, work and play in their built environment.  First published in 1961, Jane Jacobs’ classic The Death and Life of the Great American Cities was based on the day-to-day observation of street life in diverse city neighbourhoods.  Jacobs’ eye was always at ground level, and she felt strongly that no grand planning scheme could substitute for an understanding of people’s everyday experience of the city.  For her, the best way to get to know parks, sidewalks and streets was on foot.  As she put it, “You’ve got to get out and walk!”

We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you out there on May 2 & 3, 2009. Oh behalf of the Centre for City Ecology Advisory Board, thanks for making Jane’s Walk so exciting, fascinating and fun.

Jane Farrow, Executive Director, Jane’s Walk and Centre for City Ecology

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Photographs from the 2008 walks are posted on our flickr website at: www.flickr.com/photos/janeswalk
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