Let’s take action to make Canada a great place to walk.
What you can do
As a municipality
- Sign the International Charter for Walking. See the list of Canadian municipalities that have already signed.
- Adopt a walking strategy and walk friendly development approvals.
- Hire a pedestrian planner.
- Establish an advisory committee.
- Apply for a WALK Friendly Community designation.
As an individual
- Walk every day or as often as you can.
- Learn how your community can become a great place to walk.
- Learn the benefits of walking and walkability.
- Walk your children to school and find out how your school can promote active school travel.
- Be heard. Talk to your elected representatives. Write letters to the editor.
- Join with others. Find a local group that supports walking. Or start one.
As a community organization
- Educate yourselves and your community about walkability and its benefits.
- Engage your community with:
- workshops, outreach tables, media (see workshop guide from Heart and Stroke Foundation)
- public walking tours that celebrate local history, architecture, environment
- walking events – e.g., open streets
- walking routes – maps/signs with points of interest
- Form a walking club. Match walkers with buddies.
- Conduct walking audits, identify barriers and priorities for action.
- Talk to other community organizations and agencies and and enlist their support for the walking agenda (e.g., neighbourhood groups, retail business, public health, police, seniors organizations, social organizations, cultural organizations …). Get them to sign on to a simple vision statement or a walking strategy.
- Support active school travel.
- Mount a community road-safety campaign. Refer to the Traffic Industry Research Foundation’s Community-Based Toolkit for Road Safety Campaigns.
Valuable resources for community organizations include:
- toolkit prepared by the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Shaping Active, Healthy Communities
- the WalkON Walkability Toolkit
Take action with senior governments
Influence your province
Provincial governments establish the policy framework for municipalities, which are creatures of the provinces. Provincial policy objectives include:
- a policy statement supporting walking, combined with a provincial walking strategy. Selling points include health and pedestrian safety (especially seniors, children)
- specific policies governing land-use planning, transportation, infrastructure
- financial support and encouragement for community walking/walkability initiatives
Influence the federal government
The federal government should have an important leadership role in embracing walking as a key health, environment, and economic priority for Canada. Federal policy objectives include:
- endorsement of walking/walkability as a national priority for health, environment, and prosperity
- funding support for community initiatives
- support through the Council of the Federation (provinces, territories, federal government) and associated processes at the Ministerial level
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Take action for walking and walkable communities – locally, provincially, nationally.