Globally, as we navigate record-breaking heat and unprecedented flood and fire seasons, climate action is top-of-mind. A new exhibition from TMU’s School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP) and University of Toronto’s Centre for Landscape Research is exploring how city parks can be part of climate action and mitigation. 

Parks in Action is a research collaboration that studies the impact of parks at both the macro and micro level, including topics like how parks can mitigate urban heat or how individual parks can be retrofitted to be more sustainable.

“Parks are also gathering places that promote social interaction, health and well-being,” says Victor Perez-Amado, SURP professor and co-curator of Parks in Action. “This exhibition encourages community participation in exploring the design and social engagement of parks to ensure that everyone has access to green spaces and their benefits.”

Perez-Amado says that, “Toronto’s parks fulfill essential social and environmental prerogatives, including mitigating urban heat island effects, supporting biodiversity and improving air quality. They also offer crucial water management goals and reduce the impact of extreme weather events.”

“This project aims to evaluate and measure the social and environmental value of public and private open space assets, including parks, ravines, and rights-of-ways, as they relate to the city's resilience goals,” he said. 

With this in mind, Perez-Amado and his co-curator, U of T Professor Fadi Masoud, designed Parks in Action to include a series of free workshops throughout July and August. Bringing together community members, climate research experts, non-profit organizations and policy makers, the workshops aim to educate park users on the role parks play in climate action, while identifying ways to make infrastructure changes and provide solutions to climate risk.