Urban living produces fewer emissions per person and offers lower-carbon ways to live, work and move. But if you don't make cities desirable, people aren't interested.

That makes urban planners and designers some of the most important players in climate action. It's why we develop public spaces where people can go outside and enjoy the living room of the neighbourhood.

We spoke with Hélène Chartier, Director of Urban Planning and Design at C40 Cities, a global network of nearly 100 mayors working together to confront the climate crisis.

"If we adopt a better urban planning model, we could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25%."

How can urban planning tackle the climate crisis? Read the story →

What do public spaces mean to the people who use them? In Voices in Public Spaces, we ask community members to share how public spaces impact their lives. It’s all about real voices sharing real reflections.

In this episode, we caught up with Laurie Wilson as he walked along Toronto’s Waterfront Trail. For Laurie, spending time in public spaces like this brings him back to the natural landscapes he grew up with. Watch the video →

EMOTIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE. If you’ve been reading this newsletter, you know we love talking about making cities climate-ready. But climate readiness isn’t just about building resilience into our physical spaces — it’s also about our emotional wellbeing. 
 
Author Peter Kageyama writes in his book The Emotional Infrastructure of Places, “I believe that our next steps in placemaking will be to embrace and incorporate emotional awareness, emotional design, and emotional infrastructure into building our cities.”   
 
When I think about emotional infrastructure, I think of the neighbourhood gems where I spend time with my family. The impromptu soaking in the splashpad, the trail where my son learned how to ride a bike, sampling handheld international foods at local festivals.  
 
And yet these places are the most exposed when climate extremes hit. The parks that anchor our communities are the ones that flood first. The streets we gather on become hot spots in summer heatwaves. Being climate ready is about making sure our neighbourhoods can handle what is already happening: extreme heat, more intense storms and more rain. 
 
We know nature-based solutions help, even small actions. Planting native plants instead of non-native species or using rain gardens to replace paved areas — these aren’t just ways to manage water or fight the urban heat island effect; they help our cities absorb the emotional shocks of extreme weather. 
 
Just last summer, Toronto was hit with a record-breaking storm that dropped more than 100 millimetres of rain in just a few hours, flooding our site at Evergreen Brick Works. 
 
Because we had designed the site to flood, the outcome was better than it could have been. Our Saturday Farmers Market opened that weekend. This massive achievement was not only due to the green infrastructure onsite; it was because of the dedicated staff and volunteers who quickly mobilized to help us get back to normal with the support of generous donors. And why?   
 
Evergreen Brick Works is emotional infrastructure.  
 
It’s not only where I work; it’s where my son goes to Adventure Camp. It’s where my father-in-law roasted his first marshmallow. It’s where I’ll bring the family for a movie night this summer. And it’s also where I genuinely feel we can contribute to positive change in our cities if we can create with both our hearts and minds.   

🖊️ JOYCE CHAU, PROGRAM DIRECTOR | EVERGREEN

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🎨 This month's banner illustration is by Stevie Driscoll, the artist behind Mumbleweeds. Visit the Evergreen Garden Market for greeting cards, calendars and art prints from this artist. 

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Evergreen is a national non-profit transforming public spaces in our cities to build a healthier future for people and our planet.