Convivialize

Click on each of the icons below to find out how to convivialize your neighbourhood for everyone

Rural / Remote

Choose areas that are on a main street and that encourage people to meet and perhaps go for a walk and chat . Consider where people gather and access services and create active and social opportunities in those spaces. For example, in remote areas, take advantage of places that are part of daily life such as close to medical facilities, schools, post offices, spiritual gathering places, and grocery stores. Create walking pathways around popular gathering spaces (e.g., playgrounds).

Residences (Dwellings)

Set up listening booths, prompt booths, and games tables in common spaces of buildings, such as the front lobby (easy to meet and greet people coming and going) or at picnic areas of campgrounds. Work with landlords to create a safe walking pathway outside the building, install a playbox and/or create a safe play area.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion

Ensure spaces feature elements that offer a sense of welcomeness and belonging. For example, you may put a sign that says everyone is welcome in different languages. Ask questions on a prompt board about how neighbourhoods could be more welcoming (considering the needs of new Canadians, gender-diverse people, etc.) Invite people who speak different languages to co-host a listening booth to convey all neighbours’ thoughts and ideas. Consider expanding the purpose of this to have trained professionals participate to meet and provide care to those in the community who have experienced trauma. Help familiarize newcomers with safe pathways, using public transportation to key destinations.

Accessibility

Be sure to choose locations that are well lit, have curb cuts for wheelchairs to easily access.

Age-Friendly

Provide chairs that are easy to get in and out of for the very young and older. Ask questions or prompt topics of interest to a variety of ages. Ensure that locations are cleared of snow and ice for easy access to the location of installations.

Seasonality

Host convivial activities during winter festivals around a warm fire. A firepit is always a welcoming feature to entice people to join.

Chairbombing

Source: DIY Chairbombing, Tote Park, by Greensquarehubteam, 2012

Source: Laura Lukye, Brooks, Alberta

Add temporary seating or tables to a public square, on the side of your street, in your local park, or skating rink and gather with your friends. Chairbombing can create a gathering space where one currently does not exist.

Make it more active – Organize a game of musical chairs or create signage that encourages others to take the initiative.

Benchbombing

Source: Let's Put A Bench on Every Street Corner

Source: Let's Put A Bench on Every Street Corner

Benches are gaining more attention as a great way for neighbours to meet and chat, to rest in the middle of a walk, and to beautify a space. Perhaps designate it as a “buddy bench” where anyone can go to find someone to talk to, play with or walk with.

Check out Let’s Put a Bench on Every Street Corner for ideas.

Make it more active – Encourage people to walk/wheel or cycle (or any other form of active transportation) to the benches at designated times to meet someone to be active with.

Host a Listening Booth

Source: What I've Learned from Hosting the Listening Booth at Spark

Spark a conversation and potentially a friendship by hosting a listening booth and inviting others to share their ideas and concerns.

Make it more active – Take your listening booth on the road by making it a walk and talk event.

Launch a Prompt Board

Source: Before I die, Zorro2212

Ask others in your neighbourhood to share a bit about themselves. A prompt board is an interactive and personal way to discover what interests your neighbours and to find other ways of connecting. There are many other ways to gather this information: Set up a space using whiteboards or posterboards; designate bulletin board around the community, or use long brown wrapping paper to gather comments in a colourful and creative way.

Make it more active – Be sure to prompt people to think about movement. Ask them to share their favourite activities, places they go to be active and active ideas to make their neighbourhoods more active. Encourage people to try them out and come back to record what they did and how they felt.

Turn the Street Into a Parklet or StrEATerie

Source: The Philadelphia Tribune

Source: Parklet, Wikipedia

Gather with your friends and experience the potential of street space! Check out the StrEATerie or parklet opportunities where businesses can work to replace a car parking space outside their business with a space for people to gather together.

Make it more active – Include large yard games in the space, leave buckets of sidewalk chalk for kids to access or pre-draw hopscotch games on the pavement.

Install a local park or front yard chess board

Source: Chess in Washington Square Park, by Rhododendrites, 2016

Put out some tables and chairs in a local park or your front yard and invite neighbours to walk over for a game of checkers, chess, backgammon or cards.

Make it more active – Replace the chess board with more movement-based activities.

Neighbourhood plazas

Source: Vancouver.ca

Neighbourhood plazas are small outdoor public plazas that provide space to eat, rest, socialize, and participate in neighbourhood activities. Work with local businesses, community organizations and municipalities to create a plaza in your neighbourhood.

Make it more active – Feature organized classes (such as yoga, tai chi, dance) in the plaza on weekends. Work with local clubs to donate instructors or find out which of your neighbours can help run the classes.

First Nations Locations and Pronunciations

There are many resources for learning and understanding more about the Indigenous peoples of Canada. As an Indigenous person, you can promote generational knowledge in many ways. For example, you can add QR codes and informational material to display the geography of which nation is Indigenous to the land you are on with the website native-land.ca, as well as speech and pronunciation materials to teach people how to refer to the local nation. For example, Skwomesh Language Academy created a YouTube video on the pronunciation of the word “Sḵwx̱wú7mesh.” If you are not Indigenous but want to connect to the land you are on, and to the original nation and their teachings, ask your local Indigenous nation if they have materials they would like to display in public spaces.

Make it more active – Provide information about Indigenous games that people can try.

Neighbourhood Day

Photo courtesy of C. Costas

Photo courtesy of C. Costas

Brooks, Alberta celebrates neighborhood day, which they kick-off by having a neighbour write about their neighbourhood and give their neighbour a jar of honey!

Make it more active – Have neighbours write about the ways to get more active in the neighbourhood and replace the jar of honey with a small active item (e.g., a ball, skipping rope, sidewalk chalk).

Quick Tips and Ideas

Place benches on front yards and throughout the neighbourhood.
Reframe “stranger danger”. Think of different ways to approach and get to know your neighbours.
Create a snowplow obstacle course.
Next to an outdoor library, place benches or rocks, or logs, to sit on with other decorations.
Offer informal home improvement gatherings with a skilled tradesperson.
Coordinate an “Amazing Race” event to explore your neighbourhood and beyond.
Host firepit Fridays. Consider putting together community campfire kits.

Download the Convivialize flyer