Where We Gather: Building Community Through Shared Spaces
Written by Oluseun Olayinka, Executive Director, Adventure4Change
Introduction
Living in a neighbourhood in Waterloo Region where my four children can walk to a park in three minutes, play at nearby school playgrounds, or explore forested trails just blocks from home, I have come to deeply appreciate the value of accessible, high-quality green space. These everyday amenities nurture a family’s wellbeing, connection, and joy—elements that are often taken for granted.
That perspective shifted dramatically when I joined Adventure4Change four years ago and began working more closely in North Waterloo. Communities like Sunnydale, Albert Street, and High Street; home to many Black, immigrant, and racialized families, face starkly different realities. In these neighbourhoods, public green spaces are scarce. Where they do exist, they are often governed by restrictive policies or disconnected from nearby housing.
I have often asked myself whether this is merely coincidental or a direct result of structural inequities in urban planning, land use, and public investment. As I write this article, I find myself returning to this question. Are “park access gaps” simply environmental issues? Or are they something deeper? For me, they are fundamentally justice issues.
The Impact of Park Access Gaps on Racialized Communities
Green space is more than scenery. It supports physical activity, mental health, and social healing. For families experiencing displacement, migration stress, or racial exclusion, parks can offer sanctuary. When access is limited, these opportunities are diminished, deepening cycles of stress, inactivity, and isolation.
Parks are also vital sites of cultural belonging. They are spaces where people gather to speak their language, share food, pass on traditions, and celebrate milestones. When such spaces are absent, or when communities feel unsafe or unwelcome within them, public life shrinks. The ability to be seen, connect, and belong is curtailed.
These spatial inequities reflect a longer history of racialized urban planning and economic underinvestment, exclusion by design that manifests in the absence of playgrounds, gathering spaces, and shaded benches. These design decisions have material and emotional consequences for entire communities.
Grassroots Social Infrastructure: Bridging the Gap
In response to these inequities, grassroots organizations like Adventure4Change serve as vital havens and hubs of social infrastructure. We co-create culturally relevant, community-rooted spaces that respond to the real needs of families, especially those navigating settlement, exclusion, and systemic underinvestment.
At Adventure4Change, this looks like Sunnydale FC, a youth soccer initiative that supports over 120 boys in building both their athletic skills and their confidence through sport. We also run Girls in Sports, a program that introduces girls, many of whom face gendered and cultural barriers to a variety of sports, while connecting them with school-based coaches who can support their continued development. Weekly basketball sessions, led by community coaches, offer youth a trusted space to play, learn, and build relationships.
To nurture wellness and belonging, especially for mothers, many of whom are Muslim and face social isolation, we host monthly women-only gatherings filled with food, laughter, music, and connection. Our calendar is shaped by intergenerational celebrations such as the annual summer soccer festival and the end-of-school-year BBQ, which regularly bring together hundreds of residents.
When the weather allows, we organize backyard tea gatherings, community park trips with transportation and meals, and weekly drop-in programs for children, youth, and parents. Our recreational sewing program nurtures creativity and healing among women, while our advocacy amplifies local voices calling for public investment in green space. These are not just services, they form a community infrastructure rooted in relationships, cultural affirmation, and mutual support. This infrastructure is relational, culturally attuned, and grounded in everyday acts of care, resistance, and community-making.
Call to Action
If municipalities and funders are committed to advancing fair access to public space, meaningful engagement with the lived experiences and insights of grassroots communities is essential. This includes working collaboratively with community-led organizations in the planning and redesign of public spaces and recognizing their role as key partners in fostering inclusion and belonging for when and where people gather.
Supporting culturally relevant outdoor and recreational programming, especially in underserved areas, is a vital step toward this goal. Equally important is moving beyond short-term, project-based funding to invest in the long-term operational capacity of grassroots organizations doing this critical work.
We also invite regional stakeholders to champion community-based research and storytelling that centres the voices of racialized and newcomer residents, and to cultivate partnerships grounded in reciprocity, trust, and sustained commitment.
Conclusion
Addressing Park access inequities requires more than bricks and mortar; it calls for a reimagining of how we value land, culture, and community. Organizations like Adventure4Change are already doing this work, transforming neighbourhoods through care, creativity, and cultural relevance. What is needed now is sustained recognition, meaningful investment, and a shared commitment to building cities where everyone not only lives but truly belongs and thrives.
