In an article for the Ryerson City Building Institute, Ryerson Associate Professor, urban planner, and Outdoor Play Canada Leadership Team Member, Dr. Raktim Mitra describes the findings of his latest research on the importance of access to safe and welcoming outdoor space and maintaining healthy movement behaviours among Canadian kids during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Using a nationwide survey on the movement behaviours of children and youth during COVID-19 related restrictions commissioned by ParticipACTION, Dr. Mitra mapped the data from the survey to neighbourhood location, dwelling type, park access, residential density, and proximity to major roads.

Dr. Mitra found that children and youth living in houses were more likely to have increased levels of outdoor activity, compared to those living in apartments. However, for children and youth living in apartments, proximity and access to parks within 1 kilometre increased the probability of spending time outdoors. This suggests that while urban density is a potential factor contributing to local vulnerability during a pandemic, this vulnerability can be offset by access to outdoor space.

Read the full article here.

Read the CBC article on the same study here.