Jane’s Walk is a series of free neighborhood walking tours led by volunteers. The walks are led by anyone who has an interest in the neighborhoods where they live, work or hang out. They are generally not about architecture and history, but offer a more personal take on the local culture, the social history and planning issues faced by the residents in the area.
Jane’s Walk is named after urban activist and writer Jane Jacobs, and is held annually during the first weekend in May to coincide with her birthday. Writer Jane Jacobs wrote, “Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” The vision of Jane’s Walk is to celebrate these ideas and promote walkable neighborhoods, urban literacy, and cities planned for and by people.
Jane’s Walk started in 2007, and since then has happened in cities across North America including Calgary, Halifax, Vancouver, Victoria, Waterloo Anchorage, Boston, Dayton, New Orleans, New York City, Oakland, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Seattle and St. Louis. In 2009, over 10,000 people took part in a Jane’s Walk and were led by volunteers in 263 neighborhoods in 24 towns and cities across North America. Jane’s Walks went international in 2011, and walks were offered in cities including Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, St. Petersberg, Ljubljana, Sao Paolo, Guadalajara, and 12 walks in Tel Aviv & Yaffo, Israel.
Past walks have explored various places including visiting social housing slated for redevelopment, teen hangouts, secret gardens, and historical sites. Some walks have a theme, and some have been built around ideas like the urban forestry, gay and lesbian history, places of relevance to the homeless, and urgent planning matters facing certain neighborhood. The walks, in whatever form, give an insider tour of a neighborhood.
Is leading a Jane’s Walk for you? The Jane’s walk website offers tips and tools to help you plan leading a walk. It also has a list of qualities that you can read through to see if this might be for you. The next Jane’s walk will be May 5th and 6th for 2012, so you have some time to plan.
Image Source:
www.blogto.com
vic.gedris.org
Links: