Equity and Urban Greenspace Planning in Toronto’s Chalkfarm Tower Community

Abstract

My research paper examines interrelationships among environment and climate justice, equitable access to greenspace and its benefits, and urban planning policy and practice. First, I provide broader context with a review of existing literature relating to the benefits provided by ecosystem services in urban environments. I then review different types of urban greenspace and their associated benefits, such as climate resilience, mental and physical health, and community connection. I then examine aspects of the history of environmental justice, and how it has developed as a scholarly subject and activist movement in relation to current issues of climate justice and greenspace equity, particularly in Toronto. I examine how distributional, procedural, and recognitional components of environmental justice relate to access to urban greenspace and its benefits and risks in addressing issues of greenspace equity. Using the case study of the tower community at Chalkfarm Park, in Toronto, I then examine the condition of nearby greenspace and other open space. I then discuss the potential impacts of a current infill development application, at the site, as well as relevant planning policies and guidelines.