Canadian Urban Institute

Background of the organization

The Canadian Urban Institute (CUI) was established in 1990 but has taken on new importance during COVID-19, taking a stronger national role organizing for equitable, livable communities that build economic, social and environmental resilience.  Its national platforms (CityTalk, CityShare, CityWatch) have become critical sharing infrastructure for changemakers.  Its Covid 100, Covid 200 and Covid 365 reports have increased understanding of community resilience challenges as the pandemic evolves. Through the federal government’s Healthy Communities Initiative, a $31M investment to support public space adaptation in response to the pandemic, CUI has focused on equity, reconciliation and anti-racism issues. 

Project description

CUI will scale a civic recovery platform to inform municipal policy and meet growing demands for collaboration, with emphasis on equity-seeking communities. Platform activities will operate under three pillars. 1) Policy engagement & impact assessment: Bringing together municipal leaders to develop policy coalitions on the impacts of COVID-19, collaborating with academics and practitioners to build a robust framework for measurement and evaluation of interventions; 2) Building local recovery capacity: Developing evidence-based reporting on urban life with achievable goals for post-pandemic transition, launching the Canadian Urban Resilience Accelerator to streamline the adoption of municipal resilience practices and  ensure that post-COVID stimulus funds are invested in carbon-neutral work; 3) Storytelling: Launching campaigns that propel a compelling narrative of Canada’s civic future.