Background The Cities of Guelph and Oshawa (Durhan Region) are mid-sized cities in Canada that are committed to inclusive active transportation, Vision Zero, and achieving net zero emissions. To facilitate planning to meet these commitments, these cities (together with two others) participated in a study tour/workshop in Copenhagen, Denmark through the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Healthy Cities Program. The 5-member teams consisted of an academic lead, an elected municipal official, and representatives from public health and transportation.

Objective To learn best practices and develop local knowledge mobilization activities in Canadian mid-sized cities to support safe, equitable, and active transportation.

Programme Description The teams participated in talks, workshops, and walking and cycling tours with municipal leads, urban planners, architects, public health officials, and community organizations in Copenhagen. The teams then created plans for local activities in Canada which included a neighbourhood walking tour (October 2023) and a community design workshop and panel discussion (Spring 2024) in Guelph, and a Winterize your Bike event (November 2023) and a national hybrid conference (June 2024) in Oshawa.

Outcomes and Learnings Learnings included how to design urban spaces that foster inclusive, safe, active transportation, and the importance of relevant data. The knowledge mobilization activities planned by the Guelph team took a local approach including a neighbourhood walking tour of a marginalized area which was attended by 53 participants with wide community representation. The planned design workshop and panel discussion will pull together lessons from Copenhagen with local challenges. The Oshawa team took a national approach, focusing on building collaboration and capacity among similar sized cities. Their 2024 conference will launch a network called the Public, Active, Clean, and Equitable (PACE) mobility group, an apolitical group that can support evidence-informed decision-making; with safety as a central theme.

Implications The interactive workshop abroad was invaluable to both researchers and practitioners, and has sparked new collaborations that will support evidence-informed municipal decision-making, policies, and programs.

Conclusions Study tours are a meaningful way to learn new approaches and create cross-collaboration within municipalities, and with researchers. These tours are particularly suited to goals to develop healthy urban spaces.