Across cities like Toronto, traditional urban planning processes are shifting—becoming more centralized, more opaque, and less accessible to everyday citizens.

In this new model, young people—already underrepresented in civic discourse—are at even greater risk of exclusion, losing the chance to learn, participate, and shape the environments they move through every day.

When changes to a key neighborhood roadway in West Toronto increased safety risks for students walking to school, parents stepped forward to advocate. But local students themselves were left without meaningful avenues to engage, voice their experiences, or influence outcomes.

We saw an opportunity to reframe the problem: not as a traffic issue alone, but as a broader design challenge about agency, safety, and belonging in the urban fabric.