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OUR WORK: Projects

Community Walking Project

Women walking with walking sticks

With funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada (April 2010 to March 31, 2011), our Centre engaged a project manager to work with a wide range of individuals, organizations, community agencies and community leagues to promote walking groups in Edmonton neighbourhoods and communities. The aim was to promote walking as a free, easy and friendly way for people to be more physically active and improve their health, and be more involved in their communities.

In particular, the Community Walking Project focused on diabetes prevention and management through walking. During the project, many different walking groups were started, and a good number are continuing into the future.

Project Background and Digital Story

  • Read a project description from the early stages of the project.
  • Community Walking Project: Challenges, Lessons and Successes: An article published in the December 2010 WellSpring, reporting on the first six months of the one-year project.
  • At the end of the project, the project manager created the following Digital Story which outlines the scope of the project, positive results and insights to help you launch your own walking group.

 

If the above link does not work, please go directly to the video on YouTube.

Community League Walking Groups

One of the final steps taken in the project was to create simple walking maps for each community league in Edmonton, using a free and fun online mapping program called mapwalk.com. The program allows you to create walking routes from home, work or anywhere. There are lots of features to this program such as distance measure, calories consumed, and time taken according to pace. This can be a helpful tool to encourage community members to start walking groups. Register a walking group at http://edmontoncommunitywalkers.mapwalk.com. Wherever you live or work, consider using this tool or similar ones to help you get a walking group going.

Winter Walking for walking leaders video

One exciting “spin-off” result of the Community Walking Project was the development of the Winter Walking for Walking Leaders video below. The video project was led by the Be Fit for Life Network of the Alberta Provincial Fitness Unit, in association with the Community Walking Project and the Alberta Centre for Active Living. Trained walking group leaders are an important part of a successful and sustainable walking group.

 

If the above link does not work, please go directly to the video on YouTube.

More Walking Group Resources

Looking to launch or sustain a walking group in your community or at your workplace? The resources noted herein will help you along!

Useful Links