Learn how Toronto’s award-winning Green Roof By-Law and the Toronto Green Standard shaped resilient, climate-positive cities, improved air quality, supported pollinators, and provided energy savings, and why their loss could impact Toronto’s future livability

Toronto’s green roofs improve in plant health over time, with roof size, building height, and vegetation type driving long-term success. Insights from NDVI remote sensing guide sustainable, resilient urban green infrastructure planning.

Providing estimates of the monetary benefits of improved health outcomes contributes to better decision making on resource allocation using multiple examples from Ontario municipalities.

Discover how access to nature impacts mental health and wellbeing, and why green infrastructure in cities is a public health necessity. Explore the benefits of green spaces, the inequalities in access, and ways communities can take action.

Urban heat is a growing threat, exacerbating health risks and inequality. Arup’s UHeat tool provides data-driven solutions to mitigate the Urban Heat Island effect, with case studies like Toronto showcasing strategies for resilience through green infrastructure, retrofitting, and equitable urban design for cooler, healthier cities.

The City of Toronto welcomed more than 300 green infrastructure professionals on November 6 to 9 for the 20th anniversary of the CitiesAlive conference. The conference highlights green infrastructure design, research, policy and innovation from across the world. 

Toronto is leading the way in green infrastructure, integrating nature-based solutions into urban planning. From green roofs to the Green Streets Program, the city’s innovative policies enhance climate resilience and improve community well-being, setting a model for sustainable urban development.

Providing estimates of the monetary benefits of improved health outcomes contributes to better decision making on resource allocation using multiple examples from Ontario municipalities.

As Toronto co-hosts the 20th Anniversary of CitiesAlive in November, this article chronicles the early policy steps taken by the City to mandate and incentivize green roofs, now covering more than 10 million sf of roof area.