Research

The world’s population is fundamentally shifting. Society is growing older. Communities, regions, and countries around the world are beginning to lose population. GOLDEN Urbanisms examines the relationships between urban aging, depopulation, and policy at a global level and considers what that means for cities, regions, planning, policy, and ultimately, humanity.

Why is play only for children? Play improves physical and mental health, strengthens social cohesion, and increases sense of belonging. Play has the potential to address many of the physical and mental challenges that can come with aging while simultaneously countering social isolation and loneliness. Aging Playfully is the first research project to extensively examine older adult play and the built environment.

Learn more about the project, people, and publications.

There is an urgent need for solutions to Canada’s ongoing student housing crisis. The Student Housing Observatory (SHO) is a collaborative partnership between higher education institutions, student associations, municipalities, not-for-profit organizations, and academics to create and share knowledge regarding student housing issues.

The France-Canada Geographies of ShrinkAge is a joint project between Queen’s University and L’École des hautes études en sciences sociales. The project examines the past, present, and future geographies aging, shrinking, and left-behind places. By comparing and contrasting localized trends in different national contexts, the project explores wider questions surrounding the challenges and opportunities of age-friendly policy in shrinking cities, as well as the realities and implications of uneven regional development.

Learn more about the project, people, and publications.

Online participatory planning processes are cheaper, easier, and may reach a broader audience than in-person techniques. However, they are also vulnerable to disruption from automated social bots. City of Bots is the first study to explore the potential impact of automated social media bots on participatory planning.

Quietly Shrinking Cities: Canadian Urban Population Loss in an Age of Growth is the first major study of past, current, and future urban population loss in Canada – and what we can do about it. The book argues that shrinking cities need to rethink their planning and economic development strategies in response to a new demographic reality, and questions whether population loss and prosperity are indeed mutually exclusive.

Interested to learn more? Order the book today!

How well do the places where we live support the wellbeing of older adults? The Aging People, Aging Places (APAP) project brought together academic research, practitioner reflections, and personal narratives from older people across Canada to reflect on this question. The resulting book explores employment, housing, transportation, cultural safety, health, planning and more.

Interested to learn more? Order the book today!

The global population is aging. But not all built environments are suitable for an older population. High-rise neighbourhoods have the potential to support the physical and social needs of older adults, but as they age they become incredibly difficult to renovate or retrofit. This collaborative project explores the notion of double aging: people aging in aging built environments. Specifically, we explored how to manage the linked concerns of demographic and physical aging of high-rise neighbourhoods.

Project has concluded but materials are still available on the website.