WHAT ARE RESILIENT STREETS?
Strengthening connections & relationships
One way to make our communities more resilient is by strengthening the connections and relationships between neighbours on a street, or in apartment or condominium buildings.
View and download our collection of inspiring examples and stories of neighbours connecting and doing projects together in streets and buildings in British Columbia and around the world.
On a Resilient Street, people who live close to each other often have more social events together, share tools and skills, support each other during emergencies, work on different issues or projects together, and much more! It all starts with neighbours simply connecting and getting to know each other a little—and that’s where we can help….
Resilient Streets “getting started” tools
Flyers, posters and other tools to help you make those first connections with your neighbours and
start a Resilient Street.
Resilient Streets “getting started” tools
Beginning in May, we will be offering workshops, and micro-grants to the Greater Victoria region, to help support neighbours in kicking off community gatherings and projects.
Micro-grants
Neighbours often use micro-grants to host a living room conversation, pancake breakfast, outdoor BBQ, block party, or potluck, and later apply for a larger micro-grant to do a project together such as building a new street amenity. (Our micro-grants program is currently closed, but click here for more information.)
Workshops
From general orientations about neighbourhood resilience to practical sessions on building “pocket places”, we frequently host free workshops. To get early word on all upcoming workshops, monitor our News & Events blog, contact us or sign up to our mailing list.
City of Victoria resources
Download information about additional Resilient Streets resources that are specific to Victoria.
Esquimalt
resources
Download information about additional Resilient Streets resources that are specific to Esquimalt.
BC Resilient Streets demonstration communities
Since 2018, we have been fostering Resilient Streets in other places across BC! Through the PlanH Healthy Communities Capacity Building Fund, we are partnering with four BC demonstration communities to implement and adapt the Resilient Streets program in diverse contexts. Get involved or simply explore what’s happening in our participating communities, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, Sunshine Coast Regional District, City of Powell River and the City of Richmond.
CONNECT & PREPARE
Social connections between neighbours are a crucial foundation for building shared emergency preparedness. We recently piloted an innovative Connect & Prepare program in collaboration with Victoria Ready. Learn more about it here!
Are you interested in growing neighbour-to-neighbour connections where you live? Our free Neighbour-to-Neighbour (N2N) Connectors’ Toolkit (PDF) offers a set of simple resources to help. You can use them on your own, or as conversation guides to help you and your neighbours assess, plan, and take action together.
The toolkit walks you through five sections:
My goals in connecting with neighbours – Clarify why you want to connect, whether that’s strengthening social ties, boosting emergency preparedness, or supporting neighbours to age well at home.
What’s already happening where I live – Take stock of the assets and strengths your neighbour-community already has to build on, like existing group chats, a friendly building manager, or neighbours who’ve shown interest in getting involved.
Ask your neighbours – Find out what your neighbours think and want, and look for a “buddy” to help you move forward.
Connect with your neighbours – Try in-person ideas like a coffee salon or lobby intercept, or indirect approaches like a poster, postcard, or suggestion box.
Neighbour-to-neighbour ideas – A menu of activities organized by the level of neighbouring you want to build toward: casual conversation, sharing items and support, organized gatherings, and working together on shared projects.
Knowing your neighbours can make all the difference when things get hard, whether that’s a small daily task or a full-blown emergency. That’s the idea behind Building Resilient Neighbourhoods’ Simple Actions for Neighbourly Support (PDF) guide, a free one-page resource from our Neighbours Helping Neighbours program offering easy, low-barrier ideas for building connection and support among neighbours.
The resource is organized around four themes:
- Get to know your neighbours
- Help a neighbour / ask for help
- Set up a neighbour communication system
- Get prepared together
Each theme comes with a handful of concrete, ready-to-try ideas, like setting up a puzzle table in the lobby, pairing up with a neighbour for regular check-ins, starting a group chat or email list, or agreeing on a simple daily signal (like a ribbon on the door) to let others know you’re okay.
As one resident from Leblond Place in Victoria, BC puts it: “We feel like we are building a vertical village where, instead of feeling unable, we now, as a group, are more than able.”
The Capital Region Connection in Action campaign has come to a close. Over six weeks from May through June 2026, individuals and organizations across the Capital Region came together through gatherings, shared meals, walking groups, and everyday acts of connection, culminating in a shared recognition and celebration of Loneliness Awareness Week.
“It was wonderful and fascinating to hear about the other dads’ personal interests and projects. Most of us had seen each other regularly for months but had never really talked.”
— Paul, who discovered that a simple invitation to a playground could turn familiar faces into real friendships.
What we did together
Connection in Action brought together organizations and individuals across the Capital Region around a shared belief: that loneliness and social isolation are real and serious challenges, and that building a more connected world starts with ordinary, everyday actions.
The campaign invited people to act at scales large and small. About 100 connectors came together at our May 14 kickoff workshop to share ideas and commit to taking action in their communities. Over the six weeks that followed, 65 events took place across the Capital Region, including 23 events during Loneliness Awareness Week alone.
Events ranged from community meals and pop-up picnics to board game socials, walking groups, and ice cream socials.
“We now have each other’s phone numbers, and many of us have each other’s keys for emergencies.”
— Susana, who turned a few shared potlucks into a building-wide network of support.
Thank you
Thank you to our partner organizations, whose networks, events, and outreach made this campaign possible. And thank you to everyone who organized or attended a gathering, shared their story, or tried something new!
The connection continues
Loneliness Awareness Week may be over, but the work of strengthening social connection doesn’t stop here. Every relationship made during this campaign is a foundation to build on. We invite you to keep going, because when neighbours know each other, communities are stronger, healthier, and more resilient.
“Our hope is simple: that everyone leaves having found at least one new connection that adds a little more community to their everyday life!”
— Aimee, who is designing a casual community fair with her neighbours to create space for people to make new connections
Visit the Connection in Action landing page for resources to support your next steps, and to find inspiration for the connections you want to continue to build beyond Loneliness Awareness Week.
You can also read all of our Connection in Action blog posts, including stories from community connectors and profiles of our partner organizations.
Capital Region Connection in Action is a campaign to strengthen neighbourly connection, personal belonging, and community resilience.
Connection in Action is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.
As new immigrants to the Island, my family has found it challenging to build connections. At our kids’ jiu jitsu classes, I noticed that some families already knew each other well, while others, like us, tended to keep to ourselves. We’d watch our kids, share a few smiles or a bit of small talk, and that was about it.
I wanted to create a low-pressure way to connect with other dads outside of class: dads who are busy, running on little sleep, and not really having the time or energy to build new friendships. And as a bonus, our kids could extend their play and build friendships of their own.
So, I simply approached a few dads and mentioned that my kids and I were planning to check out a nearby playground on the weekend, and that they were welcome to join. Three dads and their sons came along.
I brought some food, including cookies my wife had baked. When we arrived, one of the dads looked around and asked, “Is it somebody’s birthday?” When I said no, he laughed and said, “Oh, wow, you just wanted to hang out!” That said it all. The kids had a great time, and we adults ended up having some really good conversations, too. It was wonderful and fascinating to hear about the other dads’ personal interests and projects. Most of us had seen each other regularly for months but had never really talked. All of them appreciated the time together and suggested we do it again, with more people from the jiu jitsu classes — a few dads who couldn’t make it said they were eager to join next time.
It was a good, small start!
Capital Region Connection in Action is a campaign to strengthen neighbourly connection, personal belonging, and community resilience.
Connection in Action is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.
I’m part of a group of residents in the City of Victoria’s Local Champions program who are working to strengthen community connection. In our conversations, we landed on a simple truth: the loneliest people need to be invited in, and these people tend to show up when there’s something that speaks to them.
So, on August 16th of this year, we’re in the midst of planning a community fair at the Fernwood Community and Arts Centre — a low-pressure “club day” where residents can browse a curated mix of local groups, volunteer opportunities, and support services to see if there’s anything they’d like to join. We’ll have hosted tables, colour-coded buttons to help people signal their communication and connection wishes, and activities to suit a range of interests. After the event, we’ll send participants a Connection Directory with details on every group that took part.
Our hope is simple: that everyone leaves having found at least one new connection that adds a little more community to their everyday life!
Capital Region Connection in Action is a campaign to strengthen neighbourly connection, personal belonging, and community resilience.
Connection in Action is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.
When I moved into a new building, I met a couple of friendly neighbours and we chatted about wanting to get to know more neighbours, so we hosted several potlucks for people in my building. We now have each other’s phone numbers, and many of us have each other’s keys for emergencies.
Just this month, a neighbour noticed a flood in the storage area, and was able to reach everyone to let them know. My unit was affected, but I was away. Luckily a neighbour had my key and, with other neighbours, they went in and moved my belongings out of harm’s way.
We also have a senior tenant in the building and we are all keeping a neighbourly eye on her, letting each other know if we haven’t seen her, or if she is needing additional support. All this would not have happened without those potlucks. New neighbours have recently moved in, so I hope to host another potluck soon.
Capital Region Connection in Action is a campaign to strengthen neighbourly connection, personal belonging, and community resilience.
Connection in Action is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s New Horizons for Seniors Program.