Column: Arts aficionado Dorian Kelly is delighted to welcome back Jane's Walks, an annual festival of free, community-led walking conversations inspired by Jane Jacobs. Walks take place across the world, including right here in Colchester
HAVE you ever heard of Jane Jacobs? No? Thought not.
I’ll tell you about her because she’s a lady who ought to be much better known.
Jane was a Canadian woman who cared deeply and thought hard about how towns and cities were for the people who lived there, rather than the convenience of traffic and big business.
She did everything she could to champion liveable neighbourhoods based upon the wellbeing of the people who lived in them - not just the ease of cars getting from A to B.
One of her greatest achievements was stopping a six-lane highway being driven through Manhattan, destroying thousands of homes and decimating communities.
She really believed people ought to get to know their own communities better.
After her death, as a way of honouring her, her friends started conducting walks around her own neighbourhood in Toronto.
Passionate - Jane Jacobs believed people should know their own communities better
The idea of walks on the human scale spread, and, before long, Jane’s Walks were happening in cities all over the world, every year, on the same weekend.
Chicago, Copenhagen, Calcutta, Cordova...and Colchester, where it rapidly became one of the largest walk events in the world. A real Colchester first.
Last year, we were going to do no fewer than 33 walks round Colchester, ranging from looking at trees in the park to interesting aspects of our social history, and examining some of the problems and strengths of urban planning.
However, for reasons I don’t need to spell out, we had to cancel our plans.
Now we are back.
We have had to cut back a bit, but we are still doing 12 walks, including one aimed specifically at children and their carers.
There are walks around High Woods, Bourne Valley and the town centre, looking at some of the more curious aspects of our town.
Arts aficionado Dorian Kelly
They are free of charge and there is no need to book. Just turn up.
They are on various dates between Sunday, August 22, and Wednesday, September 1.
For the full programme and accessibility, head here and follow the links.
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