We couldn’t be more pleased to welcome Frank Johnson as our new regular guest blogger for Smart on Crime in Waterloo Region! If you do a web search for “Frank Johnson” you will find there are quite a few of them in this world. But there’s only one Frank Johnson willing to roll up his […]
Everybody loves an infographic! They are so helpful in making a point that words on paper just can’t do. As various delegations and experts appeared before the House of Commons during the debate on the omnibus crime bill, we were reminded of this great infographic from The Church Council on Justice & Corrections. It gives […]
Over the past couple weeks, I’ve been writing about placemaking. In part because we just had a fantastic event with Cynthia Nikitin of the Project for Public Spaces, but also because placemaking is a great, ‘smart on crime’, crime prevention tool for neighbourhoods and communities. The Festival of Neighbourhoods in Kitchener, Ontario, is a perfect […]
Fulfilling an election promise, the Government of Canada recently introduced the “Safe Streets and Communities Act” or Bill C-10. If passed, Bill C-10 would significantly amend the Canadian Criminal Code and related legislation. C-10 is an omnibus bill that includes nine pieces of proposed legislation covering changes from mandatory minimum sentences to tougher penalties for […]
As we all strive to find innovative ways of creating safe communities and reducing crime, sometimes the solutions can be quite astounding. But how do we go about doing this and have an impact? The famous slogan utilized by Nike is a great start – Just do it! We often spend so much time thinking […]
‘Placemaking’ is fast becoming a new ‘buzz word’. But what does it really mean anyway? It ends in ‘ing’ so that means it’s a verb, which means some kind of action is happening… What kind of action is required to ‘make a place’? And what does ‘making a place’ have to do with crime prevention […]
With a zang and a zing The bells of parliament did ring To signal the new season Of parliamentary reason The message was clear To all who could hear “Changes in law are coming this fall Our omnibus is big, our orders are tall We’ll do what we said, we have the right and the […]
Elections are expected in seven Canadian provinces and territories this fall, including Ontario, where our Crime Prevention Council is located. Election periods always gain a great deal of media attention – the campaign stops, the announcements, the debates, the photo-ops….. But how do you know what a candidate really thinks on a particular issue? And […]
Until recently, there was a fairly narrow dichotomy in perception of approaches to crime; you were perceived as either “tough on crime” or “soft on crime”. It’s good to see we are charting new territory with the language we use to describe our approaches “on crime”. The “on crime” slogans and taglines are becoming more […]
My heart goes out to the people of London and other cities in England. Having lived there from 1979 to 1984, England remains one of those countries for which I have a personal soft spot. Many of my friends remain there, I recently visited London, and I still have a good sense of its culture […]
