Author: Eduarda Aun
Recife, Brazil, is reimagining streets as safe, playful, and climate-resilient spaces for children. Through the Streets for Kids program, the city transformed 7000 m² of public space, benefiting thousands of children and caregivers.
Building Safer Streets for Children: A Global Movement
In 2022, the Streets for Kids program launched its first-ever Leadership Accelerator, bringing together 60 city leaders from 20 countries to strengthen skills, share knowledge, and build a global network focused on creating safer streets for children. At the end of the program, GDCI invited teams to apply for a $20,000 seed grant and a year of technical assistance to bring their visions to life.
By April 2023, ten cities across four continents were selected: Abuja (Nigeria), Cuenca (Ecuador), Istanbul (Turkey), Leon (Mexico), Lima (Peru), Lusaka (Zambia), Recife (Brazil), Santiago (Chile), Solo (Indonesia), and Tyre (Lebanon).
Recife’s Streets for Kids Project
In Recife, the project focused on Silva Jardim and 22 de Agosto streets in Jordão, a neighborhood where children face multiple challenges accessing safe public spaces. Heavy rains, frequent flooding, and landslide risks often make their journey to school dangerous.
The intervention directly benefited 566 students aged 2–10 attending three nearby schools and nearly 1,200 daily pedestrians who rely on these streets.
This transformation was made possible through strong partnerships between city agencies, including:
- Recife Urban Transport and Transit Authority (CTTU)
- Urban Maintenance and Cleaning Authority (Emlurb)
- Urban Innovation Office (GIURB)
- Education Department (Executive Secretariat for Early Childhood)
- Environment Department
Over 400 children, caregivers, school staff, and residents co-created solutions to improve access to schools, support outdoor play, and set a precedent for future child-focused street transformations.
Why Streets Matter for Children
Informal neighborhoods like Jordão make up 32% of Recife’s area and house 53% of its population. These areas often lack sidewalks, parks, or safe places to walk and play. In such contexts, streets become the most important public space—but they are rarely designed with children in mind.
Recife has taken steps through its Praças da Infância (“Childhood Squares”) program, creating over 13 dedicated play spaces. Still, the need is widespread. A study by MapBiomas and Instituto Alana found that 1 in 5 Brazilian schools lack nearby plazas or parks, affecting 1.5 million students. This scarcity of public space limits opportunities for play, social interaction, and connection with nature, all essential to children’s healthy development and well-being. Of these schools, 78% are within 1 km of informal neighborhoods, where space for new public amenities is already limited.
By reimagining streets as multifunctional spaces, cities can create safer, more inclusive environments for children to walk, play, and grow.
Designing Streets for Safety and Climate Resilience
Nearly a quarter of Recife’s municipal schools are located in areas at risk of climate-related disasters such as flooding and landslides. These hazards can endanger lives, disrupt education, and prevent children from attending school. “As soon as it rained, we couldn’t get through here because [the street] turned into a waterfall,” recalled Rosinalva Monteiro, a school principal in Jose Manguba Sobrinho state school.
In response to these challenges, the Streets for Kids project integrated climate resilience and child-friendly design into the streetscape. Key features included:
- Permeable paving and new drainage systems
- Shaded waiting areas for caregivers
- Greenery to manage stormwater and improve comfort
- A vibrant plaza with play structures and seating
+7,000 sqm of public space created with the implementation of a plaza © Wagner Barbosa / CTTU
Altogether, 7000 m² of public space was improved with benches, trees, and playful elements. Traffic was calmed through raised crossings, narrowed lanes, and chicanes, reinforcing a safe 20 km/h environment.
These upgrades enhanced safety, encouraged walking, and made daily routines more joyful for local children.
From Tactical to Permanent Change
While temporary interventions spark conversations, lasting change requires permanent investment and multi-sector collaboration. After years of testing tactical interventions with GDCI and the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety, Recife implemented a capital construction project in Jordão, solidifying its commitment to safer streets.
Strong political will and institutional collaboration were key. Mayor João Campos’s support brought multiple departments together with a shared vision. Agencies pooled resources, aligned priorities, and engaged the community, showing how child-focused street design can catalyze broader municipal cooperation.
The lessons learned will serve as a blueprint for scaling child-friendly public spaces across Recife, turning streets into spaces of possibility for every child
How Can Your City Reimagine Streets for Children?
Recife’s experience shows that child-focused street design is possible when cities invest in collaboration, climate resilience, and community engagement. By turning streets into safe, playful, resilient, and inclusive spaces, we can transform daily life for children and families.
What can your city learn from Recife?
- Streets can be more than transit corridors. They can be spaces for play and connection.
- Climate-resilient design protects children and ensures access to education.
- Strong partnerships and political will make lasting change possible.
This blog was first published on the Global Designing Cities Initiative website.
About the Author
Eduarda Aun is an urban designer and the Program Lead for the Streets for Kids program at the Global Designing Cities Initiative. She works with cities around the world to reimagine streets as safer, more inclusive, and vibrant public spaces for children and their caregivers.
The Ideas for Action Series showcases ideas for action, innovation, programmes, policies and practices that make public spaces child-friendly. Read more of our blogs here.
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