Edmonton city council advances 2SLGBTQ+ safety action plan
Beyond Belonging outlines seven priorities to create safer spaces for Edmonton's 2SLGBTQ+ community, building on input from 900 residents.
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Edmonton is advancing a comprehensive safety action plan aimed at creating more welcoming and secure spaces for 2SLGBTQ+ residents, following consultation with 900 community members across 40 organizations.
The Beyond Belonging: The 2SLGBTQIA+ Safe Spaces Action Plan will go to city council after the administration compiled feedback from 2SLGBTQ+ Edmontonians about barriers to belonging and support. The seven priorities guiding the plan include designing public spaces for active safety, taking a bold stance against hate, providing visible support matched by action, addressing intersectional identity needs, education and training, normalized inclusion, and embedding 2SLGBTQ+ voices in city leadership.
Deni Hanington, program manager with the Chew Project—a community-based initiative supporting 2SLGBTQ+ youth and adults aged 29 and under—said small changes had outsized impact on young people's sense of belonging. "We learned a lot about spaces being welcoming in ways that aren't just neutral, so small things like being able to have pride flags up and visible, maybe a sticker on your door saying everyone's welcome here," Hanington said.
The plan responds to rising hate-motivated incidents targeting the 2SLGBTQ+ community. In 2025, the Edmonton Police Service received 14 hate crime reports from the community. Data presented to the police commission in April 2026 showed Edmonton-specific trends peaked in 2024 at 24 hate crimes and 26 hate incidents, though reports eased in 2025. In 2025, the city disbursed $750,000 in grants to community projects aligned with the action plan's priorities.