This is what some children want to see in the city of their dreams.

The children talked to a team from Canadian Studies Centre, Panjab University and College of Fraser Valley, Abbotsford, British Columbia. The team, which is doing a study on Child-Friendly Cities, visited various schools to for children’s opinion.

Prominent among them were St Stephen’s School, Sector 45, Government High School, Sector 25 and Government High School, Dadumajra Colony.

Says Professor Cherie Enns, Professor of Geography, UCFV, who has been working on the project for 12 years, “The primary concern of children worldwide is safety. We have conducted the survey in various countries like Africa, Malaysia, Zambia, a refugee camp on the Sudanese border, Hawaii and Japan among others. The concerns of the children are similar”.

“The children have increasingly been concerned about environment and waste disposal. They want clean surroundings and parks where they can play without fear. They also want more open spaces and places where they can learn more. Heavy traffic tends to scare them,” she says.

The children, all between 10 to 14 years of age, were asked to draw what they wanted in their city. Most drawings had a place of worship.

Says Julia Bennet, a teacher from Langley Fine Arts School, “Most of the students drew religious places like temples, churches and mosques. It shows the importance of religion in the minds of the children. We view this commitment to religion as a very positive sign. It was not necessary that the children had to draw places associated with their religious beliefs. It could be a place that their friend went to”.