WHAT WE DO
Bikes Without Borders is a federally-registered Canadian charity, using bikes and bike-related solutions as tools for development in marginalized communities. We believe in the bicycle as a means of increasing access to vital health services, economic opportunity, educational empowerment and independence.
We serve marginalized individuals and communities where bikes and bike-related solutions can have a significant, positive impact on community development by providing bicycles, repair and maintenance training and program support to residents through partnerships with local community and social welfare organizations.
We use bike-related solutions to empower individuals in marginalized communities through mobility and opportunity. We believe in the humble bicycle as a means to increase access to vital community services and networks that allow individuals to meet their basic needs and build better lives.
Who we Serve
Much of our programming is aimed at supporting youth-at-risk, communities of colour, vulnerable newcomers and indigenous populations by providing access to quality targeted education, safe and healthy economic opportunities related to bicycles, expert supportive and detailed training, as well as healthy and sustainable transportation and recreation options. Our work focuses on priority neighbours and Neighbourhood Improvement areas (NIAs) in the Toronto area as well as indigenous communities in the Ottawa and surrounding region. We are currently expanding our work to include first nations communities in northern Ontario. In addition, when we are able we continue to work with international partners to assist communities abroad in places like Malawi, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone, Haiti, Cuba, etc.
Our work aims specifically to empower the vulnerable with valuable in demand skills and experience, fostering healthy community engagement, school perseverance and viable employment prospects all while contributing to building healthier communities.
We are always open to new partnerships and programs looking to serve marginalized individuals and communities where bikes and bike-related solutions can have a significant, positive impact on individual welfare and community development. We do this by providing donated bicycles, repair and maintenance training, mentorship opportunities, and through innovative bicycle related programming and partnerships.
What We’re Up To
Right now at Bikes Without Borders our focus is on outfitting refugees and low-income minorities living in underserved communities with refurbished bicycles through our The Great Bike Recycle recycling initiative, which aims to recycle up to 1000 bikes per year.
Our recent programming focus is on engaging vulnerable youth and indigenous populations through comprehensive community oriented bike repair education programs aimed at supporting youth-at-risk and indigenous populations by providing access to quality targeted education, safe and healthy economic opportunities, expert supportive and detailed training, as well as healthy and sustainable transportation and recreation options for participants.
HiSTory
Bikes Without Borders was founded in 2008 by Tanya Smith and Mike Brcic with the desire to bring donated bicycles to remote communities around the world. During our inaugural development we worked out of the Centre for Social Innovation in Toronto, Ontario, with Humber College International Development students to identify and target the most effective places where bicycles could make an impact. We began to organize small bike drives and projects bringing donated bicycles to communities in the Toronto area, Peru, Cuba, Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone. During this time we partnered with Mountain Equipment Co-op on a large bike drive and year long T-shirt fundraising strategy. Through the work with our Humber College students we launched our first large scale project along with Virgin Unite -"The Pedal Powered Hope" program, outfitting remote Community Based organizations (CBOs) in rural Malawi, Africa with bicycles and bicycle ambulances.
As time passed our work began to focus on local Canadian communities where bicycles could be more cost effectively distributed, and where the need and interest in our work was growing. Tangerine (formerly ING Direct) supported our work by housing our bicycle repair shop inside their large Shuter Street banking location and became one of our first major sponsors. As the Syrian refugee crisis of 2015 developed in Canada and the Toronto area we began to see a dramatic increased demand for bicycles and a need for local support offering affordable transportation and recreation to newcomers.
Since that time a large part of our work now focuses on working closely with newcomer settlement services partners, sponsor groups, school boards and local municipalities to help our most vulnerable obtain a bicycle.
Over time we have looked closely at the barriers to more effective distribution of used or new bicycles to marginalized communities and in recent years developed a hybrid model where we work with a focus on local Canadian marginalized communities while continuing to support international communities through partnerships. We do this by triaging donated bicycles and prioritizing targeted models and equipment best suited for local communities while continuing to work with international partners (World Vision, Canserra, etc.) to send bicycles best suited to communities aboard.
In addition, we have worked closely with the City of Toronto on various projects including the Recipe for Community initiative and Tower Renewal and Neighbourhood Revitalization projects. From 2019-2022 we conducted a research project and survey with the Toronto Parking Authority and Bikeshare to examine ways we could help make bike sharing models more equitable contributing to Bikeshare's recent "Reduced Fare" Program.
Over the years our youth mechanics training project partners have included Evergreen Brickworks, CultureLink Settlement Services and George Hull Boys Home amongst others.
To help address the impacts of covid on vulnerable populations we worked with the Province of Ontario, Toronto Polices services and LAMP Community Health Centre on a "Healthy Communities" program targeting minorities and at risk youth and families in priority areas of Toronto.
Over the years Bikes Without Borders has also hosted several exciting fundraising campaigns, events and rides including Bike for Africa on Toronto Island, The infamous and stylish Tweed Ride, The Toronto Bike Awards and Bike with Mike Layton.
In early 2021 Amsterdam Brewery became Bikes Without Borders largest sponsor and supporter constructing a fully equipped bicycle repair shop inside their brewery at 45 Esandar Drive in the Leaside area of Toronto. This location also acts as our primary bicycle donation drop off location (there are several other drop off locations throughout the city) and hosts our corporate team building bike builds in the infamous Brewhouse event space. Volunteer mechanics work daily at this space to refurbish donated bicycles and Amsterdam Brewery assists us in organizing large distributions to our partners.
In 2022 Bikes Without Borders began to shift more focus towards our under-acknowledged and underserved indigenous communities. We have begun to look for ways that we can support the ongoing work toward reconciliation and national unity. Last year we introduced a partnership with The Odawa Native Friendship Centre in the Capital region to distribute bicycles beyond the urban Toronto area and are currently fundraising for The Momentum Bicycle Academy: an exciting new comprehensive community oriented bike repair education program in partnership with the Attawapiskat community and Project 5 (Project First Nations) aimed at supporting youth-at-risk and indigenous populations by providing access to quality targeted mechanic education, safe and healthy economic opportunities, expert supportive and detailed training, as well as healthy and sustainable transportation and sport options for participants.
WHO WE ARE
STAFF
Tanya Smith, Executive Director | tanya@bikeswithoutborders.org
Tanya is a proud mother of 3 cyclists and the founder of Bikes Without Borders. She has sat on the board of Bikes Without Borders and served as Executive Director for over 10 years.
Mark Mackenzie, Operations Director & Shop Manager | mark.mackenzie@bikeswithoutborders.org
Mark is a proud Metis citizen (metis nation of Ontario). He has spent close to ten years as a bicycle mechanic working his way up to head mechanic, running a full bike shop and eventually becoming a partial shop owner. Mark has also worked in the world of business development, becoming the head of operations for a Canada-wide business accelerator and investment fund after successfully founding and operating a successful business until it was acquired.
BOARD
Bhanu Sharma, Board Member | bhanu@bikeswithoutborders.org
Edmund Leong, Board Member | edmund@bikeswithoutborders.org
Philip Baskerville, Board Member | philip@bikeswithoutborders.org
OUR PARTNERS & FRIENDS
These are some of the companies and organizations that have supported and/or are supporting our work (thank you!):
Cycle Toronto
Culturelink
Central Toronto Collegiate
Neighbourhood Information Post
CAMH
Polycultural Immigrant Settlement Services
Evergreen
TNO Neighbourhood Network
Sandgate Women's Shelter of York Region Inc.
Geneva Centre for Autism
Kinark Child and Family Services
Canadian Mental Health Association – Toronto Branch
Romero House
Rights Action
Holy Trinity house and FCJ
Bells on Danforth
TDSB Social Work services.
Employment Ontario
Skills for Change
SafetyNet
Veahavta
Salvation Army
George Hull Boys Home
Toronto Police Services
Toronto Fire Services
Amsterdam Brewery
FIFE house
LOFT
Mathew House
World Vision
University of Toronto
York University
Toronto Metropolitan University
St. Stephen’s Community House
Honda of Canada Manufacturing
Houselink & Mainstay Community Housing
Armagh
The Odawa Native Friendship Centre
Madison Community Services
St. Elizabeth Catholic Highschool Thornhill
Send us an email at info@bikeswithoutborders if your organization is interested in becoming a partner or much needed used bike bike drop-off location.