Lanrick Bennett Jr is currently the Executive Director of Charlie’s FreeWheels where his organization uses bicycles to support the development of empowered young leaders and self-assured young cyclists. His previous work has kept him within the active transportation, urban design, and placemaking sphere including stints at Toronto-based 8 80 Cities, The Laneway Project, and Artscape. Though he credits much of his success in city building from his time working at The Second City, refining his understanding and implementation of the improv art of Yes, And…!
His city advocacy work started while traveling with his then 5-year-old son to all 100 libraries by public transit nick-naming it #JacksLibraryTour. He gives back locally as a Community Advisory to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council at UofT; he monitors the progress and activity of affordable housing through the volunteer-based initiative ‘HousingNowTO’ and co-leads the student cohorts from UofT’s School of Cities’ Multidisciplinary Urban Capstone Project (MUCP) and School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP) at Toronto Metropolitan University.
In January 2022, Lanrick was appointed Toronto’s first Bicycle Mayor.
He is a board member with Blake Boultbee Youth Outreach Service (BBYOS), TD Friends of the Environment Foundation, City of Toronto’s Climate Advisory Group, Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival, and The Bike Brigade.