The Stroll of Poets Society was founded in 1991 to address the need to promote poetry as an art form. We attempt to do this by staging two annual poetry festivals, publishing an annual anthology, and by offering other programs such as reading series and workshops.

The core events or programs are the two festivals and the anthology, and they are connected. The Stroll of Poets festival on the first Sunday of October is where it begins. Any Stroll member who signs up by the end of July may perform at the festival. There are generally between one and two hundred poets who take part. Groups of four or five poets perform in a dozen or so venues in Old Strathcona over the Sunday afternoon -- five-minute performances. Before the readings begin, however, there is an annual brunch with a special guest reader to inspire us and prime the poets to Stroll. This is the only ticketed part of the festival, and draws about a hundred people.

Each scheduled performer at the October festival may submit a poem on the day of the festival for publication in the Stroll of Poets Anthology, and may also enter that submission in a blind contest, which is judged by a jury of high-profile community members from different walks of life. The judges select their 44 favourite poems, and the authors of these poems are then asked to take part in the 12 Days of Poetry, the second annual festival.

The 12 Days of Poetry takes place in the middle weeks of January. Four poets perform at each of the first eleven Days of Poetry -- ten-minute performances. The audience at each of these shows is asked to cast ballots on who they would like to see move on to the next step and perform at the 12th Day of the festival, the grand finale. The eleven poets chosen by audience demand from the the first eleven Days give five-minute performances on the 12th Day. The 12th Day is the only ticketed event, and it often includes such features as Robbie Burns Day celebrations and a wrap-up dance. The audience is usually 200 or more.