ABSTRACT This paper offers an overview of population-based perspectives and strategies related to the role of physical activity in the management of diabetes. Topics include the importance of physical activity promotion, need for theoretically driven approaches, individual-level population-based strategies and resistance training. Studies undertaken in the Physical Activity and Population Health Research Laboratory at the University of Alberta are presented as illustrative examples throughout. Recommendations and implications for research and practice are discussed, with a call for ecological approaches that recognize the inter-relationships between individuals and the multiple levels of their environments.