The Future Looks Bright for Planning in Canada

By Meredith Davis, 2010 CAPS-ACÉAU President (Meredith@caps-aceau.ca)

If the calibre of discussions and presentations by planning students at the 2010 CAPS-ACÉAU Conference in Guelph is any indication, the future looks bright for planning in Canada!

In early February, 185 planning students from coast to coast descended on Guelph for the 26th annual conference of the Canadian Association of Planning Students - L’Association Canadienne des Étudiants en Aménagement et en Urbanisme (CAPS-ACÉAU). The conference is the most important student-organized planning event nationwide and is hosted every year by one or more planning schools.

This year, students in the Rural Planning and Development Program at the University of Guelph organized the conference. Entitled, “Progressive Planning: A Work in Progress?”, the 2010 Conference explored competing definitions of “progressive” and how the practice of planning is and can be made more progressive. 32 professionals and 47 student presenters addressed a diverse range of issues and themes related to planning. Sessions included multiculturalism, healthy communities, local food and agriculture, sustainability and transportation, disaster planning, effective communication, and international planning.

Featured speakers included Guillermo Peñalosa, former Commissioner of Parks, Sport and Recreation for the City of Bogotá, Colombia and current Executive Director of 8 – 80 Cities (formerly Walk and Bike for Life); Matthew Blackett, publisher, creative director and one of the founders of Spacing magazine; and a special Skype address from Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party of Canada. Additionally, the first night of the conference presented an exclusive screening of a brand new documentary film from Leonie Sandercock and Giovanni Attili called “Finding Our Way: Healing Canada’s Apartheid,” which dealt with planning issues in Canada’s First Nations communities.

In the words of conference participants, the 26th CAPS-ACÉAU Conference was engaging, fun, interesting, and inspiring — in short, a great success! A success made possible by the tremendous efforts of the many partners, volunteers, presenters, and participants who contributed resources, energy, and ideas to the event.

BACK TO TOP