Increasing the livability of our cities and regions is a goal shared by all. But what are the best and most realistic ways to achieve that goal? How can planners and decision makers work together to identify the major issues, set priorities and develop plans that can work and achieve support? The conference will encourage a critical and practical discussion of assumptions concerning growth and will define the new opportunities and constraints in planning effectively for our city and region.
In a series of panels and workshops, distinguished speakers from the planning profession, government, academia and the community will discuss key subjects, including new transportation initiatives, energy alternatives and water management, design and place-making, social equity and sustainability and the politics and costs involved in implementing the vision of livability in an age of limits.
Conference Schedule 9 - 9:30 Registration and continental breakfast
9:30 - 9:45 Welcome
9:45 - 10:15 Opening keynote speaker: Rutherford Platt, Professor of Geography and Planning Law, University of Massachusetts Amherst and Editor of "The Humane Metropolis: People and Nature in the 21st Century City"
10:15 - 10:45 Morning keynote speaker: Bruce Schaller, Deputy Commissioner for Planning and Sustainability, New York City Department of Transportation
10:45 - 11:30 Plenary Panel Regional Perspectives: Livability in an Age of Limits
11:45 - 1 Breakout sessions (5 options)
Energy: If there’s not enough now...
Brownfields: New Funding, New Planning Opportunities
Planning for the Eco-Neighborhood
Sustainability and Equity in the Housing Market
Water, Water, Everywhere
1 - 1:30 Lunch
1:30 - 2 Keynote speaker: Elliott G. Sander, Executive Director & Chief Executive Officer, Metropolitan Transportation Authority
2:15 - 3:30 Technology sessions (2 options)
A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words: 3D Plans Made Easy with Google SketchUp
Planning Tech: Tools for Today and Technology on the Horizon
Before he began blogging about land use and transportation, Aaron Donovan wrote The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund's annual fundraising appeal for three years and earned a master's degree in urban planning from Columbia. Since then, he has worked for nonprofit organizations devoted to New York City economic development. He lives and works in the Financial District, and sees New York's pre-automobile built form as an asset that makes New York unique in the United States, and as a strategic advantage that should be capitalized upon.
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