MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Once again, it is the time of year when we take stock of where we are on our journey—and we have come far since our last update! This time, I will report on the last two years of progress due to the “time warp” caused by COVID.
Like other programs, the School of Urban and Regional Planning and its programming were tremendously affected by the pandemic, particularly when our teaching had to switch online within a matter of a week in March 2020. Over the course of the Fall and Winter Terms, both faculty and students adapted well to the new mode of teaching and learning. In fact, the students’ survey shows that—barring a few hiccups such as accessing software remotely—by and large, students’ satisfaction was high. I was most skeptical about our studio offerings. However, studios surprisingly went very well thanks to our students and faculty, indisputably proving that my earlier skepticism was misplaced.
To keep everyone’s morale up during these tough times, we engaged a local improv comedy troupe to entertain students, faculty, and industry partners. Based on the feedback received, the event was engaging and was certainly a memorable experience for all.
The University of Alberta, as of September, is open and intends to offer the majority of courses in person. But we are all in uncertain times. While vaccination rates in Canada are up, the COVID cases are beginning to rise again as I write this note—and we will see what new challenges the Fall Term may bring for us.
We were lucky to have accreditation of the MSc program completed just before the lockdowns began. Kudos to Bob Summers, who led this challenging task during my absence. We received full accreditation, which is valid for the next five years.
Two new faculty members—Neal LaMontagne and Kyle Whitfield—have joined the School while I was away on sabbatical. As of July 2021, Jeff Birchall has taken over Bob Summers’ responsibilities as associate director of the School. Thank you to Bob for his unwavering dedication and commitment! You will get to know more about Neal, Kyle, and Jeff in the stories below.
We take immense pride in the fact that our programs are preparing the next generation of planners who will be ready to tackle current and future challenges in the planning practice. The employability of our students, despite the pandemic, shows that the industry concurs with the quality of our graduates and our approach to education, and above all demonstrates our students’ resiliency, adaptability, and a go-getter attitude no matter what may come.
All of this has been made possible due to the strong relationship and continued support from the industry, commitment of the faculty, cooperation from our students, and strong backing from the senior administration. If you would like to join our community of donors and support student awards in SURP, click here. Thank you to each of you for your part in making this success possible.
Warm greetings,
Sandeep Agrawal
Professor and Director, School of Urban and Regional Planning
Equity Focused GIS Workshop
Taught by SURP's resident transportation planning researcher, Dr. Emily Grisé, the Equity-Focused GIS Workshop educated participants on the spatial patterns of social inequity as a function of urban systems.
Indigenous Planning Workshop
The Indigenous Planning Workshop was a joint initiative led by three student groups: the Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Graduate Students' Society (ATLAS), the Grace Anne Stewart Speaker Series, and the Geography and Planning Students' Society (GAPSS).
The Online Learning Experience
With imposed quarantines and social distancing practices becoming the new norm in response to the pandemic, these restrictions altered university student’s learning experience too.
Edmonton’s Zoning Bylaw Through the Lens of Equity
Since 1961, Edmonton’s Zoning Bylaw has not had an extensive review, resulting in unintended repercussions and inequities across Edmonton.
Studio Project Highlight: “A Vision for Spoke-tacular Public Bike Share in Edmonton”
This past year, as part of HGP 495: Planning Studio, students were required to design and prepare a planning related capstone project for a real-world client.
Community Approaches to Housing Affordability
Join Joshua Evans, assistant professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences as he examines policy approaches to housing affordability, examples from Edmonton, Alberta, and the critical role of community housing in Canada’s housing system.
