News

School of Planning Associate Director of Graduate Studies Dr. Jeremy Pittman and Dr. Michelle Rutty of the Department of Geography and Environmental Management have been invited to the International Science Council’s newly formed Global Roster of Experts. Designed to bridge the gap between science and policy, the roster was formed to ensure that global decision-makers have access to credible, timely, and context-specific scientific advice that can drive progress on the most urgent global challenges. 

Doug Ford recently vowed to build a 50-kilometre traffic tunnel below the 401 to cut traffic and support economic growth. School of Planning Professor Dr. Markus Moos argues this increased focus on car-centric urban planning will not only not fix traffic but will further contribute to air pollution and exacerbate urban sprawl, leading to an overall decrease in Ontario’s quality of life.

On September 21, the School of Planning held another successful Welcome to Planning ceremony, where incoming Planning students and their supporters were invited to connect with the School of Planning community and celebrate the beginning of their educational journey with us.

The School of Planning is excited to announce that Katherine Perrott, PhD RPP MCIP has joined the faculty as a tenure track Assistant Professor. Prior to this role, Dr Perrott worked full-time as a teaching faculty member in the School of Planning, supporting our students across a range of urban design and planning practice courses. 

Five Faculty of Environment students are the first Waterloo participants in a specialized field experience hosted by FREED.

School of Planning PhD Candidate Cloé St-Hilaire proposes four key ways to address housing financialization: an open data property registry, public housing, rent control and taxing REITs. 

School of Planning MES Student Emma Borho has been awarded the Dillon Consulting Ltd Scholarship at the 2024 Canadian Institute of Planners National Conference. 

The School of Planning is pleased to announce that Dr. Katherine Perrott is one of the recipients of the Outstanding Performance Award 2023. In addition to Dr. Perrott, Dr. Erin O'Connell and Dr. Michelle Rutty also received the award for The Faculty of Environment.

On June 11^th, the School of Planning celebrated the accomplishments of our 2024 Graduates during the annual Graduation Luncheon. This event marks a tradition for the School of Planning to honour the time our graduates have spent with us, and to provide final words of encouragement as they prepare to move forward in their future endeavours.

School of Planning MES student Jane Kelsey has been partnering with Region of Waterloo Public Health to explore how alcohol access changed in the Region from 2014 to 2023. These findings were recently shared with nearly 20 Region of Waterloo employees to highlight how we might anticipate alcohol-related harms changing in the coming years.