8am to 6:30pm Pacific Time

Increasing cultural, economic, and political linkages are bringing urban centres closer together in the Pacific Northwest. From evolving trends in Indigenous politics and transportation needs, to established issues of climate adaptation and housing affordability, this year's conference will convene discussions and examine solutions for these challenges facing our region.

SCARP’s annual symposium brings together students, practitioners, and academics from across British Columbia to engage in discussion and debate on key challenges in planning. It brings together academics, researchers and students for meaningful conversations and collaboration. 2015 will mark the seventh year of the SCARP Symposium. 

This year’s Symposium will look beyond municipal, provincial, and national boundaries to encompass the entire Pacific Northwest. Increasing cultural, economic and political linkages are bringing urban regions closer together in the Pacific Northwest. While the Cascadia bioregion has long had ample natural resources, pressures of population growth and climate change are forcing the region to evaluate how to best manage its natural assets. Major legal rulings on the rights of First Nations and trade agreements, protests for and against epoch-making economic development projects, and the running issues of substantial poverty and unaffordable housing, accessibility and mobility, and food systems in our sprawling conurbations all spell opportunities and threats in the region.

This Symposium will integrate Indigenous and environmental perspectives, as well as the dynamic narratives around economic development in Cascadia. This event will also explore commonalities, disparities, and overall trends in the Pacific Northwest in the area of housing, urban transportation, Indigenous resurgence, governance, sustainability, and prosperity.

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Keynote Speakers:

Sam Adams is the former mayor of the City of Portland, Oregon (2009-2012) where he was a key gay rights and environmental advocate for the region. Adams is now the Executive Director at the City Club of Portland, an organization dedicated to the civic integrity of the city.

Douglas White is a member and former Chief of the Snuneymuxw First Nation in Nanaimo, BC and is best known for his expertise in Indigenous legal issues. He continues to practice law and negotiation today, and simultaneously acts as Director of the Centre for Pre-Confederation Treaties and Reconciliation at Vancouver Island University