Students a Bright Light for the Future of Planning at the APA National Conference

The American Planning Association has invited students to contribute blog posts on their reactions to the APA National Conference. Their thoughts so far have revealed holistic concerns and creative thinking—positive signs for the next generation.

2 minute read

April 20, 2015, 8:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


A live blog covering the proceedings of the 2015 National Planning Conference in Seattle includes posts from some of the many students in attendance at the event.

First up was Julie Barnard, co-editor of the Carolina Planning Journal and a current economic development student in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Barnard's trip to Seattle provided a bird's eye view over the Rockies, Las Vegas, and the Grand Canyon, providing time to reflect on the large environmental challenges facing planners in the 21st century. As a student of the economic development side of planning, Barnard sees opportunities to collaborate across disciplines in a holistic approach to planning.

My experience here in Seattle reminds me that one can simultaneously advance a community’s economic standing and its long-term sustainability, its hazard mitigation strategy and its equity, its downtown district and its walkability

Barnard also cites examples from the first day of the conference that "show how coalitions of those interested in justice, economic development, and sustainability can be more effective at achieving each goal than any one group alone." The article expands on that idea:

"Jane Jacobs’s idea of 'web thinking' and her assertion that academic institutions have 'deluded us into thinking that there are separate fields of knowledge,' likewise urge us to think beyond professional or narrowly disciplinary boundaries and imagine new ways of achieving positive change."

Another post by Steven Kanner, a master of urban planning student in development and design at Cleveland State University, also notes a similar theme, finding "a thousand viewpoints and perspectives on what planning is and what it should be," so far at the event. Phrases like, "It’s about zoning code flexibility," "Keep it fun," and Kanner's own mantra, "Got to have social fabric."

Kanner concludes insights into the conference's events so far with words of inspiration:

May the day come, when the world is filled with the Jewish concept of Tikkun Olum — a just and repaired world — and there is no need for equity planning. Until then, there is the APA conference and continued hearty and heated discussion and debate on the best path to get us toward these noble goals."

The strong presence of students local and from farther afield is one of the best parts of the National Conference. We're looking forward to more of these posts and hoping that the enthusiasm of these students and others like them is infectious among the ranks of the planners in attendance this year and for years to come.

Sunday, April 19, 2015 in American Planning Association

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Interior of Place Versailles mall in Montreal, Canada.

Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units

Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.

May 22, 2025 - CBC

Flat modern glass office tower with "County of Santa Clara" sign.

Santa Clara County Dedicates Over $28M to Affordable Housing

The county is funding over 600 new affordable housing units via revenue from a 2016 bond measure.

May 23 - San Francisco Chronicle

Aerial view of dense urban center with lines indicating smart city concept.

Why a Failed ‘Smart City’ Is Still Relevant

A Google-backed proposal to turn an underused section of Toronto waterfront into a tech hub holds relevant lessons about privacy and data.

May 23 - Governing

Pale yellow Sears kit house with red tile roof in Sylva, North Carolina.

When Sears Pioneered Modular Housing

Kit homes sold in catalogs like Sears and Montgomery Ward made homeownership affordable for midcentury Americans.

May 23 - The Daily Yonder