Planning for Sustainability at the Neighborhood Scale

The AIANY Planning and Urban Design Committee invites all to participate in a panel discussion exploring sustainability at the local level.

Practicing sustainability on a neighborhood scale creates opportunities for community members, municipal stakeholders, technical experts, urban planners, and design practitioners to work together to increase the value, function, and efficacy of the local built environment. In an effort to better understand how this type of approach may take hold and influence best practices planning in New York City, today’s panel discussion will address methodologies for creating Sustainability Districts, obstacles to overcome when working toward implementation, and successful examples taken from a global perspective.

In complement to the panel discussions, a series of New York City centric vignettes will shed light on local areas with potential for piloting. 

SPECIAL GUEST JUST ADDED: Manhattan Borough President, Gale Brewer to Speak at 1:00pm!

Schedule

9:30      Registration: Coffee and Breakfast will be available

10:00    Introductions: “What is a Sustainability District… and Why Are They Important?”

• Jeffrey Raven, FAIA, Principal, RAVEN A + U, Associate Professor and Director, Graduate Program in Urban & Regional Design, New York Institute of Technology, Co-Chair, Planning and Urban Design Committee

10:15    Keynote: Michael Samuelian, President & CEO, The Trust for Governor’s Island

10:45    Panel One: Key operating Principles / Criteria / Metrics of a Sustainability District

A series of protocols and programs from around the world.

• Chris Rhie, Urban Planner and Sustainability Strategist, BuroHappold Engineering (Moderator)
• Josiah Cain, Director of Innovation, Sherwood Design Engineers
• Krista Egger, Senior Director of Initiatives, Enterprise Community Partners
• Joshua Foss, CEO, Regensia
• Irwin Lowenstein, President, ReThink Advisors, EcoDistricts AP

11:45    NYC Sustainability District Pilot Presentation No. 1 // Governor’s Island (Manhattan)

• Shane Brennan, Assistant Director of Program Development, The Trust for Governor’s Island

12:00    Panel Two: Successful Examples of Planning for Sustainability

A series of regional and international case studies demonstrating best practices.

• Prentiss Darden, Innovation Strategist, Sherwood Design Engineers (Moderator)
• Matthijs Bouw, Principal, One Architecture & Urbanism (ONE)
• Nina Chen, Director of Conservation Investments, The Nature Conservancy
• Evan Kaplan, Senior Project, ManagerBright Power
• Klaus Lehn Christensen, Director, Danish Cleantech Hub, Urban Future Lab

1:15      NYC Sustainability District Pilot Presentation No. 2 // Sunnyside Yards (Queens)

• Luciana Godinho, New York Institute of Technology

1:30      Lunch will be provided

2:15      NYC Sustainability District Pilot Presentation No. 3 // Gowanus (Brooklyn)

• David Briggs, AIA LEED AP, Principal, Loci Architecture and Executive Director, Gowanus by Design

2:30      Panel Three: Obstacles & Opportunities for NYC Districts

A round-table discussion around the topic of how Sustainability Districts can be achieved in NYC.

• Brian Loughlin, AIA, Director of Planning and Urban Design, Magnusson Architecture and Planning (Moderator)
• Zach Gallagher, Executive Vice President, Natural Systems Utilities
• Claudia Herasme, Director of Urban Design, NYC Department of City Planning
• Donald Manning, Director of Housing, Jewish Association Serving the Aging (JASA)
• Deborah Morris, Director of Resiliency Planning, NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development
• Alex Stulc, Senior Consultant, BuroHappold Engineering, Cities Group

3:30      Closing Remarks: Looking Forward

• Gregory Haley, Associate, Grimshaw Architects

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As a reminder, AIA National policy requires participants to attend the entire educational portion of an event to receive continuing education credits. We encourage all participants to arrive on time to comply with this policy.