Arrive at the Reliance Atrium to check in and grab a beverage and pastry from Nemesis before moving to the Reliance Theatre for talks at 10:00 AM. Please arrive early at 9:30am as a line forms at check-in.

Cultural Ambassador Welcome and Opening Remarks

In the opening remarks for this year’s Symposium, Melissa Higgs will set the stage for the day by exploring our key theme of Culture in Place. What is culture in place, and how do we design for it? Why is it critical? Her talk will also introduce the underlying theme of the day, which is the exploration of the tensions that naturally exist in creating culture in place in our cities, which will be explored by our members and guests throughout the day.

UEA Member: Melissa Higgs, Principal, HCMA

This fireside pairing brings together Molly Steeves, Associate at DIALOG and Josh White, General Manager, Planning, Urban Design and Sustainability at the City of Vancouver.

This fireside conversation explores the tensions at the heart of public engagement: consultation vs. participation, community vs. expertise, individual vs. collective. At its core is a single argument that trust is cultural infrastructure, built slowly through transparency and accountability.

Molly and Josh will explore how to approach engagement in an increasingly complex world – focusing on building trust, a sense of ownership, and bringing together lived experience and technical knowledge in a constructive way.  

UEA Member: Molly Steeves, Associate, Urban Planning and Public Engagement Specialist - Dialog

Fireside Guest: Josh White - GM Planning, City of Vancouver

This conversation brings together Spencer Coppin, Angela Hartman, and Dai Manuel—each bringing over 20 years of experience at the intersection of health, fitness, retail, and community building, with roots in Lululemon, FitnessTown, TuRF, and CrossFit.

Together they will explore the future of urban wellness through the lens of health retail and entrepreneurship—offering insight into how wellness-driven brands shape behaviour, activate space, and build community within the environments that developers, planners, and designers bring to life.

Spencer, Angela, and Dai will share their ambition to create a new kind of urban Blue Zone, while unpacking the barriers to wellness in city environments and the critical role that thoughtfully designed, wellness-centered spaces play in fostering connection, culture, and more resilient communities.

UEA Member: Spencer Coppin, Founder, Life Protocol

Fireside Guest: Angela Hartman, VP GM, TurF

Fireside Guest: Dai Manuel , Owner, Crossfit BC

This conversation features Kelty Miyoshi McKinnon, Director/Principal at PFS Studio, and Brian McBay, Director at 221A.

Together they will explore Manifesting Asian Experience in the Public Realm, examining how the stories of Asian communities can be meaningfully expressed within the city—grounded in Vancouver’s deep and complex history shaped by Chinese, Japanese, and South Asian communities since the late 1800s.

Kelty and Brian will examine what constitutes meaningful storytelling in rapidly evolving and gentrifying cities, and how contemporary narratives can be shared while still honouring those who came before. Through this conversation, they will explore how both tangible and intangible heritage can remain present in urban spaces—creating neighbourhoods that are distinctive, resonant, and deeply connected to the communities they serve.

UEA Member: Kelty Miyoshi McKinnon Director/Principal, PFS Studio
Fireside Guest: Brian McBay - Director, 221A

Fully catered lunch by award-winning Dachi restaurant at Emily Carr University

This fireside pairing brings together Brad Jones, Chief Development Officer at Wesgroup Properties, and Michael Mortensen, Founder of LiveableCityPlanning Ltd.

Together they will explore how thoughtful placemaking helps create “sticky” places—places people want to gather in, return to, and share with others.

Brad and Michael will examine the tension—and symbiosis—between placemaking and development economics, discussing why creating truly great places often requires investing ahead of returns to unlock lasting cultural and economic value.

UEA Member: Michael Mortensen, Founder, Liveable City Planning Ltd. 
Fireside Guest: Brad Jones, Chief Development Officer, Wesgroup Properties

The hospitality industry is entering a new era.

Guests no longer connect with spaces that feel overly curated and designed. Instead, they're seeking environments that feel authentic, raw, textured, local, and culturally grounded.

Join Josh Vanderheide, Founder of Field House Brewing and East Abby Hospitality Group, and John Negrin - Founder, Batch Vancouver, for a fireside panel exploring this shift in hospitality and retail design.

They'll discuss how raw, expressive, and imperfect spaces are reshaping the customer experience … creating stronger emotional connection, visual engagement, and a renewed sense of place. An honest conversation about what comes next.

UEA Member: Josh Vanderheide, Founder, Field House Brewing & GoodLife Brand Collective
Fireside Guest: John Negrin - Founder, Batch Vancouver

This conversation brings together Andrew Emmerson, Principal at GBL Architects, and Saadi D’hoore, the City of Vancouver’s first Music Officer, and co-author of the Granville Street Plan.

Collectively, Andrew and Saadi will explore the ongoing cultural decline within the Granville Street Entertainment District, shaped by a combination of policy missteps, structural gaps, and unintended consequences.

This discussion will highlight opportunities to incentivize development policies, attract creative industries, and reimagine the entertainment district as a vibrant cultural destination.

UEA Member: Andrew Emmerson, Principal, GBL Architects
Fireside Guest: Saadi D’hoore, CoV Music Officer & Local Musician

Uncovering the Ground is a collaborative Project Lab exploring how Indigenous knowledge can meaningfully shape the way we plan, design, and develop our cities. The Lab seeks to restore stories of place and foster healing through deeper connection to land, culture, and community.

This initiative positions buildings as part of a larger story—balancing economic realities with lasting cultural and environmental value. Together, we will establish a framework for more authentic, place and memory-based development that supports truth, justice, and reconciliation in the urban realm.

Working in collaboration with the Central City Foundation and the Abbott Mansion project in the Downtown Eastside, the Lab will showcase an approach based on listening and learning. The Lab will create a prototype of a layered cultural mapping system and a short film. 
 

UEA Member: Taizo Yamamoto, Yamamoto Architecture

UEA Member: Cory Douglas, Modern Formline

UEA Member: Shanti Williamson, Modern Formline

UEA Member: Ginger Gosnell-Myers, Ginger Gosnell-Myers

Collaborator: Jennifer Johnstone, Central City Foundation

UEA Member: Ryan Savella, Arcade Original

UEA Member: Michael Menten, Bouva Media

UEA Member: Geoff Hunt, Tiny Vikings

This conversation brings together Norbert Jakubke, Idea Catalyst at Matchstick Marketing Inc., moderating a discussion with Derek Lee, Creative Director and Principal at PWL Partnership, and Calum Srigley, Placemaker and Architectural Illustrator at Calum Srigley Design Consulting.

Together they will explore Beyond the Algorithm: Why Human Insight Still Shapes Great Places, examining the tension between technological efficiency and human meaning in shaping place.

Through this conversation, they will unpack why human-centred envisioning still matters in land development—recognizing that while AI brings speed and analysis, it cannot replace intuition, empathy, trust, and cultural insight. These human qualities help build alignment, sharper narratives, stronger buy-in, and places people truly want to belong to.

Fireside Guest: Norbert Jakubke, Idea Catalyst – Moderator – Matchstick Marketing Inc. 

UEA Member: Derek Lee, Creative Director and Principal – PWL Partnership

Fireside Guest: Calum Srigley – Placemaker – Architectural Illustrator – Calum Srigley Design Consulting

This fireside brings together Steve Johnston, Executive Director at Community Impact Real Estate, and Rebecca Bligh, President of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

Together they will explore What Does it Mean to “Uplift” a Neighbourhood?, examining the tension between access and affordability, and the balance between personal dignity and urban development.

Grounded in recent policy discussions in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, this conversation will unpack the complexities between policy intent and implementation—exploring how cities can support meaningful change while reflecting the needs and aspirations of existing communities, especially low-income residents striving to lead full and rewarding lives.

UEA Member: Steve Johnston, Executive Director, Community Impact Real Estate
Fireside Guest: Rebecca Bligh, President, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

This conversation brings together Cory Douglas, Director at Modern Formline Design, and James K. M. Cheng, Founding Principal of James K.M. Cheng Architects Inc..

Together they will explore Indigenous Knowledge and the Future of City Building, examining how urban sites across North America hold layers of Indigenous history and cultural meaning that long predate modern development.

Cory and James will discuss how Indigenous knowledge systems—grounded in deep understandings of place, ecology, and community—can inform architectural thinking, and how uncovering the cultural histories embedded in urban sites can open new possibilities for how cities are imagined and built.

UEA Member: Cory Douglas, Director, Modern Formline Design

Fireside Guest: James K. M. Cheng, Principal, James K.M. Cheng Architects Inc.