EDI in Design and Construction
Event Information
About this Event
The ACEC-BC Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee invites you to join us on March 8, 2021 for virtual event on EDI in Design and Construction. Guest speakers from City of Vancouver, TransLink, and Canadian Equality Consulting will be discussing their experience with EDI in practice of Design and Construction, strategies they’ve used, and the results and outcomes.
Who will you hear from?
Topics: Public Space Planning, Strategies for Advancing Projects
- Belinda Chan, Design Build Coordinator, City of Vancouver
- Kathleen Corey, Intern Landscape Architect, City of Vancouver
Topics: EDI and the Transport 2050 Vision, Accessible Bus Stops
- Sarah Ross, Director of System Planning, TransLink
Topics: Sustainability, Inclusive Design Principles, and Frameworks for EDI
- Shefaly Gunjal, Associate Consultant, Canadian Equality Consulting
Following the presentations, attendees will have the opportunity to join virtual networking rooms for live Q&A and group discussions.
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About the speakers:
Belinda Chan and Kathleen Corey, City of Vancouver
Belinda Chan and Kathleen Corey are from Street Activities within the Engineering Department at CoV. Belinda is a Design-Build Coordinator and Kathleen is a P.Eng. & Intern Landscape Architect. Both work in public space planning: Kathleen has been instrumental in delivering some of the City’s public spaces, such as the Main & 14th Plaza, Bute-Robson Plaza, and many of the Pop-up Plazas that were created in response to the pandemic. Belinda’s experience is largely informed by a background in design and centered in equity. They would be interested in talking about developing these public spaces (design, implementation, and public engagement) through the lens of EDI, what tools and resources they’ve used, information gaps they’ve found along the way, etc. They would be interested in also discussing how they have had to adapt and improvise on their strategies to keep these projects moving forward during the pandemic.
Sarah Ross, TransLink
Sarah Ross brings a wealth of experience to her role as Director of System Planning at TransLink, the regional transportation authority that moves nearly 500,000 people on transit across Metro Vancouver every day. Sarah’s passion for city’s where all people have sustainable access to live full lives has driven her work as a planner. With degrees in Sociology and Planning from McGill University, University of Toronto, and University of British Columbia, she joined TransLink in 2004. She became the organization’s Director of System Planning in 2016. As a leader, Sarah oversees a wide range of issues and areas, including transit network and bus priority planning, planning for accessibility, planning for regional cycling, walking, and road programs, as well as advancing integrated land use and transportation through collaborations with municipalities.
Shefaly Gunjal, Canadian Equality Consulting
Shefaly is a passionate and detail-oriented diversity, equity and inclusion and social impact consultant and researcher. Her work focuses primarily on examining, understanding and addressing the barriers and challenges faced by Black, Indigenous and Women of Colour in the workplace. With a strong academic background in sustainability business management and diversity, equity and inclusion, Shefaly has developed a keen eye for solving deeply rooted issues when it comes to promoting and implementing diversity, equity and inclusion within organizations.
While conducting research in the diversity, equity and inclusion space and working as an associate consultant at Canadian Equality, Shefaly is well versed in social impact reporting, particularly in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals. She has extensive experience working with various UN organizations, most recently including the UN Global Compact Network Canada where she worked on their Gender Equality Leadership in the Canadian Private Sector project.
Shefaly holds an Honors Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Management and will complete a Master of Science in Sustainability Management at the University of Toronto this March.