Commonwealth Association of Planners

On 10 November 2023 at the CAP General Assembly meeting in Malaysia, CAP endorsed the Climate Action Policy put forth by the CAP Climate Action Working Group (CAWG). This is the first climate policy to come from CAP and has been in the works since May 2022 when Gary Davidson from Canada and Jua Cilliers from Australia were appointed as co-chairs.

The policy addresses the key elements of climate change including the issues of the responsibility continuum and loss and damage. These were major points of discussion at COP27 and will also be a central theme at this year’s COP28, which several members of CAP will be attending as representatives.

The Climate Action Policy consensus was formed across 40 professional planning organizations that span the globe and represents a wide range of climate change issues. Because of the approximately 40,000 planners within CAP’s umbrella, this policy has worldwide impact and will set a precedent for planners and planning projects going forward.

You can read the whole CAP Climate Action Policy at the link below.

The results of the Commonwealth Association of Planners elections for 2023 were announced at the General Assembly meeting, held in Putrajaya, Malaysia on 10 November 2023.

On behalf of CAP, current President, Eleanor Mohammed, thanks all those who put themselves forward as candidates for demonstrating their interest in supporting CAP. The time, thought, and effort put into the nomination process is very much appreciated by all CAP members. Thanks also go to two members of the Interim Board for 2023 who will not serve on the new Board of Trustees, Pradeep Kapoor (Institute of Town Planners India) and Clive Harridge (Royal Town Planning Institute).

Congratulations to the winners of the 2023 CAP Planning Awards!

The winners from Canada and Malaysia were announced on 8 November during the MIP National Planning Congress in Malaysia.

The CAP Awards for Outstanding Planning Achievement in the Commonwealth seek to champion the very best examples of planning practice across Commonwealth countries and the winning entries really rose to the top. You can read more about the winners at the link below.

As we approach the 74th World Town Planning Day, the Global Planners Network (GPN)–the largest gathering of national and international planning associations–has released a statement that calls for urgent action to stop any further irreversible degradation of the natural world and adverse impacts on communities globally before the window for action closes.

As people living every day with the ever-growing threat of the climate emergency and as members of GPN, CAP is proud to endorse this statement. You can read the entire statement from the GPN below.

CAP is currently in the process of electing our new President and members of the Board of Trustees. While this is a closed election, all of the candidates are extremely qualified and impressive and we wanted to give everyone a chance to get to know the potential new members of our leadership team.

Below, you will find the statements from all of our candidates, first from those running for the position of President, and next from those running for a position on the Board of Trustees...

The RTPI is offering three free webinars on 8 November in celebration of World Town Planning Day.

The webinars that will be available are Fostering Innovation Through Planning, Sustainability and Resilience Through Planning, and Equity and Social Justice Through Planning.

You can find more information about the webinars and other World Town Planning Day events put on by RTPI at the link below.

The discount codes for the CAP book, Planning, Sustainable Urbanisation and the Commonwealth: The Commonwealth Association of Planners, Past, Present and Future, have been extended and can now be used on the Routledge website until 31 December 2023.

CAP members can use code PSUC30 for 30% off your purchase.
Non-members can use code PSUC20 for 20% off your purchase.

Don’t forget to register for the MIP National Planning Congress and CAP General Assembly Meeting that are taking place 8-10 November in Putrajaya, Malaysia. The theme for the event is “Planning for Malaysia MADANI to Accelerate SDG2030.” This theme encapsulates the collective commitment to crafting a sustainable and inclusive future for the nation, guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

You can find information about registration, the program for the event, and the speakers who will be in attendance at the link below.

The date of the 3rd International Conference on Urban & Regional Planning has been updated to 23-25 September 2023. The conference will be taking place at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka.

CAP recently celebrated the southern hemisphere launch of "Planning, Sustainable Urbanisation and the Commonwealth: The Commonwealth Association of Planners, Past, Present and Future". The second event was held with Te Kokiringa Taumata – New Zealand Planning Institute (NZPI) and took place on 29 August in Tāmaki Makaurau-Auckland. The event was hosted at Beca House by the NZPI Deputy Chair Megan Couture who acted as the master of ceremonies and facilitator. It followed a similar format to the London launch with a seminar first on "Resilience and Sustainable Urbanization" followed by a reception and panel discussion for the book launch.

The speakers at the seminar were:

Dy Currie, AM, Chief Planner for Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and also the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Host City Office Lead. A former CAP President and Co-Chair of UN Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group, Dy presented on Living with Resilience in a River City and shared some of the stories about the extreme weather events the city experienced in 2022 and outlined some of the successful planning and other responses developed to improve resilience and move the city towards a more sustainable future.

Tom Mansell, Head of Sustainable Outcomes, Healthy Waters for Auckland, New Zealand. Tom provided an update on Auckland Council's plans to help Tāmaki Makaurau recover from the extreme weather events and consequential flooding that took a major toll on the region earlier this year. The Council are currently consulting with the public on its Making Space for Water initiative which Tom was able to share with the seminar attendees.