Planning

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This is the collection for the University of Waterloo's School of Planning.

Research outputs are organized by type (eg. Master Thesis, Article, Conference Paper).

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Assessing the prevalence and youth-directed marketing power of outdoor food and beverage advertisements around schools in six cities across Canada.
(University of Waterloo, 2025-01-24) Morielli, Amanda; Minaker, Leia
Recent policy initiatives in Canada propose to restrict the commercial advertising of foods containing sugars, sodium, or saturated fat to youth on digital and broadcast media. While there is abundant research on youth’s exposure to food and beverage advertising on digital and broadcast media, there is limited research exploring youth’s exposure to outdoor food and beverage advertisements (e.g., freestanding billboards, restaurant exteriors, bus shelters). To address this research gap and inform policy decisions, Manuscript 1 of this thesis describes the prevalence, content, and youth-directed marketing power of outdoor food and beverage advertisements near schools. Manuscript 2 of this thesis explores the association between outdoor F&B advertisement prevalence, food outlet density, degree of urbanization, neighbourhood deprivation, and ethnocultural composition near schools to understand how the built environment and neighbourhood characteristics influence outdoor advertising environments. For this research, data on outdoor advertisements and food outlets within 1000 m of elementary and secondary schools in six cities across Canada (Vancouver, BC; Calgary, AB; Winnipeg, MB; Ottawa, ON; Quebec City, QC; and Halifax, NS) was analyzed, along with Statistics Canada data on deprivation and ethnocultural composition (from the Canadian Index of Multiple Deprivation). Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and negative binomial regression models were used to analyze the data. Most (64.5%) outdoor F&B advertisements near schools promote “unhealthy” food and beverage products. The most common marketing techniques used to target youth were youth product/convenience (39.4%), sense of urgency/limited time offer/seasonal (18.4%), and price promotion/discount (13.1%). School areas with high food outlet counts contained 7.429 times more advertisements than those with low counts (CI: 4.805 – 11.486, p < 0.05). The mean count of outdoor advertisements on food outlet exteriors (M = 23.22, SD = 35.52) was 10.6 times higher than the mean count of freestanding outdoor advertisements (M = 2.18, SD = 3.94), revealing that most outdoor F&B advertisements around schools are located on food outlets. Measures for deprivation and ethnocultural composition were not found to have notable patterns of significance with outdoor advertisement, except for residential instability. School areas with a high degree of residential instability contained 1.707 times more advertisements than the school areas with a low degree of residential instability (CI:1.029 - 2.832, p < 0.05). These findings suggest outdoor F&B advertisements near schools primarily promote unhealthy food choices and advertisement prevalence is influenced by features of the built environment, such as food outlet density. Future research should explore the impact of planning and public health policy interventions to reduce outdoor food and beverage advertising to youth. Opportunities for these professions (as well as other relevant disciplines) to collaborate to create healthier food environments for youth should also be identified.
Visual Change in the Urban Landscape: Taste, Gentrification & Displacement
(University of Waterloo, 2025-01-23) Babin, Caleb; Doucet, Brian
Measuring the pace, characteristics and spatial distribution of gentrification is important to developing policies to mitigate its negative consequences, most crucially displacement. Typically, this is done through an analysis of census data on demographic, socioeconomic or housing change. However, this approach has numerous shortcomings, including the homogenizing effect on differences within neighbourhoods and the infrequency of census data collection. Visual analysis, particularly when examining multiple temporal views of the same location, has the potential to render visible fine-grained detail about spatial, economic and cultural changes within the urban landscape. Google Street View (GSV) is emerging as a source of repeat photography data. In this thesis, GSV is employed for analysis within a number of neighbourhoods and retail streets in Hamilton, Ontario. Coding and analyzing GSV images between 2009 and 2021 reveals an array of specific home upgrades, retail turnover as well as aesthetic changes that reflect middle-class tastes, values and lifestyles that suggest more upgrading than found within conventional statistics or dominant narratives about the city. Mapping these changes paints a complex, and fine-grained, block-by-block picture of gentrification that reveals why some areas are more conducive to gentrification than others and how retail gentrification can lead to both direct and indirect displacement. This analysis is important for critical visual methodologies, gentrification and neighbourhood change theories in addition to planning and policymaking.
Local Government Planning and Maintenance of Ecological Connectivity in a Fragmented Landscape
(University of Waterloo, 2025-01-23) Bakelaar, Margaret; Drescher, Michael
With the continued loss of species and habitat together with the recognition that parks, and protected areas are insufficient to maintain biodiversity, the role of spatial planning to address land use change and account for ecological connectivity is becoming more significant. A well-connected system of natural areas is required to address the continued loss of biodiversity and to reduce threats to human well-being. The value of local governments in providing the spatial planning needed to reduce threats and protect natural areas and ecological connectivity is recognized. The need for a collaborative approach that engages multiple actors including all level of government and non-government organizations is required to implement policy direction on ecological connectivity effectively and efficiently. This dissertation explores the role of local government land use planning in the protection and maintenance of ecological connectivity through the control of land use change. As ecological connectivity crosses political boundaries, the coordination of local plans across the larger landscape is necessary for effective management of ecological connectivity. This case study research is placed within the Carolinian ecoregion in southwestern Ontario Canada, a recognized area of high biodiversity and intense development. My dissertation addressed three concerns, (1) the integration of ecological connectivity in local government land use plans; (2) factors that help or hinder the planning and maintaining ecological connectivity; and (3) how local governments interact with other actors in pursuit of ecological connectivity. This is done through three methods of investigation. First a qualitative content analysis of 16 Official Plans in the Carolinian ecoregion was undertaken. Second, 24 interviews were conducted with planning practitioners with thematic analysis applied to identify influential factors to the planning and maintenance of ecological connectivity. Third intended social interactions were examined in Official Plan policy and past interactions identified from the interviews. I found that ecological connectivity was consistently addressed in Official Plans through the identification of a natural heritage system, including linkages among natural areas. The policies were however inconsistently applied across the ecoregion with a notable variation between urban and rural areas in applying provincial direction. It was found that the integration of ecological connectivity in local government land use planning: is dependent upon clear and binding legislation from higher levels of government; benefits from an integrated policy framework; is addressed through site level development approvals and land stewardship initiatives; is less likely to be addressed across agricultural lands than urban areas; and lacks a coordinated approach across local government spatial boundaries. In the case study area, while some policy areas were readily integrated with ecological connectivity including water resources, parks and open space, and natural hazard lands, there was a lack of integration with climate change, green infrastructure and transportation polices. Through interviews with planning practitioners, key factor theme areas were identified including the physical landscape, environmental governance, land use planning practices, sharing information, and resources. The results show that while ecological connectivity is supported by legislation, addressed in policy, with implementation mechanisms recognized and applied, local government still struggles with a natural features focus, cross border coordination, land use planning practice limitations, justification of the need for ecological connectivity, public and political resistance, and a lack of capacity and funding. Both the interviews and Official Plan review contributed to the identification of actor interactions. I found that coordination across local government boundaries to accommodate the provincially legislated and delegated natural heritage system was not occurring. Planning practitioners interviewed did not see local government as leading but rather participating in collaborative actions. The main findings are a lack of provincial involvement, a large role to be played by Conservation Authorities, and a gap between policy and implementation. Collectively, this research advances our understanding of the role of local government land use planning in establishing and maintaining ecological connectivity through the control of land use change and management of the whole landscape involving nature conservation but also sectoral policies. Spatial land use planning has the potential to address ecological connectivity through a comprehensive multisectoral and collaborative approach. There are many limitations to local government land use planning to address ecological connectivity that will need to be addressed and this research contributes to the identification of issues as well as possible solutions to address those limitations.
Urban Justice in a Changing Climate: Rethinking Equity and Justice Criteria to Assess Climate Action Planning in Canadian Municipalities
(University of Waterloo, 2024-12-19) Swanson, Kayleigh; Seasons, Mark
As climate change accelerates, communities around the world are forced to confront the risks and opportunities that arise from climate disruption. Socially and economically marginalized groups are particularly vulnerable, facing the greatest impact and the risk of being further disadvantaged by poorly designed climate change policies that fortify longstanding disparities. Climate action plans are rapidly being developed across governance scales to promote ambitious climate action and progressive social reform, but progress to date has focused more on addressing environmental goals than ensuring social equity. Key challenges include addressing the differential impacts of climate change on vulnerable groups, capturing the needs and priorities of underserved communities in climate change plans, and identifying concrete actions dedicated to advancing the fair distribution of environmental benefits and burdens. This dissertation considers the nature of equitable climate action planning by exploring the plan content and process conditions that are required to advance socially just planning responses to climate change. The analysis is based on three key contributions: 1) an exploration and comparison of scholarly and equity-deserving perspectives regarding the meaning of social equity and climate justice; 2) an analysis and comparison of equity-related needs and priorities across cities with diverse demographics, policy environments, and social climates; and 3) an evaluation of the equity and justice orientation of a sample of municipal climate action plans. The dissertation builds an argument that current approaches to climate action planning in Canadian municipalities generally remain unresponsive to the needs and priorities of underserved communities. Key concerns include prioritizing environmental and economic imperatives relative to social equity goals, the tendency to overlook underlying drivers of inequity, the framing of equity as an incidental and ancillary benefit of climate action, and the disconnect between commitments to social justice and planned climate actions. The dissertation draws on diverse perspectives on environmental equity, climate justice, and community engagement to recommend tangible actions that could be taken by municipal planners and policymakers to strengthen the equity orientation of their climate action planning efforts.
The Integration of Green Infrastructure and Intensification, the Case of Greater Toronto Area
(University of Waterloo, 2024-12-17) Saboonian, Sara; Jeff, Casello
This dissertation explores the integration of green infrastructure (GI) and urban intensification within the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). It investigates how blending GI with intensification can create sustainable urban environments amidst rapid urbanization. The study begins by examining the challenges posed by suburban development, characterized by low density, automobile reliance, and significant environmental impact. It highlights the potential of sustainable planning models, particularly GI and intensification, to address these challenges through compact settlement, public transit promotion, and the development of green spaces. The research identifies the common sustainability goals of GI and intensification, despite their different approaches and strategies. It outlines the historical evolution of these models and the emergence of environmental concerns that shaped contemporary GI policies. The dissertation further categorizes the goals and strategies of GI and intensification into urban life, urban efficiency, and urban environment, providing a detailed comparison and identifying opportunities for their integration. Through a mixed-methods approach, including case studies of Downtown Mississauga and Markham Centre, literature review, interviews, and direct observations, the research explores the GI design guidelines in areas undergoing intensification. It emphasizes the importance of connectivity in both GI and pedestrian networks to enhance urban sustainability and livability. The study proposes design guidelines for integrating GI and pedestrian connectivity in intensified urban areas, aiming to improve ecosystem services, walkability, and the overall appeal of the built environment. The findings contribute to the body of knowledge on sustainable urban planning by offering practical solutions for blending GI and intensification. The proposed design guidelines are intended to support policymakers, urban planners, and designers in creating multifunctional urban spaces that balance high-density development with the preservation and enhancement of GI. This dissertation underscores the significance of integrating natural and built environments to achieve resilient and livable cities.
Understanding Rural Children's Environments and Health: Developing a novel framework for healthy rural communities and exploring children's perspectives
(University of Waterloo, 2024-09-25) Borho, Emma; Minaker, Leia
Rural children experience a variety of health disparities compared to their urban counterparts. While we know that neighbourhoods can impact the health of those residing within them, there has been little research into the impacts of rural neighbourhoods on children’s health specifically. Additionally, children have been and continue to be underrepresented in both planning research and planning practice, a gap that is even more persistent for rural children. In response to these gaps, this research seeks to explore the following research questions: 1) “How can existing healthy community frameworks be adapted for application to children in rural communities?” and 2) “How do rural children perceive their neighbourhoods as contributing to or hindering their health?”. This thesis will respond to these questions through two approaches. First, a review and synthesis of healthy community frameworks will lay the foundation for the creation of a novel rural children’s healthy community framework. The second research question will be answered through go-along interviews with twenty rural children in Bruce County, Ontario, a rural municipality in the southwestern region of the province. There exists a variety of healthy community frameworks used in public health and planning, but few are specifically targeted toward children’s needs and none toward rural children’s needs. The analysis of frameworks revealed trends among frameworks that exist, and these trends were applied to the rural children’s context. Rural children’s perspectives of their neighbourhoods revealed that the components of physical environment, social environment, play, and safety had the most significant perceived impacts on their health. Future research should explore the application of healthy community frameworks to communities and focus on monitoring and evaluation. As well, research should be conducted with First Nations communities on reserves to determine similarly what aspects of their neighbourhoods contribute to or hinder their health and with older rural children to gain a better understanding of neighbourhood factors that may impact youth retention after post-secondary school.
Does initial background matter in evaluating Light Rail Transit feasibility in North America mid-size cities?
(University of Waterloo, 2024-08-30) Yu, Shangwei; Casello, Jeff; Feick, Rob
A transit system may be one of the most profoundly influential investments in modern cities. In declining cities, local governments consider new transit investment as medicine to cure their problems. However, in emerging cities, transit investment is considered a booster. Considering the complexity and uncertainty, a feasibility study for Light Rail Transit systems is very challenging. Existing studies usually follow a similar assessment method. With different starting backgrounds, the transit systems could have significantly different performances. Typical assessment methods fail in every project. Many LRT projects failed to meet their design goals. Existing research and planning processes usually do not take a city’s initial condition as a meaningful factor in the assessment process. This research aims at exploring if the initial condition is an influential factor in the success of transit investment and the performance of the transit project. The City of Buffalo and Region of Waterloo are selected as two case studies to achieve this goal. They have dramatically different initial conditions and LRT performance. A series of demographic and social-economic census data are collected to complete a multi-variable analysis. This research shows that the initial condition has a critical impact on the transit investment, and the declining city cannot automatically benefit from the transit investment.
Reallocation of Space for Outdoor Dining: An Analysis of COVID-19 Pandemic Outdoor Dining Policies and Perceptions in Ontario
(University of Waterloo, 2024-06-24) Koops, Claire Adeline; Minaker, Leia
In recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic created disruptions in the restaurant industry. Consequently, cities in Ontario developed pandemic-induced patio policy with the goal of allowing restaurants to continue operation under lockdown restrictions. Pandemic-induced patio policy was identified to have the potential to contribute to long-term changes in these areas. Despite the increase in policy development, there is a gap in literature when considering how Ontario cities developed their policies and what the dominant themes of these policies are. Through a qualitative, mixed methods approach this thesis explores the changes that were made to patio policy in Ontario during the COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. The first manuscript assesses the extent that pandemic-induced patio policy was developed in the 52 cities in Ontario and what the key features of these policies were. The second manuscript explores how changes to patio policy were perceived by participants in the food retail environment. The first study concludes that supporting restaurant businesses through patio policy development was heavily prioritized by cities in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic. These policies varied in terms of time frame and method of implementation. Major policy themes included financial incentives, changes to the application process, and development of city-specific policy features including road closures, as well as other programming including promotional programs. A total of 10% of cities in Ontario implemented elements of their new patio policies post-lockdowns. Additionally, these policies were exempt from public consultation requirements, however some cities chose to conduct community engagement. The second study concluded that patio policy was a prevalent topic for employers, employees, and stakeholders when discussing responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Themes discussed in interviews varied between the interview groups. Of the different respondent groups, employers discussed patios and patio policy most frequently. They found patios policy to be supportive, and that patio dining during the pandemic contributed to profitability. For some employees, patios lead to concerns over safety and create negative workplace environments. The feasibility of patio policy was perceived to be influenced by factors including vehicle use on the street, availability of patio space, and the business’s financial situation. Recommendations based on the findings are associated with developing patio policy in a holistic manner, which considers compatibility with current streetscape functions and relevant plans.
Towards an Active Living Environment: Evaluating the Impact of Stream Daylighting on Pedestrian Networks in Zurich
(University of Waterloo, 2024-06-13) Ingram, Anya; Khirfan, Luna
The burial and culverting of urban streams to make way for twentieth-century urbanization has disconnected nature from the built environment and led to the loss of ecosystem services. As waterways are inherently lateral obstacles to movement that must be overcome, it can be understood that reintroducing water features into the urban landscape through daylighting may contribute to a loss in route network connectivity and a negative impact on active mobility. However, reintroducing streams through the practice of daylighting has demonstrated benefits associated with active mobility by re-establishing urban environment connections with nature and place-making for residents. To better understand if stream daylighting can support the development of an active living environment, despite urban streams being traditionally understood as barriers to movement, the City of Zurich, Switzerland is used as a case study because of its widespread stream daylighting initiatives. Specifically, this study evaluates how stream daylighting impacts active mobility by focusing on route network connectivity change at stream sites before and after daylighting. This is done using metric reach, a measure of connectivity that utilizes a configurational approach computed in a GIS platform. To facilitate such a study, waterways and route centerlines were digitized using a georeferenced historic map of Zurich from 1984 (pre-daylighting). These were compared with 2020 open-access spatial data for the City of Zürich (post-daylighting). Spatial data results are complemented using photography to better understand how urban design choices involved in daylighting projects influenced route networks. Findings reveal that in most cases daylighting streams did not negatively impact connectivity. On the contrary, this study’s finding reveals that daylighting in Zurich is commonly part of broader urban design interventions that improve or create new spaces for pedestrians while maintaining existing route connections through the incorporation of small footbridges. While stream daylighting is well established as a nature-based solution that supports infrastructure resilience and effective stormwater management, these findings help demonstrate the cultural ecosystem services the practice of urban stream daylighting can contribute.
Reclaiming the Urban Public Realm as a Site for Children’s Play
(University of Waterloo, 2024-05-10) Shadkam, Anahita; Moos, Markus
Since the earliest waves of Modernist planning and the application of systematic zoning, parks and playgrounds have served as exclusive domains for children's recreational activities within the rational city. However, with the prevalence of car-dependent lifestyles, free outdoor play has nearly vanished from urban public realms. The increasing rates of childhood obesity worldwide, along with alarming risks to mental and physical health, underscore the urgent need to reevaluate the childless urban landscape. This dissertation challenges this phenomenon by recognizing the developmental significance of children's engagement in urban life, aiming to reassert the urban public realm as a vital site for children's play and agency. Despite numerous studies advocating for the promotion of outdoor free play and exploring opportunities for children’s independent mobility, a persistent gap remains between research and practical urban policies. Grounded in the UN's Child-Friendly Cities Initiative, this research aims to bridge this divide by drawing on empirical data grounded in the lived experiences of children and emphasizing the reactivation of public spaces for play while promoting intergenerational coexistence. Informed by relativist ontology, constructivist epistemology, and the communicative turn in planning theory, three key objectives underpin the investigation: to examine how urban configurations impact children's active play; to identify the types of play happening on pathways connecting residential areas to schools and play spaces; and, to explore the linkages between neighbourhood configurations, children's sense of belonging, and perceptions of safety. This research employs critical ethnography and draws on empirical data grounded in the lived experiences of children to address these objectives. The findings advocate for urban planners to pay equal attention to the quality and configuration of urban pathways alongside parks and playgrounds, emphasizing the urban public realm as a play network and leveraging local knowledge and children's lived experiences to create inclusive, playful, and vibrant urban environments. Moreover, it holds added relevance in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, offering insights into the impact of crises on public space usage. This research contributes to the broader planning discourse by opening new possibilities for reuniting families with children in the urban metropolitan core and achieving greater social and environmental sustainability goals.
Greenspace Planning in Ontario’s High-rise Environments: The greenspace planning context and experiences of families with children in high-rises
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-31) Tigchelaar, Joy; Minaker, Leia
Despite a growing number of families with children living in urban settings, cities remain largely unequipped to support families, particularly in high-rise settings that are marketed and designed towards singletons, young professionals, and the elderly. However, children remain a largely underrepresented population in municipal planning and very few researchers have investigated the experiences of families living in high-rises, including how they access and use greenspace. While a few studies from Australia have investigated families’ experiences in high-rises, there is no known published Canadian research that seeks to understand the experiences of high-rise families within Canadian communities. In response to these gaps, this thesis seeks to understand “how municipal planning in Ontario facilitates the creation of child-friendly outdoor greenspaces surrounding high-rise developments?” and “How do families with children living in high rises experience using and accessing their neighbourhood greenspace?” Respectively this thesis will respond to these questions through a policy analysis of Ontario municipal planning documents for a diverse set of communities and interviews with families living in high-rises within the Cities of Kitchener, Waterloo, and Cambridge, three urbanizing cities in Ontario. While few municipalities within this study considered the needs of children and families living in high-rises in their high-level planning documents, guidelines such as the Growing Up guidelines from the City of Toronto should inspire growing municipalities to begin considering the diverse populations that live in high-rise settings. Furthermore, based on the experiences of high-rise families, the ability to access and use their neighbourhood greenspaces is vital for play and socialization due to the spatial limitations of their dwelling, which is particularly constraining during winter months. Future municipal policy should consider these needs and future research should investigate the experiences of families in high-rises further through various methods and within different geographies to tailor planning approaches to local contexts.
Curbing Enthusiasm: Examining Canadian Cities’ Proactive Responses to Evolving Curbside Pressures
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-26) Attema, David; Woudsma, Clarence
Transportation planning is increasingly concerned with the role the curb plays in urban environments. As the primary boundary separating mobility, accessibility, and amenity activities along a street, it is a highly contested interface between all three. In recent years the number and diversity of curb uses has exploded, placing even greater pressure on this facility. Traditional activities such as on-street parking are being squeezed by new mobility services, e-commerce deliveries, infrastructure supporting shifting transportation modes, and outdoor dining and amenity spaces, to name a few. New innovations such as autonomous transportation will likely further disrupt this mix of uses. As municipal policymakers struggle to keep pace with rapid changes at the curb, some are turning to a new, proactive approach: curbside management. By streamlining curb governance, establishing curb user priorities, incorporating flexibility of uses, and monitoring curb performance using new technologies, curbside management promises to improve outcomes for a greater number of street users. Research of curbside management often focuses on specific policy aspects or technologies, but very few studies to date have helped municipalities assess their current practices or understand where a holistic approach could enhance their existing curb-related governance activities. These are important aspects to understand because many competing private curb interests do not necessarily align with the public interest for this equally public resource. This thesis examines academic literature and practitioner guides related to curbside management to develop a best practice-based evaluation framework. This framework enables cities to examine their curb-related dimensions of governance, policy, organizational structure, and performance monitoring. Its primary intent is to help cities better understand how they presently manage their curb and determine where their greatest potential for improvements lie. The framework is applied to five case study cities in Canada—a context examined very little in curbside management research to date. Findings from these case studies reveal that organizational and policy integration, cost-effective curb utilization data collection, and streamlined by-law environments are areas with the greatest potential to improve management of the curb in Canada’s urban areas.
Physical versus behavioural emissions reductions: Quantifying and comparing emissions reduced by behaviour and emissions reduced by technology of net-zero communities
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-04) Hu, PersonGuy; Pittman, Jeremy
Modern climate change research calls for more diverse and creative solutions past simply improving technology; there is not one solution to climate change. A multidisciplinary field like planning can affect both physical changes in a city or behaviour changes in people to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Despite these considerations, behavioural emissions reductions remain an underexplored topic of literature, especially in terms of emission quantification. Without this information, planners cannot make the most informed and resource efficient policy decisions to combat climate change. This thesis fills this literature gap by quantifying behavioural emissions reductions and comparing them to the best-case scenario for physical emissions, net-zero communities, in the context of Ontario’s first, recently completed, net-zero community located in London, Ontario. This thesis also begins to explore relationships and patterns between sources of behavioural emissions reductions and how they can compound into greater reductions. Within the study area, net-zero homes produced 6.89 fewer tonnes of CO2e/year compared to the average home, 67.5% of which were physical emissions reductions and 32.5% of were behavioural. Residents here generally improved few behaviours to a large magnitude rather than improving many/all behaviours to a small magnitude. While no specific behaviour patterns were identified, the there was evidence in favour of patterns existing, which could by identified with a larger sample. Overall, while behavioural emissions reductions were less effective than physical, they can be implemented both concurrently and instead of physical when necessary. There is also potential for behavioural emissions reductions to be more effective than physical given the right context and if behavioural patterns are used to their fullest.
Landscape Connectivity Analysis for Conservation Planning in Southern Ontario
(University of Waterloo, 2024-01-02) Marshall, Sarah; Pittman, Jeremy
The strategic planning of land conservation is a critical undertaking in urban/peri-urban areas. Natural areas in cities and their surroundings exist in an environment of competitive land use pressures, where the allocation of available land may be complex and politically charged. Organizations pursuing land conservation in these areas must balance biodiversity aims with fiscal and resource limitations, a competitive market, and the need for decision-making accountability. To support the prioritization of conservation lands for protection, analysts may incorporate landscape connectivity analysis. By quantifying how the configuration of habitat facilitates species movement, connectivity analysis provides a rationale for conservation planning that supports the dispersal of species across the urban/peri-urban matrix. While connectivity analysis is useful for conservation planners, several factors have created a confusing environment for those interested in employing it. These include the rapid proliferation of connectivity research, the inconsistent use of methods and terminology, and an absence of updated selection guidelines for practitioners. Thus, my research evaluates how conservation organizations may best use landscape connectivity analysis to support conservation planning in urban/peri-urban areas. In this thesis, a systematic review of urban/peri-urban connectivity literature is followed by application of review results to a conservation planning case study in Southern Ontario. Reflections on these two research phases support a proposed framework that outlines the pivotal decisions, organizational limitations, and best practices for using landscape connectivity analysis for conservation planning. This provides tangible benefit for organizations protecting and stewarding natural lands, particularly in areas like the urban/peri-urban matrix of Southern Ontario.
The Liminality of everyday life - Creatives in the context of the Islands Trust
(University of Waterloo, 2023-12-11) Yuzwa, Jill; Filion, Pierre
The Liminality of everyday life – Creatives in the context of the Islands Trust Creative communities excite and invigorate individuals and may also provide opportunity for some local economies. Although desired, this creative community profile is not to be taken for granted and may not be the right pursuit for all settlement areas. Soon after the millennium certain urban theorists describing the shift of western economies from industrial to knowledge based, prescribed the use of culture-led initiatives focusing on artistic presence as an economic development strategy to attract knowledge-based workers. But such a strategy, using artists as an economic development tool, has proven to be more suitable to large urban regions than smaller, remote communities. In smaller settlements artists have a substantive role, making significant community contributions as opposed to just being part of an attraction strategy. This research investigates the social, cultural and environmental planning context of Gabriola Island, a successful rural creative community, with special attention to the Islands Trust regional planning framework. The co-methodologies involved three years of ethnographic embeddedness relying on phenomenological hermeneutics. These embedded and interpretive methodologies yield very different results from previous studies and assisted in determining if any urban creative community traits shifted to the rural context. Overall findings were captured in three analysis discussions. The Gabriola creative economy depends on a concept I introduce as community vernacular - which encourages creative communities to be built from within. This inquiry also suggests the presence and role of ‘distinct place’, a concept which captures the spirit of the community. The findings in relation to local governance point to a disjunction between the Islands Trust and the lack of planning instruments required to adhere to their ‘preserve and protect’ mandate. The Trust has failed to foster a planning and governance model for its rural communities, where the arts and creative industries can continue to thrive. The Islands Trust planning toolkit, service, scope and approach must be updated with ecological and environmental best practices to fulfill its mandate thereby preserving and protecting distinct place and retaining the creative population. This important relationship between inhabitants and the region’s natural features explains why islanders become islanders. In summary, the embedded and interpretive methodologies contributed to the research by facilitating relationships with creatives in the community and allowing personal observation to experience the liminal nature of the planning and governance system. The theoretical concepts of community vernacular and distinct place will be developed further and ultimately contribute to rural cultural sustainability.
Agricultural Gentrification in Saskatchewan: An Exploration of Landscape Transformations within the Rural Agrarian Locale
(University of Waterloo, 2023-10-05) Grant, Richard; Pittman, Jeremy
Due to the gradual shift from productivist-oriented activities, towards more multifunctional activities, landscape transformations are more visibly noticed within rural communities. The growing transition towards post-productive agricultural land uses raises questions about the future use of rural land in the face of sustainably developing rural communities. More importantly, it begs the question of how land use planners can fairly contextualize the nature of growth in rural communities while reacting to the different facets of gentrification. Within gentrification research, there is a heavy focus on urban gentrification. More importantly, of the gentrification research conducted in rural communities, there is little focus on gentrification within the agricultural locale. The objective of my research is to examine the role that agricultural gentrification plays in facilitating landscape transformations in rural communities in Saskatchewan. My research looked at the agricultural restructuring occurring in rural Saskatchewan communities as a precondition of agricultural gentrification. Using a case study approach, three municipalities were selected to explore the phenomena of agricultural gentrification in Saskatchewan. My research found that the province of Saskatchewan operates under an agro-industrial paradigm that utilizes a productivist-oriented form of farming as a means of determining the highest and best use of farmland. Three case studies selected to explore the relationship between landscape transformation and the emergence of agricultural gentrification utilized Neil Smith’s Rent Gap theory as a means of interpreting the gap between the farmland sale price and farmland value. The rent gap represented in the ratio studies of the three municipalities reflects the disparity between the farmland value and the corresponding farmland sale price. The value of farmland under this framework views the productive capacity as the highest and best use, which translates to its "value", and ultimately influences the sale price. The disparity between the farmland sale price and its value reflects how the “highest and best use of” farmland is determined under an agro-industrial paradigm in Saskatchewan. More importantly, the emergence of agricultural gentrification and its impact on the price of farmland has far reaching effects on land use decisions and rural community development.
Evaluating the Progress of Municipal Natural Asset Management through Monitoring & Evaluation
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-29) Sandhu, Sawroop; Drescher, Michael
Contemporary environmental and land-use planning in many Canadian municipalities is challenged with two key problems that have grown with increasing urban development: 1) natural ecosystems decline and 2) grey infrastructure service failure. The 2020 Living Planet Report Canada highlighted the continuing decline of many natural ecosystems in remote areas and near to sprawling Canadian cities. These risks are heightened, with the possibility of climate change-driven extreme weather resulting in grey infrastructure failure. A possible approach for slowing or reversing these concerns is the use of ecosystem services provided in the form nature-based solutions (NBS). An emerging NBS practice is the implementation of Natural Asset Management (NAM). NAM is being applied by municipalities, insufficient monitoring is causing a lack of evidence that would be required to demonstrate NAM’s ability to counter ecosystem decline and grey infrastructure service loss. We applied a standardized evaluation framework to assess NAM progress in six case-study municipalities in Canada. Data were collected with extensive review of municipal documents (e.g., Official Plan changes, Council meeting notes, budget allocations) and interviews with key municipal decision-makers. Data analysis was performed through thematic coding. The analysis reveals that while many municipalities are increasing their awareness and capacity for NAM implementation, large barriers to progress remain including limited enabling policies and lack of effective municipal governance. Especially changes in government and administrative organization tend to undermine the required long-term efforts in support of NAM. Municipalities must overcome these barriers to allow further progress towards restoration and conservation of natural assets that would improve the state of urban natural ecosystems and urban service delivery. An increasingly engaged public might provide pressure on municipalities to enhance permanence of NAM efforts and require accountability for NAM progress.
A Speculative Exploration into the Current Planning Paradigm through Academic Planner Perspectives
(University of Waterloo, 2023-09-28) Chandy, Johan; Filion, Pierre; Drescher, Michael
This thesis centres on research aimed at understanding the essence of the current planning paradigm, identifying the factors that facilitate or hinder paradigm shifts, and determining the prevailing paradigm that governs contemporary scholarly pursuits within planning in an academic setting. This is achieved through an approach based on findings from interviews with planning academics. The first objective, vital to this thesis, scrutinizes whether the prevailing planning paradigm represents a novel trend, a continuation of previous paradigms, or perhaps a synergy of both. It seeks to unveil the core attributes of the existing paradigm and questions if we are operating within the thresholds of an unrecognized new approach in planning. Furthermore, recognizing the critical role of the factors that influence paradigm shifts stands as a focal point in this thesis. The research aspires to elucidate the circumstances and elements that either catalyze or restrain potential shifts in planning paradigms. It delves into understanding the intellectual environment surrounding these shifts, accentuating the critical role played by prevailing perspectives on truth and discourse. The intellectual landscape is bifurcated into two dominant paradigms: the traditional liberal paradigm, founded on the philosophies of stalwarts such as Descartes, Locke, and Mill, and the critical social theoretical paradigm, deeply influenced by diverse viewpoints including postmodernists, feminists, postcolonial theorists, and critical race theorists. This study navigates the delicate balance between these paradigms, dissecting their roles in fostering or hindering open discourse and critical examination. By spotlighting the intrinsic value each paradigm brings to the table and the challenges they pose, the research endeavors to craft a roadmap for a more balanced intellectual environment. It underscores the necessity for fostering open dialogue, critical evaluation, and respect for varying cultural contexts, thus nurturing an environment conducive to progressive shifts aligned with societal transitions, equity, and social progress. This is important as paradigm shifts have been largely corrective in nature and frequent shifts help keep planning up to date with rapidly changing societal reality. Lastly, the thesis is invested in determining the prevailing paradigm of truth within this academic sphere. It seeks to delineate the predominant assumptions, methodologies, and values that characterize this discipline. This involves an analysis of the frameworks adopted by scholars and researchers in their relentless pursuit of truth and knowledge creation, paving the way for a richer and more nuanced academic dialogue in planning theory. Regarding methodology, this study adopts a pragmatic approach to scrutinize evolving paradigms in the planning field, primarily utilizing Thomas's general inductive approach for qualitative analysis to identify trends within data collected from interviews. This methodology facilitates the transformation of extensive interview data into concise summaries, directly aligning findings with the research objectives and fostering the formulation of insightful theories. Interviews with planning academics from various Ontario institutions were conducted despite the hurdles presented by the Covid-19 pandemic. This process, albeit impacted by the pandemic, yielded rich insights from 11 academic planning experts. The interview questionnaire was crafted to delve into current trends, barriers to paradigm shifts, and the prerequisites for facilitating change in the planning field's approaches. It also probed the participants' perceptions of "truth" and the significance of viewpoint diversity in strengthening the discipline's knowledge base. This thesis is a preliminary exploration into current trends and has several weaknesses. Since an inductive approach was used to analyze data, the presence of larger trends is assumed based on interviewee opinions. Several diverse data sources should have been used to bolster the veracity of these identified trends. Due to time and monetary constraints, this thesis focused solely on interviewing planning professors. Other potential data sources could have included students, administrative staff, planners within the private sector, planners within the public sector, and recent studies published by academic planning institutions, among others. This could be a focus for future research. Only Ontario institutions were considered as the original intent was to conduct interviews face to face and driving distances were considered, as such other planning institutions outside of Ontario were excluded from the study. Another weakness is that only 11 experts were interviewed, increasing this sample size would improve confidence in the veracity of the claims made within this thesis. Due to all of these limitations, the conclusions of this thesis should be considered weakly justified, and additional research will be required in the future to verify the accuracy of the claims made. This study provides a dive into the shifting currents of academic planning, uncovering a distinct move towards a social justice paradigm. Emphasizing equity, diversity, and inclusivity, the research underscores the planning profession's expansion beyond mere technical urban design into the realm of balancing economic, environmental, and social imperatives. The dialogues captured shed light on the profession's adaptability, revealing its commitment to creating communities that mirror the diverse needs and contributions of their members. A major finding is the notable convergence towards a critical social justice perspective, which values interpretive truths and has a heightened awareness of power dynamics. However, the journey towards this shift is intricate, with potential differences in its application and understanding, indicating the need for continuous reflection and examination. The transition from traditional liberal paradigms to a more context-dependent, power-conscious paradigm poses both opportunities and challenges. The research suggests that while this shift promises a more inclusive urban planning outlook, it may also face challenges, including potential epistemic closure and possible conflicts due to diverse interpretations. In essence, the findings spotlight the evolving landscape of academic planning, highlighting the rise of a social justice paradigm and the complexities accompanying such a paradigm shift. The research concludes with a call for persistent discourse, exploration, and critical assessment to ensure a balanced, sustainable, and inclusive urban future.
Rural-to-urban resettlement and resettled villagers’ post-resettlement adaptation in Hangzhou, China
(University of Waterloo, 2023-08-28) Yang, Chen; Qian, Zhu
In recent years, rural-to-urban resettlement as a specific form of urbanization and its long-lasting impact on landless villagers have garnered increasing scholarly and policy attention in China. Urbanization through resettlement has thus become a potent tool for the Chinese government to embrace the new-type urbanization, which highlights the integrated urban-rural development and the citizenization of the rural population in urban areas. During this process, resettled villagers were physically relocated into concentrated resettlement communities and underwent an arduous adaptation process to the host city. This dissertation adopts an integrated conceptual framework to analyze decade-long resettlement practices in Hangzhou, China. Through an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach design, this dissertation sheds light on how urbanization through resettlement unfolds and how resettled villagers adapt to urban society. More specifically, it explores the following questions. What are the spatial characteristics of resettlement communities regarding material deprivation? How is space socially produced in resettlement communities? How has China’s property rights system influenced resettlement practices and resettled villagers’ post-resettlement adaptation? This dissertation follows the article-based format, and the three articles together offer a step-wise approach to untangling the complexities of rural-to-urban resettlement in China. The first article investigates what dimension of resettlement communities by focusing on their spatial characteristics. It invokes the concept of deprivation and aims to establish indices of multiple deprivations (IMDs) for resettlement communities. In doing so, the article uses accessibility as a proxy and integrates the space syntax approach with multi-criteria decision analysis to construct the IMDs of concentrated resettlement communities in Hangzhou, China. The utilized data consists of street networks obtained from OpenStreetMap, Point of Interest (POI) gathered through Amap API, and interviews conducted within the local communities. The findings suggest that material deprivation may not be the primary rationale for residential segregation of resettlement communities in urban areas. In addition, the accessibility to different services reflects diverse material deprivation patterns of resettlement communities. Moreover, the perceived deprivation of various stakeholders, such as resettled villagers, planners, and local government officials, may lead to different results of the IMDs. The diverse criteria or domains of deprivation contribute differently to the deprivation, which requires a tailored treatment strategy when constructing IMDs, such as the sensitivity analysis used in this research. It is recommended to incorporate perceived deprivation measurement as the essential component of pre-resettlement assessment. The second article further explores how space is produced in resettlement communities. The production of concentrated resettlement communities (CRCs) to accommodate resettled villagers and facilitate their post-resettlement adaptation creates a unique urban phenomenon in China. However, existing research has insufficiently unpacked the evolution of the production process. Building on the theory of space production, this article proposes a dynamic spatial-temporal conceptual framework to examine the process of space production. Drawing on interviews with residents, local planners, policy makers, and academics, as well as large sample questionnaire surveys, the article offers an empirical lens on how CRCs have evolved and how landless farmers have adapted to the host city. It first finds that CRCs in Hangzhou have three typologies in terms of spatial layout and built form. Secondly, resettled villagers in early CRCs are confronted with economic challenges but maintain well social relations. Their shared collectivism is conducive to their spatial adaptation. In recent CRCs, strict planning and community management have further limited resettled villagers' spontaneous attempts to reshape space to support their adaptation. The third article delves into why it is challenging to achieve inclusive rural-to-urban resettlement by focusing on the property rights regime in China. While the Chinese government intends to use resettlement to address the ambiguous property rights in rural areas, resettlement projects may deviate from the presupposed ideal path of achieving equitable property rights through property rights rearrangements. This article aims to unpack the complexity of property rights embedded in rural-to-urban resettlement based on the empirical case of Hangzhou. Based on documentary analysis, field observation, in-depth interviews, and questionnaire surveys, the article argues that the ambiguous property rights system of rural land cannot be fully addressed through rural-to-urban transition, and the coexistence of private, collective, formal and informal property rights systems is inevitable in urban areas without targeted policy remedies. The findings identify some main obstacles to the ideal transition of property rights systems. First, the resettled villagers are excluded from market participation by inadequate compensation through planning mechanisms. Second, resettlement communities suffer from the remaining rurality that challenges the enforcement of formal institutions and the governance of communal resources in the urban system. Third, the collective-retained land is an innovative but compromised institution devised by the local government to achieve a fair property rights rearrangement through resettlement, but its effectiveness is weakened by the politics at the village level. In summary, this dissertation provides a detailed reading of rural-to-urban resettlement practices and a nuanced understanding of resettled villagers’ post-resettlement adaptation in contemporary China. More importantly, the findings can have important policy implications for sustainable urban-rural development in China regarding offering better locational choices for resettlement communities, accommodating the spatial demands of resettled villagers, and achieving equitable property rights for the affected.
Operationalizing Sense of Place Concepts and Cultural Ecosystem Services to Explore Urban Ecosystem Rehabilitation Performance from A Socio-Cultural Lens: The Case of Wadi Hanifah—Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
(University of Waterloo, 2023-06-22) Kashmiri, Shahad; Khirfan, Luna
Urban ecosystems (UE), and urban wetlands specifically, are considered coupled human-natural systems; meaning, they rely on the complex interdependencies of human and ecological components. As such, any intervention procedure (i.e., rehabilitation or restoration) and their evaluations would require an integrated socio-cultural approach to better understand their impacts and promote congruent design and development. The importance of integrating the human dimension in the rehabilitation of UE has been highlighted recurringly in the literature. There have been several calls within the ecosystem services (ES) management and socio-ecological systems (SES) scholarship to operationalize sense of place (SoP) concepts in the evaluation of rehabilitated UE performance, particularly from the socio-cultural lens. Despite that, practice has been slower to follow suite with application. The following research study presents a framework that links the socio-cultural dimension into the assessments of UE interventions. Primarily, it examines rehabilitated UE performance from a social lens and tracks the changes to their SoP, more specifically their place-image, as a result of the intervention. To achieve these aims, it operationalizes SoP components, as proposed by the literature. The framework essentially relies on the components of place triad (physical attributes, activity, and meanings and conceptions) as variables; to be examined by the visitation and popularity of the ecosystem, the uses and activities, the conditions of the physical environment, and the perceptions and associations of end-users to the rehabilitated UE (the indicators). To demonstrate the proposed framework, I examined a recently rehabilitated urban wetland in the arid context of Saudi Arabia, namely that of Wadi Hanifah. Wadi Hanifah is a historic valley wetland, teaming with heritage and natural sites that cuts through the capital City of Riyadh. This renders the valley a rarity both for its ecological (i.e., milder micro-climate, and provision of blue and green spaces) and its socio-cultural contributions (i.e., recreational and leisure activities). Seeing as the rehabilitation was never examined from a social lens, this research aimed to fill that gap and provide the first iteration of a socio-cultural study of the rehabilitation. Data for this study was gathered primarily using online social surveys and one-on-one semi-structured interviews. The results rendered several overlapping dimensions intrinsic to Wadi Hanifah’s identity: Nature and natural landscapes; activities; utility; history and heritage; personal experiences; and the rehabilitation itself. The analysis results highlight the factors responsible for the changes in Wadi Hanifah’s place-image, such as the introduction of the socio-cultural programs, including but not limited to outdoor and physical activities and the provision of picnic areas. The most noticeable trend was the transition of the perceptions of the Wadi from primarily provisional ES to one that is focused on CES. Furthermore, in terms of performance, the Wadi has reflected positively against the socio-cultural themes adapted from Bin Sulaiman and Almahmood (2022) (safety and security, sociability, accessibility, physical environment cues, attachment, and distinctiveness). It garnered a predominantly positive reception from the participants, where it was viewed as safer, more sociable, accessible, and unique, compared to before the rehabilitation. The value of this research lies in its contributions to theory, methodology, and practice. Where in theory and methodology, this framework links between the ES scholarship and urban design’s SoP. It can also be adapted for other similar UE interventions, especially ones that introduce an intentional socio-cultural agenda. Furthermore, in terms of practice this study sheds light on some of the current issues; provides a baseline for future studies of the Wadi; and provides a pragmatic approach to the improvement of its design and development guidelines.

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