Save the date for the final #RCITalks of the season!
Mobility is central to life in cities. After decades of little to no innovation in mobility, we currently face the potential of both dramatic disruption and improvement to the ways in which we move from place to place. In many cities around the world, there is a renewed emphasis on active transportation, investing in and building public transportation systems, and in connecting the built environment to transportation planning. At the same time, the transition to electric, autonomous and shared vehicles presents new possibilities for moving people and goods. Looking to the future, this event seeks to understand and address the directions in which mobility will move us in the year 2070.
Dr. Shauna Brail - Associate Professor in the Urban Studies Program, Associate Director, Partnerships & Outreach, School of Cities at the University of Toronto and Interim Director of the Master of Urban Innovation program at the University of Toronto Mississauga. She is also Director of the Urban Studies Program (on leave until July 2019).
As an economic geographer, Professor Brail’s research focuses on the transformation of cities as a result of economic, social, and cultural change. Her current research examines the disruptions taking place in urban mobility, particularly focused on the emergence and shifting strategies of ride-hailing firms and associated impacts on cities. She is currently the co-principal investigator on an initiative examining the economic impact of ride-hailing on Canadian cities, and the co-director of the Digital Mobilities Lab.
Professor Brail is a champion of experiential learning, and led the development of academic internships and community engaged learning in the Urban Studies Program for over a decade, working with students, university administrators and partners at urban-focused institutions across the city.
From 2015-2018, she was the Presidential Advisor on Urban Engagement, and worked both within and outside of the university to develop partnerships and support initiatives which enhanced the university’s strategic priority of leveraging our location(s). Prior to joining the University, Professor Brail worked in management consulting and in the Ontario provincial government.
Dr. Andrew Miller - Andrew is Associate Director, Mobility at Sidewalk Labs. Here he works to deliver all aspects of the firm's mobility vision for Quayside on the Toronto waterfront: a system that will include innovative changes to the delivery of public transit and active transportation, and designing and delivering streets that take full advantage of autonomous-vehicle technology.
Andrew’s background is in transit policy, transit planning, and public finance. As a Strategic Leader with the City of Mississauga, he led the delivery of Dundas Connects, a master plan for rapid transit, intensified urban development, and an improved public realm for Dundas Street. For this work, he won the City’s Excellence in Project Management Award – Project Lead. Previously, Andrew worked for the Ontario Public Service in various positions at the Ministries of Infrastructure, Finance, and Transportation; he was most recently head of the Municipal Transit Policy Office. Andrew holds a BA from McGill University, an MA from Yale University, and a PhD from Johns Hopkins University.
Dr. Steven Farber - Assistant Professor in the Department of Human Geography at the University of Toronto Scarborough. His research investigates the social and economic implications of transportation and land use policy. His current work focuses on the role of transportation on personal mobility and the barriers to participation in the activities of daily life. Dr. Farber also has an interest in equity topics related to neighborhood inequalities, segregation, and accessibility. He has authored over 50 peer-reviewed articles and currently chairs the Social and Economic Factors Committee of the Transportation Research Board, one of the National Academies of Science, Medicine and Engineering.
Dr. Raktim Mitra - Associate Professor, School of Urban Planning, Ryerson University & Co-Director of TransForm Laboratory of Transportation and Land Use Planning. Raktim Mitra is an urban planner with expertise and interests in the fields of land use-transportation planning and healthy communities planning. His research explores the intersection between neighbourhood built-environment and transportation, focusing particularly on walking and cycling. Raktim’s current research is exploring neighbourhood-level impacts of bicycle infrastructure. He is also the Principal Investigator of a major multi-institutional collaboration called StudentMoveTO - a partnership between 11 GTHA-area universities and colleges to study transportation challenges and wellbeing of post-secondary students. He is the co-editor of an upcoming book titled “Transport and children’s wellbeing”.
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