I am a co-applicant on “Black Experiences with Planning in Canada: Building a Framework for Community-Based, Black-Centered, Black-Informed Planning Practices“, led by Dr. Magdalena Ugarte (Toronto Metro University) and Abigail Moriah (Black Planning Project) and funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($446,091, 2022-2025). Sheryl-Ann Simpson (Carleton University) and Beverley Mullings (Queens University) are also co-applicants. We’ll be doing interviews/oral histories, workshops, focus groups, and surveys to:
- explore and document the experiences of Black communities and practitioners with/in/against planning;
- create a framework for community-based, Black-centered, Black-informed planning practices; and
- pilot the framework with Black individuals, community organizations, and planners working with predominantly or historically Black communities.
Project Updates
We completed a survey of people working as planners (or doing planning work, such as community development) or working with black communities, and the team has developed a framework for planning in communities, which Hanaa Ali and Abigail Moriah presented at the Canadian Institute of Planners conference in July 2026.
ARTICLES
Afful, A., Johnstone, M., Marsman, V., Moriah, A., Sadu, I., Ugarte, M., Weir, S., & Yasin, A. [In press]. “Black Experiences with Planning in Canada: Expanding anti-racism competencies through community-engaged research and digital storytelling.” In Routledge Handbook of University-Community Partnerships in Planning Education, edited by Jay Mittal and Megan E. Heim LaFrombois. Routledge.