Mariia Zimmerman, Principal of MZ Strategies, will be participating in a number of events at the 2017 National Planning Conference occurring May 6-9, 2017 in New York City. Zimmerman, who serves as Vice-Chair for Metropolitan Planning on the Regional and Intergovernmental Planning Division of the American Planning Association (APA) was a contributing author to the recently released "Emerging Trends in Regional Planning" report published by APA's Planning Advisory Services. Highlights of the report will be shared during a session at the National Conference on Sunday, May 7th from 2:30 - 3:45 pm.

Regional planning is alive and thriving across the United States. Emerging trends include greater regional engagement in economic planning, resilience and sustainability, and cutting edge technologies to solve problems and engage the public. Downloa… — Regional planning is alive and thriving across the United States. Emerging trends include greater regional engagement in economic planning, resilience and sustainability, and cutting edge technologies to solve problems and engage the public. Download the report to learn more.

The Division is co-hosting with the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy a day-long Regional Livable Communities Forum on Friday, May 5th to support peer learning among regional planners and share best practices on how agencies are supporting local communities in meeting regional planning visions and performance measures. Zimmerman will kick-off the Forum and also be part of a panel discussing potential and real-time impacts that changing federal policies, funding and rhetoric are having on the ability of localities and regions to push for innovative strategies to address complex challenges facing metropolitan areas.

During the 2017 National Planning Conference, Zimmerman is also speaking at the following sessions:

Sunday, May 7 | 9:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

New Models for Regional Economic Resilience

America may be on the precipice of technological and social changes which can substantially alter the planning and management of regions. What are the best local government and regional models for economic progress and innovation in the U.S. towards a more collaborative, evidence based, equitable and sustainable model?

Chuck Bean | Mariia Zimmerman | Daniel Reuter, FAICP | Joe McKinney

Monday, May 8 | 10:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.

Private-Sector Planners as Change Agents

As the professionals tasked with finding solutions to our cities' greatest challenges, planners must keep up with innovations in the field. This session explores promising advances in tackling pressing urban issues, from housing affordability and cost-effective resilient design to transportation demand management and urban infrastructure funding.

James Tolbert, AICP | Deana Rhodeside | Mariia Zimmerman | David Fields, AICP

Follow Mariia during the conference on Twitter @MZStrat and look for future blog updates on some of the information shared.