As we look ahead towards our collective future, seeking to reconcile the failures of our past and  together address the wicked problems of our time, I believe that there is one truth that stands alone: We need each other.  

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But acting in a way that honours this truth is often so very difficult. We’re human. We are social and emotional beings. And while we have built beautiful, aspirational, complex and yes, sometimes flawed institutions to sustain us, the challenge to navigate conflict, uncertainty and change, while striking a balance between ‘us’ and ‘them’, individual and community, remains. It is enduring. Timeless.

As Professional Planners, this is the space we occupy. We use our experience, skills and tools to support decision-makers and the public through the technical, social, and political process of community change. We seek to respect and integrate the needs of future generations in our plans and recommendations. We endeavor to recognize and react positively to uncertainty, to respect diversity and to balance the needs of communities with the needs and interests of individuals.  

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And in considering how we might best achieve these aims, in light of the challenges of inequality,  climate change, pandemic, political & social division and incivility, I am increasingly convinced that our orientation and relationship to the values and ethics of the profession will be of the utmost importance in the years ahead - to ground our practice and to ready us as individuals for the inevitable struggles, alongside our successes.

Democracy and the maintenance of just institutions is hard work and requires that professionals, officials and citizens alike, continually seek new ways to work together, to trust and be accountable to one another and to update and refine our social contracts - our culture - towards the sustainable futures that we envision. I believe this work starts within and I invite you to join me in the consideration of deep and reflective questions, such as: