As a principal with O2, Chris Hardwicke manages the firm’s Design Studio. He is a registered professional planner, a member of the Royal Architecture Institute of Canada and an urban designer with over 20 years of experience. He has achieved international recognition as a Fellow of the Forum for Urban Design in New York; a Recognized Practitioner in Urban Design in the UK; and, as a member of the Project for Public Spaces Leadership Committee and the Council for Canadian Urbanism. Chris is guided by the principle that urbanism is a vehicle of social change and renewal. This philosophy extends from the design of public places to embracing the broader principles of healthy cities. His commitment to city building is internationally recognized through award winning projects such as the Waterfront Master Plan for Kaohsiung, Taiwan; exhibitions at the Dieppe Biennale, the Van Alen Institute in New York; and, publishers such as NAI Publishers, Monacelli Press, Princeton Press, Birkauser, and MIT Press. He has directed over 100 design and planning studies across Canada that range in scale from the Centre Plan for Halifax to Museum Park at the Canadian Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa. His experience includes city, regional, downtown, district, campus, and new community planning in addition to park, public space, and streetscape design. As an accomplished facilitator and an inspiring speaker, Chris has spoken about healthy cities across North America, and abroad. Chris is highly regarded for his strategic and collaborative approach to complex urban projects – including charting and leading the public engagement process and helping to bring together diverse public agencies and stakeholders around a shared vision.