PIBC's Planning Practice & Reconciliation Committee
The Planning Practice & Reconciliation Committee is a standing committee of the Board and is responsible for acting as representatives of the Institute and the planning profession in BC and Yukon to seek truth, to assist in the active decolonization of planning practices in BC and Yukon, and to support members in advancing this work.
Position and Commitment Statement
The Planning Practice and Reconciliation Committee (PPRC) was formed by the PIBC Board to “develop and recommend relevant and achievable strategies and actions for PIBC to respond to outcomes from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Final Report and the Final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG).”
The PPRC will work towards reconciliation which is defined by the TRC as “establishing and maintaining a mutually respectful relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in this country.” Our work will require us (as guided by the TRC) to look within ourselves, our work, our professional organization, and our communities to:
- Become aware of past actions that the planning profession and professionals have taken that contribute to/perpetuate colonization of Indigenous peoples;
- Acknowledge the harm that has been inflicted by these actions;
- Atone for the causes; and
- Take action/make recommendations to PIBC for actions to change our behaviours.
The PPRC will continue, in perpetuity, to work toward reconciliation in planning and decolonization of PIBC, the planning profession and our practices as planners.
For more information:
- Click here to read Sa̱nala Planning's Phase 1 report - Exploring Pathways for Indigenous Planning Membership: Reflections and Recommendations
- Click here to read PPRC's most recent activities and deliverables (excerpt from current PIBC Annual Report)
- Click here to read Planning West article - PPRC Committee Update: 3 Years and Counting (Spring 2023)
- Click here to read Planning West article - Reflections on the Past & How We Move Forward (Summer 2022)
- Click here to read Planning West magazine - Indigenizing Planning issue (Spring 2021).
- Click here for PIBC's free webinars in honour of National Indigenous Peoples Day.
- Click here to read PIBC's statement on the Kamloops Residential School.
For other information about PIBC's PPRC, please contact Kelly Chan, PIBC Manager of Member Programs & Services.
Planning Practice & Reconciliation Committee members
 | Sarah Atkinson RPP, MCIP (Chair)Sarah lives on the unceded and ancestorial territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. Sarah is committed to the work undertaken by the PPRC because she believes, as Canadians, we are not doing enough to repair colonialism's harmful effects, right the wrongs of the past, and decolonize ourselves and our institutions. She wants to be a part of this change in whatever small way she can as a planner and co-create a new planning relationship with First Nations colleagues that respects and is guided by Indigenous planning. |
| Lesley Cabott RPP, FCIP
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| Robyn Holme RPP, MCIPRobyn lives and works on the unceded traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation (KFN) in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, BC. Robyn has worked as a planner for over 15 years in local government, but has focused on regional planning policy for the last 7 years, working on projects ranging from coastal adaptation planning to indigenous relations. Robyn is committed to developing new planning practices that recognize reconciliation and UNDRIP in transformative and meaningful ways. |
| Isha Matous-GibbsIsha grew up in the territory of the lək̓ʷəŋən People, and now lives in the unceded traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation (KFN). She is a Social Health and Well-being Planner with Urban Matters, proud graduate of the VIU Masters of Planning Program, and a UVic Alumni from the School of Public Health and Social Policy. Prior to planning, she worked on the front lines of homelessness in Victoria for 5 years. |
| Bob Sokol RPP, MCIPBob is honoured to live, work and recreate on the unceded, ancestral, traditional lands of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) First Nations. He is a planner with over 25 years of municipal planning experience in the Portland, Seattle and Vancouver regions. One of the many exciting aspects of his most recent role as the Director of Planning and Capital Projects for the Squamish Nation is that Bob had to embrace the concept that he was an "outsider" to a much greater extent than at any other time in his career, with a need to listen and learn much from those in his community. While he feels he has much to share and contribute, he also feels he has even more to learn. Even in the limited time thus far working with the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Nation, Bob has learned much about how the Indian Act, colonialism and the planning profession have shaped and continue to shape the lives of Indigenous people in BC. This knowledge, along with his experience as a planner, assists him in serving as a member of this Committee with the goal of guiding PIBC's response to the report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. |
| Jennifer Poole (Student Intern)Jennifer Poole is living and learning on the traditional unceded territory of the Lheidli T’enneh in Prince George, British Columbia. She is completing an undergraduate planning degree at the University of Northern British Columbia, majoring in northern and rural community planning. With over fifteen years in project management of private-public partnerships (P3), Jennifer is excited to add a planning degree to her skill set and to be a part of the Planning Practice & Reconciliation Committee. |
