oppi INTRODUCES NEW COUNCIL PRESIDENT

The Ontario Professional Planners Institute (OPPI) is pleased to announce a new OPPI Council President. The announcement took place at OPPI’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) during the OPPI21 annual conference.
 
Paul Lowes, MCIP, RPP, will begin his two-year term as OPPI Council President, October 7, 2021. Paul is one of the founding principals of SGL Planning & Design Inc, a Toronto-based, fully integrated planning and design firm specializing in land use planning, urban design, landscape architecture and development approvals. Paul will take over from Justine Giancola, Partner at Dillon Consulting, who just completed her two-year term as OPPI President, having spent a total of six years on the OPPI Council.
 
"I am honoured to serve as your president for the next two years,” says Paul. “I have been very impressed with how Justine has guided us over the past two years through these very challenging times. There is work still to be done in helping our members transition to a new normal as the pandemic wanes, addressing diversity, equity, and inclusion in our profession and Institute, including Indigenous perspectives and upholding the inherent rights of Indigenous Peoples, continuing to educate and advocate for good planning outcomes in the public interest and continuing to assist our members as they continue on their professional journey.”
 
Paul began his career as a policy planner with the City of Etobicoke. Since then, he has provided policy and land use assistance to a broad range of clients and led multidisciplinary consulting teams. His practice takes him across Ontario where he provides planning advice to small and large municipalities and a range of private sector clients. In this capacity, he has come to understand the challenges OPPI members face in the planning profession and believes that this knowledge is well suited to help tailor OPPI's activities to best suit members needs.
 
Paul is a graduate of the University of Waterloo’s school of planning and earned his Master of environmental studies at York University. He is a Registered Professional Planner (RPP) and full member of both the Ontario Professional Planners Institute (OPPI) and the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP). Paul has been an OPPI member since 1982 and joined the OPPI Council as a Director in 2015.
 
As a non-profit organization, OPPI’s activities and progress are overseen by a group of volunteers who are accountable for all its activities and accomplishments: the board of directors, also known as the OPPI Council. This governing body is comprised of Directors, as well as a President, Secretary/Treasurer, President-Elect, and one voting public member. The priority of the OPPI Council is to guide the organization through policy decisions and strategic directions.
 
The 2021-2022 OPPI Council members are:

Learn more about OPPI Districts. 

The mission of OPPI is to leverage knowledge, resources, and relationships to facilitate excellence in planning by professional planners.  We are excited for the work that lies ahead.