T7 - Rising Urbanists : CanU Vanguard

Feature presentations from CanU's 'Vanguard' program, which elevates ideas from innovative practitioners in the first ten years of their career. Please visit canu.ca/forum2026/vanguard to learn more, and apply to share your ideas in Ottawa this fall.

Open to all! Join us for Cocktails & Refreshments!

Speakers

Moderator: Matt Knapik
MArch, MEDes (Urban Design)
Principal, Urban Designer, O2 Planning and Design
Board Member, Council for Canadian Urbanism

In his role as an Urban Designer at O2, Matt brings a multi-disciplinary skill set and keen design sensibility to projects in planning, landscape, and urban design. He is drawn to complex projects where institutions and infrastructures collide with the city.

Matt received Master’s Degrees in both Architecture and Urban Design from the University of Calgary. He sits on the board of directors for Calgary Reads and is a founding member of the award-winning design and research collaborative The Bench Project. For the last eleven years, Matt has taught and lectured at Mount Royal University and the University of Calgary, where he was co-recipient of the Faculty of Environmental Design Award for Teaching Excellence.

Mohammed Mubarak
Urban Designer, Urban Strategies

Mohammed is an urban designer with a background in architectural design and urban planning. He holds a Master of Design degree from Cardiff Metropolitan University, Wales, where his research focused on design as a catalyst for social interaction in public spaces. Additionally, he has a graduate certificate in Urban Design from Sheridan College, which expanded his expertise and provided new perspectives on urban design in the Canadian context. With extensive experience across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, Mohammed has worked on a variety of projects, from single residential units to large-scale developments, playing a comprehensive project management role from conception to implementation. One of his completed projects in Kuwait, House Nashy, was recognized with an Arabian Property Award. As an urban designer, Mohammed is passionate about creating vibrant public spaces that foster social interaction and community engagement. His work includes significant contributions to the design of a public park in Kuwait City and a community plaza on Egypt’s North Coast, both aimed at enhancing community interactions and social cohesion. Mohammed has also contributed to new development projects in Georgetown and Milton, engaging in a variety of hands-on and analytical tasks that enriched his practical and theoretical knowledge. At Urban Strategies, he is providing urban design expertise as part of a Feasibility Study for the Singapore University of Social Sciences, as well as visioning and due diligence project related to main streets and social housing projects in the Greater Toronto region.

Sidrah Anees
Planner, O2 Planning and Design

Sidrah is a planner at O2 Planning and Design, based in Calgary, AB. She has a passion for regenerative city planning, decarbonization, and climate change resilience within the built environment. Sidrah holds a Master of Planning degree, a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, and a Bachelor of Education. Through studios and fellowships in cities ranging from Zürich to New York City, she has gained a global perspective on development and design.

Sidrah is a recipient of the CIP-PSTF Outstanding Graduating Student Award, and a City of Calgary Mayor’s Urban Design Award for her master's graduate capstone project, The Banff Trail Neighborhood Study. This project integrated intergenerational approaches to public realm design to create an inclusive, vibrant, and sustainable community. She was a fellow in the 2024 Holcim Foundation Fellowship: Decarbonization at Scale. Her work today ranges from parks and climate planning to strategic and large-scale municipal policy. Across these varied experiences, her work is grounded in a deep commitment to actionable climate change mitigation and adaptation. With a diverse education and professional background, she is well versed in interdisciplinary thinking and reaching across silos to connect and amplify ideas.

Jean-François Obregón
Principal, The Urban Hulk

Jean-François Obregón is the Principal of The Urban Hulk, a consultancy focused on nature and finance in urban planning. He is a Research Fellow at the Ivey Business School and a Researcher with the Smart Prosperity Institute. He worked at Sustainalytics, an ESG research provider in the financial sector before completing his Master of Planning at Toronto Metropolitan University.

His major research paper during his graduate studies detailed financial instruments to be used for urban parks and green spaces. The MRP earned the Minto Planning for Sustainability Best Student Led Initiative Award. It also led Jean-François to work on a $250 million financial instrument for three years.

In 2025, he provided research on financial instruments and indicators to measure NbS for Mediterranean cities as part of a European Union-funded project. Jean-François is a Registered Professional Planner in Ontario, Urbaniste in Québec and a Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners. He holds an Honors in Business Administration from the Ivey Business School at Western University.

Audy Noor
Third year student, Urban and Regional Planning, Toronto Metropolitan University

Audy Noor (she/her) is a third year Urban and Regional Planning student at Toronto Metropolitan University and a proud Scarborough resident. Over the past several years, Audy has been deeply engaged in civic participation initiatives and grassroots organizing to advance her journey in community advocacy—from local environmental campaigns through her high school's environmental club to engaging high school students in city-building at Urban Minds. Her passion for building a better world through community-led changemaking and environmental stewardship fuels her work and aspirations. Audy is also the founder of Herstory of Scarborough, a youth-led community initiative that seeks to empower teenage girls from Scarborough to reclaim their space in the city-building dialogue through group storytelling, creative writing, zine co-creation, and hands-on design workshops.

Katie Theall
Intern Architect, DIALOG

Katie Theall is an Intern Architect at DIALOG in Vancouver whose work sits at the intersection of architecture, urban design, and sustainability. Drawing on experience in embodied carbon reduction and climate-responsive design, she is interested in how cities can balance growth with the stewardship of existing communities, buildings, and resources. Her work is grounded in a belief that city-building carries responsibilities to people, place, ecology, and future generations.

Sonja Vangjeli
MArch, MLA, OALA, CSLA
Senior Urban Designer, City of Toronto

Sonja Vangjeli a Landscape Architect and urbanist with multidisciplinary international design experience, dedicated to ecological city-building, climate resilience, and quality of life in urban built environments.

As Senior Urban Designer at the City of Toronto, she has contributed to waterfront revitalization and precinct planning, and currently focuses on city-wide sustainability studies, policy development, design standards, and pilot projects to reduce embodied carbon and improve ecological health and resilience. Previously at Waterfront Toronto, Sonja managed complex infrastructure and public realm projects such as the waterfront transit line with a strong emphasis on design excellence and ecological performance. Her experience includes design work with Sasaki, West 8, and several Canadian architecture firms, as well as academic research with the Zofnass Program for Sustainable Infrastructure and Office for Urbanization at Harvard University.

Sonja holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from Harvard University and a Master of Architecture from the University of Waterloo. She continues to pursue research and advocacy through publications, conferences, part-time teaching at the University of Toronto, and grant-supported research projects such as Ravine Reconnect and the LACF Allsopp Urban Design Fellowship.