David (Dave) Hardy co-founded Hardy Stevenson Associates Limited in 1990, which has grown to become a leading planning, public consultation and social impact assessment firm. Dave has advanced the practice of planning and public engagement through complex assignments in British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario, and internationally in China, South America and the Caribbean.
 
Dave is a recognized expert in effective public participation and engagement. The techniques used by Dave to facilitate the development of community consensus are detailed in his book Who are These People and Why are They Yelling At Me – the art and science of managing large angry public meetings. As a resource used by today’s planning students, Dave’s facilitation skills are being passed onto the next generation of planners.
 
Dave lives his passion for impact assessment and public participation. He is a founding member and former Director of the International Association for Impact Assessment, the leading global network for the sharing of best practices in this field. In the early 1990s, Dave led the Ontario Professional Planners Institute’s Policy Development Committee and is regarded as one of the first in Ontario to be actively engaged with First Nations communities. Dave has long been committed to improving communications between indigenous stakeholders and non-indigenous planners.
 
In addition to his exceptional achievements in professional practice, Dave has made several notable accomplishments in volunteer service to his own community. In 2016, he established the Scarborough Community Renewal Organization that brought together a broad range of service providers to improve the health and socio-economic conditions in an area that had long been underserved. With his tireless commitment to the planning profession, Dave founded the Institute for New Suburbanism in 2016. As its Executive Director, Dave has advanced the topic of suburban renewal to the forefront of the urban agenda across Canada.
 
Dave’s extensive list of articles, publications, and podcasts reflects his commitment to the planning profession in Canada. Throughout the course of his career, Dave has distinguished himself as a social scientist, planning professional, and an advocate for those less fortunate in our society.