The Road to Recovery

Road to Recovery Video Series

Planners are essential to community recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic — how can they lead the way to an equitable, resilient, and long-lasting recovery? In a new video series, APA President Kurt Christiansen, FAICP, hosts conversations with thought leaders from the planning profession, government, and beyond to discuss planning and recovery.

Samantha Harkins, Deputy Mayor, City of Lansing, Michigan

"We need to listen to the experiences of everyone here in Lansing in order to create equitable and inclusive spaces and to focus on COVID recovery for everyone. … I don't have all the answers but I do know we aren't going to come to solutions about equity and inclusivity in either our public spaces or in COVID recovery without listening."

Congressman Earl Blumenauer

"I think it's essential that we talk about how the pieces fit together. It's important that we not act in an uncoordinated, unrelated way. Instead, we ought to harness these forces of change ... to solve problems, not create new ones." — Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.)

John Porcari

"It's really crucial that planning be a part [of recovery] from the beginning. It's not just about triage, it's actually about building a better future — and a different future — and you can only do that through a more holistic process that includes planning." —John Porcari, President of Advisory Services at WSP and former deputy secretary at U.S. DOT