Congratulations are in order for two members of the RPA Board of Directors! Maxine Griffith, who serves as Special Advisor to the President at Columbia University was recently inducted into the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planning (FAICP). This is the highest honor bestowed on any member of the AICP. During her induction, she delivered remarks that focused on power and diversity.

“Because planners, we shape the environment in which people lead their lives and because there are lots of kinds of people in our country, we need the profession to reflect the richness and variety that is America,” she stated. ​“Everyone has to be at the leadership table: Native American, gay, lesbian and transgender -- rich, poor – Asian, Black, White and Latino - folks who grew up in trailers – and those who came of age in public housing.”

Click here to read her speech in its entirety.

Founder and CEO of Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU) Vishaan Chakrabarti was also recently inducted into the American Institute of Architects. In addition, this month, PAU was selected to serve as lead consultant to develop the master plan for Sunnyside Yard in Queens. Over the next 20 years, New York City is slated to grow by more than half a million people, including 80,000 people in Queens alone. The master plan process will incorporate community input, paired with architecture, urban planning, engineering and finance expertise to develop a detailed plan for the redevelopment of an underutilized area that currently divides instead of connects. While this project will take several years to build out, it is an opportunity to rethink and imagine how can New Yorkers live, work and move around The City in the future.

We extend our warm congratulations to both Maxine and Vishaan on these incredible accomplishments!