Larry Beasley

Larry Beasley is the founding principal of Beasley and Associates, an international planning and urban design consultancy, and the “Distinguished Practice Professor of Planning” at the University of British Columbia. He sits on the Board of TransLink, British Columbia’s integrated transportation agency, and on the Board of Ottawa’s National Capital Commission. For many years, he was the Chief Planner for the City of Vancouver.

He is a Registered Professional Planner in Canada after more than thirty years of civic service in which he led the planning and development management to transform Vancouver into a world model for contemporary sustainable and liveable cities, Larry Beasley now teaches and advises on urbanism around the world. He has been the Senior Advisor on Urban Design in Dallas, Texas, where he founded their Urban Design Studio; and, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, where he founded the Urban Planning Council, one of the most progressive planning agencies in the Middle East, and led the design of a number of cities and towns, including a new national capital. He has served as a member of the International Advisory Board for Economic Development in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. He was the long-standing chair of the ‘National Advisory Committee on Planning, Design and Realty of Ottawa’s National Capital Commission. For several years, he was vice-president of a major Canadian development company, Aquilini Development, managing projects across Canada.

Initially studying architecture, Larry Beasley has degrees in Geography and Political Science (BA) and Planning (MA). He has also been awarded two Honorary Doctorate Degrees (Hon LLD), from Simon Fraser University and Dalhousie University. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Planners, an Honorary Member of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects and has been recognized as an “Advocate for Architecture” by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. In 2007, he received the Kevin Lynch Prize from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2016, he received the Applied Sciences Dean’s Medal of Distinction at the University of British Columbia. He is a Fellow of the Dallas Institute and recently finished his term on the Board of the Canadian Urban Institute. Larry Beasley is a Member of the Order of Canada, the nation’s highest civilian honour for lifetime achievement. In recognition of his national and international service, he has also received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.