2022 Graduate Planning Award Recipients

Alan Tonks Planning Scholarship

Provided by an endowment created from the proceeds of a gala dinner held in honour of Alan Tonks upon his retirement as Chairman of Metropolitan Toronto in 1997, this award is granted to outstanding students in the second year of the MScPl program who are concentrating their studies in the areas of urban planning, urban transportation or urban infrastructure.

Hamza Chatila

Hamza focused his research on housing issues in Ontario. Inspired by his experience working at the Region of Peel’s Housing Development Office, Hamza wrote his Current Issues Paper to tackle the assess why the City of Toronto’s Housing Now initiative failed to develop any units since its inception.

Yu-Chen Chuang

Yu-Chen Chuang is a 2nd-year student in the MScPl program at the University of Toronto. Before coming to Canada, she was trained in Anthropology at National Taiwan University and worked on the history of Indigenous land dispossession, as well as issues of Indigenous urban migration in Taiwan. Her broad research interest is to identify the legacy of colonialism and technocracy in environmental management. Currently, her research seeks to understand the relationship between climate adaptation policies and the ongoing processes of colonialism in Taiwan. Her research keywords include climate adaptation, vulnerabilities, post-disaster planning, expertise and colonialism.

Elizabeth Marcus 

Ann Borooah Graduate Planning Scholarship

Created through a program of the province of Ontario and the endowment established by a donation by Mr. Edward Sorbara and the University of Toronto, this award is presented to an outstanding graduate student who is studying planning and has obtained first-class standing.

Swati Panwar

Swati is a graduate student in the department of Geography and Planning and is currently pursuing her internship with the Transportation Services Division, City of Toronto. Her research aims to investigate the impacts of long-term street closures resulting from construction projects on traffic management and alternative transportation options within city of Toronto. The study will assess how these closures influence traffic patterns, transit utilization, and the viability of establishing permanent pedestrian streets. By conducting an in-depth analysis of the outcomes of these closures and evaluating their potential as a model for urban planning, her research seeks to contribute to the knowledge and understanding of creating sustainable and pedestrian-friendly environments in Toronto.

Benjamin Sonshine Urban Planning Scholarship

Established in 1997 by the Sonshine family, in honour of their late father Benjamin, this award is presented to an outstanding student who has completed an undergraduate program in geography at the University of Toronto upon entering the MScPl Program at the University of Toronto.

Fatima Mohammed

Black Graduate Scholar Award in Geography & Planning

To be awarded to students who identify as Black. Priority will be given to students who do not hold major scholarships, and who have not previously received departmental awards.

Abdul-Salam Ibrahim

Abdul-Salam Ibrahim is a Graduate Fellow at the School of Cities and a Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Toronto. His research examines climate change adaptations, resilient city planning and environmental governance through the lens of political ecology. He is the Vice President of the Graduate Students’ Association at Scarborough (GSAS) (2022-2023) where he champions graduate students' interests to foster a congenial atmosphere for students to thrive.

Brianna Lane 
Kathia Johnson 

Edie Yolles Award in Urban Planning

This award was created in honour of the late Edie Yolles, a Planning student at the University of Toronto in the 1960s. After graduating Yolles worked as an urban planner with the Metropolitan Toronto Planning board. Later she became dedicated to film, and produced and co-directed the feature film ‘That’s My Baby’. She won a number awards for her film work. In her honour, this award is granted annually to a student of merit graduating from the MScPl program, who demonstrates a comprehensive approach to planning and has acquired the necessary skills.

Alycia Shanika Doering

Alycia (MScPl, Class of 2022) is an urban planner, community builder, and artist. Her work centres the interconnections between culture, community, and affordable space through an intersectional social justice lens. She explores social policy, spatial equity, and capacity building strategies that serve distinct community needs while embracing a sense of place, identity, and belonging. Alycia’s upcoming publication, “Future Diasporas”, celebrates and amplifies the stories of racialized diasporic artists as they reconcile with their past, negotiate the present amid unaffordable urban landscapes, and make space for just and flourishing futures. Through her creative planning approaches, she actively supports, holds space, and engages with equity-deserving voices, collectively shaping more nurturing environments.

Friends of Planning Graduate Scholarship for Innovation

This award was created through the hard work and dedication of the Friends of Planning Alumni Committee. It is awarded annually, beginning 2010, to a student entering the second year of MScPl program who demonstrates, through their studies, volunteering and/or work experiences, innovative thinking and practice to plan for or promote planning among diverse communities.

Madeline Barnes Planer
Brian Eng
Elizabeth Marcus
Haron Qudoosi
Christa Yeung

Geography & Planning Award for Black Students

To be awarded to students who identify as Black. Priority will be given to students who do not hold major scholarships, and who have not previously received departmental awards.

Jane O'Brien Davis

Geography & Planning Award for International Students 

To be awarded to International students. Priority will be given to students who do not hold major scholarships, and who have not previously received departmental awards.

Swati Panwar

Swati is a graduate student in the department of Geography and Planning and is currently pursuing her internship with the Transportation Services Division, City of Toronto. Her research aims to investigate the impacts of long-term street closures resulting from construction projects on traffic management and alternative transportation options within city of Toronto. The study will assess how these closures influence traffic patterns, transit utilization, and the viability of establishing permanent pedestrian streets. By conducting an in-depth analysis of the outcomes of these closures and evaluating their potential as a model for urban planning, her research seeks to contribute to the knowledge and understanding of creating sustainable and pedestrian-friendly environments in Toronto.

Ian D. Macpherson Award

Established in honour of the late Ian D. Macpherson by his professional planning colleagues, this award is given annually to an outstanding student, registered in either year of the MScPl program, whose work has demonstrated both high academic merit and practical problem-solving ability with respect to some aspect of planning.

In Chan Hwang

Matthew W.F. Hanson Scholarship in Planning

Matthew Hanson was a graduate of the Masters of Science in Planning (MScPl) class of 2004, a wonderful friend and colleague who touched the lives of so many people before his passing. To honour him, friends and family created this scholarship to recognize students in the MScPl program for their efforts and contribution to student life.

Konstantine Diochnos
Brian Eng
Lauren Foote
Joycelyn Guan

Mitchell Goldhar Award for Excellent Achievement

This award is given, on the basis of academic merit, to an outstanding graduate student either entering or continuing in the MScPl program.

Suzanne Merchant 

Peter R. Walker Master of Science in Planning Fellowship

This fellowship recognizes academic achievements and contributions to the practice of planning through applied work of students in the MScPl program.

Maryam Mujahid Reza

Maryam’s research interests revolve around informal settlements in global south cities. In particular, Maryam is exploring access to water infrastructures in informal settlements and their intersection with gender. Women living in informality are disproportionately affected by lack of access to the city’s formal water supply, and become victim to violence and criminality in the process of establishing informal mechanisms to access water. In recent years, cities in the global south have started criminalising informality due to an increased burden on urban resources, and Maryam’s research explores these changing urban dynamics.

Faizaan Khan

Faizaan is a first-year MScPl student and holds a BA in Architectural Studies. Faizaan's research interests are in cultural planning, suburban place-keeping, urban design, and built heritage. Broadly, their work is concerned with Toronto's racialized urban peripheries and inner suburbs. Their work is grounded in an acknowledgement of the cultures and communities that have emerged in spite of hostile urban form, and focuses on how these spaces can be reimagined with dignity and care. Prior to joining the MscPl program, Faizaan worked in non-profit educational, public space, and arts programming.

Joycelyn Guan
Elizabeth Marcus
Naziha Nasrin
Mia Trana
Christa Yeung

Peter R. Walker First Year Planning Scholarship

Created through the efforts of the Planning Alumni Committee of the U of T Association of Geography Alumni and named for its key benefactor, this award is granted to students entering the second year of the M.Sc.Pl. Program. The recipients are individuals who have made significant contributions to planning practice through applied work and thus exemplify the “best all-round planner.”

Syeda Bushra Binte Amin

Syeda Bushra Binte Amin is final-year MScPl student in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Toronto. She is interested in community planning and city management. She is also interested in how planning tools alleviate or create barriers for communities. Currently, she is focusing her research on exploring community governance options for non-profit organizations in managing a capital asset. Before joining the program, Syeda worked as an urban planner in the capital development authority in Bangladesh.

Jane O'Brien Davis 

The U of T Planning Alumni Graduate Scholarship

This award is given to a graduate student enrolled in full-time studies in the Department of Geography & Planning, on the basis of academic merit.

Alexandra Lambropoulos

Alexandra is a Master of Science in Planning student. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto in Human Geography (major), Urban Studies (major) and GIS (minor). Alexandra is interested in researching urban planning strategies and policies that develop strong communities and solutions for the cities of tomorrow, especially where they intersect with culture, community economic development, resilience, and technology. Her major research paper focuses on making social procurement policies in cities across Canada more equitable for diverse-owned businesses. She is also passionate about urban planning in African cities, which she explores through her podcast Urban Limitrophe.

CIP Student Award in Academic Excellence

This prize is awarded annually to the CIP student member with the highest academic standing in the M.Sc.Pl. (Planning) Program at the University of Toronto.

Priscilla Ankomah-Hackman

Priscilla works as a Policy advisor for the Ministry of Transportation, Ontario. she works on the ministry’s equity framework, safety standardization project and automatic brick permit valuation program. Her passion for Inclusion, Equity and Diversity stem from her desire to ensure all Ontarians benefit from government’s programs and services.

LEA Consulting Ltd. Award in Planning and Transportation

To be awarded to a graduate student in the Program in Planning with an interest in transportation, on the basis of academic merit.

Marjan Fadaei

Thomas Luther Panton Scholarship

Awarded to a student in the MScPl program on the basis of financial need and academic merit.

Brian Eng 

Alexander B. Leman Memorial Award

Awarded to a student enrolled in the collaborative program at the Centre for Environment and the Department of Geography’s Program in Planning based on academic merit and financial need.

Sarah MacKinnon