“Pushing Boundaries: What Makes a Walkable Community”

Beryl Forman

Upon moving to San Diego from New Jersey 13 years ago, Beryl Forman became immediately interested in the amount of new development, and had a strong desire to stay and watch the city redevelop. She decided to pursue a Professional Certificate in Urban Planning and Development at UCSD, following a Masters Degree in City Planning at SDSU. Before long, Beryl began working for the El Cajon Boulevard Business Improvement Association, and was given the title ‘Ms. Boulevard’ by the North Park News.

Beryl thoroughly enjoys the work she does to revitalize and promote El Cajon Boulevard. She believes it is an honor to work with such a well established organization, and it has steered her interest towards revitalizing historic and ethnically diverse urban neighborhoods. The BIA has allowed her the opportunity to work on significant collaborative projects which include the development of a culturally designated Little Saigon District, public art and placemaking initiatives including Take Back the Alley and Fair@44, along with strategizing and implementing economic development efforts for the Boulevard.

Beryl has found that by embracing projects that involve the collaboration of multiple partners, more can be accomplished and more people benefit. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the Change that you want to see in the world”. Beryl strongly believes that City Planning is a tool to create that change, which is why she geared her graduate thesis on the San Diego, Tijuana Cross Border Region, titled ‘Bi-National Placemaking and Implementation’.

Jennifer Gardner

Jennifer Gardner is Program Manager with Gehl Institute, and an urban planner whose work aims to promote equity and opportunity through human-centered planning and design and sound public policy. She is passionate about bridging theory and practice. Previously, Jennifer was a Senior Planner with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, where she managed a portfolio of planning, policy, and strategic priority projects. At NYC Parks, Jennifer created and led implementation of several initiatives focusing on enhancing equity in public space, including the Community Parks Initiative and the Anchor Parks program, both large-scale and multi-phase capital programs that are actively transforming parks within NYC’s highest-need neighborhoods, and focusing public investment in stewardship and activation through local partnership development and programming. Jennifer’s work with NYC Parks also included resiliency and waterfront design and planning projects. Prior to that, Jennifer led zoning and development proposals through the City’s public approval process for the Manhattan Borough President’s Office, consulted on sustainable transportation projects at WXY Architecture and Urban Design, and was a fellow at the Pratt Center for Community Development. She holds an MS in City and Regional Planning from Pratt Institute and a BA in English Literature from Cornell University.

Kate Long

Kate Long is a director and founder of Try This West Virginia, a statewide healthy-community network with the stated purpose of “helping knock West Virginia off the top of the worst health lists, community by community.” Since 2014, Try This has supplied 217 local teams with minigrants and larger grants to create projects that make it easier for people in their communities to be physically active or access healthy food. The annual Try This conference draws more than 500 people. A native West Virginian and former health reporter, Kate Long firmly believes that the state cannot become healthier without a strong grassroots movement.

Meg Ann Traci

Meg Ann Traci’s work involves a socio-ecological and participatory approach to increasing the independence, health and participation of persons with disabilities. Over more than two decades, Dr. Traci (Meg) has worked with disability community partners to improve public health through the inclusion of people with disabilities. She is a developmental psychologist at the Research and Training Center on Disability in Rural Communities at the University of Montana Rural Institute for Inclusive Communities. Meg is a senior consultant on the Montana Disability and Health Program, one of the 19 CDC State-based Disability and Health Programs. She is the Montana state expert on a program of the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors, ‘Reaching People with Disabilities Through Healthy Communities’, that is currently funded in five states and 10 communities, including Lewis and Clark and Butte-Silver Bow Counties. She lives with her husband and two sons in Missoula, Montana. Her hobbies include rose gardening, soccer, fly fishing, hiking, cc-skiing, baking, and watching rugby.