Antonio Gómez-Palacio Speaker Page

Antonio is an informative and engaging speaker, internationally recognized for transforming cities into vibrant urban places that respond to their social, economic, and environmental context.

He is frequently sought after for keynote presentations, expert panels, workshops, and guest commentaries to lead conversations on how the design of the built environment can contribute to community wellbeing.

Antonio inspires public and private sector leaders to leverage the power of cities and communities towards achieving meaningful impact through various speaking topics: housing affordability, city livability, climate adaptation, social equity, community wellbeing, heritage, transit, urbanism, and sustainability.

Interested in having Antonio speak at an event? Contact him at agp@dialogdesign.ca 

The Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Annual Conference and Trade Show, June 2019

I believe how we build our cities, communities, buildings, can be part of the solution. It’s through dialogue that meaningful understanding is generated and takes root.

—Antonio Gómez-Palacio, DIALOG Chair
About Antonio Gómez-Palacio
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Antonio provides an inimitable perspective on how the work of the architect must accommodate long-term thinking, so that places continue to evolve, grow and meet the needs of their users, communities and more broadly, society’s sustainability and social goals.

—Ilana Weitzman, VP of Strategic Development, Clean Transportation at Electric Autonomy Canada, EV Expo & Planning Conference

I invited Antonio and Amit to our university for a presentation focused on community wellbeing. Dynamic, engaging, and encouraging are all words that can describe their interactions with the students. In my conversations with Antonio leading up to the presentation, he wanted to ensure their visit would cultivate meaningful dialogue between student and community leaders. They did exactly that. They left us feeling inspired and provided an environment where ideas could be generated and ultimately, take root.

—Ryan Orcutt, M.Ed., Director of Student Engagement & Global Leaders, MSSU Workshop

Your keynote speech and participation in the debate was amazing. Your presentation genuinely reignited some of the passion that I had, so I thank you for that. It really means a lot to understand how communities come to form unique identities and how they deliver life’s necessities for their constituents. The planning/architecture community is lucky to have an ambassador such as yourself.

—Gregory Honywill, Student in the Dalhousie School of Planning MPLAN program, Organizing Committee Member of Shift23 Urban Planning Conference

Viewers from 21 countries signed up for Antonio’s magnificent presentation on wellbeing by design, highlighting his knowledge and experience, while giving realistic actions to create equitable and sustainable cities. I am very grateful for Antonio’s insightful and useful presentation and dialogue.

—Guillermo (Gil) Penalosa, MBA, PhDhc, CSP, Founder and Chair of 8 80 Cities

Antonio was an incredible addition to our conference agenda. His presentation was engaging and inspiring as he integrated storytelling, strategies and solutions into real life scenarios that our delegates could take away and apply in their own communities.  Antonio was the epitome of professional, profound and positive. We would whole heartedly recommend Antonio for any conference or speaking engagement as a Keynote Speaker.

—Melissa Halford, Director of Development Services, Town of Gravenhurst

2025

  • Community Wellbeing in Design – Presenter – City of Toronto – January 29, 2025

2024

2023

2022

  • CPRA Speakers Series Event – Speaker: Community Wellbeing Framework – March 8, 2022
  • The Canadian Urban Environmental Health Research Consortium (CANUE) Webinar – Community Wellbeing: How to Build Communities that Support Physical, Mental, Environmental and Social Wellbeing – Presenter – March 31, 2022
  • City of Vaughan Official Plan Review – Speaker: Healthy Communities Webinar – May 12, 2022
  • TSA Connect – Featured Guest – September 21, 2022
  • Burlington Chamber of Commerce – Business Before Nine Series, Keynote Speaker – What Could the 2030 Commonwealth Games Mean to Burlington Businesses? – November 4, 2022

2021

2020

  • SPUR/Jack London Workshop – Applying the Community Wellbeing Framework to the 880 Underpass – February 21, 2020
  • University of Manitoba, Faculty of Architecture – Community Wellbeing: An emerging framework for architecture, planning, design and engineering – March 3, 2020
  • Urban Transit Infrastructure Forum TOD panel, Moderator – April 2020 – Canceled or postponed due to Covid-19
  • BUILD Banff Spring Conference, Community Wellbeing: A Framework for the Built Environment, Presenter – April 2020 – Canceled or postponed due to Covid-19
  • CMHC – Rethinking Rental, Opening Panel Discussion – April 2020 – Canceled or postponed due to Covid-19
  • ULI Spring 2020 Tour, Co-Chair – May 2020 – Canceled or postponed due to Covid-19
  • OAA Annual Conference: Shifting Paradigms – Community Wellbeing Framework – May 27-29, 2020 – Canceled or postponed due to Covid-19
  • Canada Health Infoway – Virtual Speaker Series – June 19, 2020
  • ULI Toronto – Industry Stakeholder Webinar – Consultation – June 24, 2020
  • Government of Newfoundland and Labrador – Webinar – Regaining Movementum – September 10, 2020
  • Wellbeing Cities Forum, Community Wellbeing Framework, Presenter – September 15, 2020 – To be conducted virtually due to Covid-19
  • SPUR – Digital Symposium – Ideas + Action 2020: Public Space – October 5-9, 2020
  • RAIC Conference – Designing for Community Wellbeing – October 18-19, 2020 – cancelled due to Covid-19
  • Conscious Cities Festival – Shaping an Equitable Toronto – October 22, 2020

2019

2018

  • Queen’s University – School of Urban and Regional Planning: Lecture on Community Wellbeing Framework  – February 27, 2018
  • Healthcare Infrastructure Summit – Community Wellbeing Framework Keynote presentation  – April 13, 2018
  • ULI –  Breakfast Session: The Community Wellbeing Framework  – May 9, 2018
  • Making Cities Livable Conference on Healthy 10-Minute Neighborhoods – Community Wellbeing: Towards a New Framework of Design – May 14-18, 2018
  • OAA 2018 – Bold by Design: Community Wellbeing: Towards a New Framework  – May 23, 2018
  • CITE 2018 – Sustainable Urban Integration: Transit as City-building  – June 5, 2018
  • Automated Vehicles 2018: Sustainable Urban and Rural Transitions – June 6, 2018
  • Conference Board of Canada – Promoting Healthy Active Living Through Supportive Environments – The Community Wellbeing Framework – June 11, 2018
  • Conference Board of Canada Roundtable on Shared Mobility – Community Wellbeing: A New Framework for Understanding Transportation  – June 14, 2018
  • Achieving Excellence Together – It takes a (Health Care) Village: Creating an Integrated Community and Hospital Master Plan – June 20, 2018
  • IDC National Conference – Design Symposium – September 17, 2018
  • Walk/Bike/Places Urban Sustainability – Community Wellbeing – a framework for planning and design – September 18, 2018
  • OPPI Symposium – Community Wellbeing – a framework for planning and design – October 12, 2018
  • OPPI Symposium – Laurentian University Campus Master Plan – October 13, 2018
  • Walk21 Bogota – Community Wellbeing – a framework for planning and design – October 16, 2018
  • Thinking About Infrastructure 2018 and Beyond – Setting the Foundations – October 24, 2018
  • API Conference – Community Wellbeing – A framework for planning and Design – October 26, 2018

2017

  • RAIC/OAA Festival of Architecture 2017: From Vision to Details: The making of a University District – May 25, 2017
  • RAIC/OAA Festival of Architecture 2017: Innovation in Canadian Urbanism – May 24, 2017
  • City Debate #10: Follow Vienna, subsidize more housing – May 17, 2017
  • Automated Vehicles 2017: Planning the Next Disruptive Technology  – (Moderator) Building Out the Vision: Focus on Municipalities – April 19, 2017
  • York University: Markham Centre – Building the Vision for a Human Scale Campus – June 30, 2017
  • INFIN Canada – Smart Cities, Smart Infrastructure – Opportunity for the Infrastructure Investor? – September 13, 2017
  • World Design Summit 2017: Community Wellbeing: Towards a New Framework for Design Professions – September 19, 2017
  • The Walrus Health Leadership Roundtable – November 1, 2017
  • The Council for Healthy Living: Moving Ahead: Healthy Active Living Across the Lifespan – November 6, 2017
  • Dtalks: Let’s talk about…TOD – December 4, 2017

2016

  • Ryerson University: Sustainable Neighborhoods Discussion – November 15, 2016
  • Sustainable Mobility Summit: Sustainable Development, Walking the (Walk) Talk – Walking the (Walk) Talk – October 26, 2016
  • Heritage Canada Conference: Heritage Conservation Districts as a Component of Good Planning – October 21, 2016
  • ERAPPA 2016 Annual Conference: Future-proofing Your Campus, 4 Trends and Lessons Learned – October 16 to 19, 2016
  • Rail-Volution Conference: Autonomous Vehicles: The Future of Transit and Cities?  –  October 11, 2016
  • Cana Data Conference: The Importance of Infrastructure and the Exchange Rate Impact on Design Professionals – Sept 22, 2016
  • SBE16 Toronto: A Framework for Community Resilience Planning, the Moncton story – September 20, 2016
  • Queens University – 10 things they don’t teach you at planning school –  September 19, 2016
  • CUTA Conference: Canadian Urban Transit Association. Transforming Cities Through Transit, An Integrated Approach to Design – May 16, 2016
  • 2016 OAA Conference: Architecture Matters: Shaping the Environment. The Design Review Panel – Making Architecture Matter More? – May 12, 2016
  • Ryerson’s City Building Institute: Driverless Cars and City Building – May 12, 2016
  • Conference Board of Canada Conference: Automated Vehicles: Planning the Next Disruptive Technology. Panel discussion: AVs and urban form: regional planning and urban infrastructure implications – April 19, 2016
  • RAIC College of Fellows Southern Ontario Chapter: Annual Dinner Speaker. Transit Urbanism: (trans)forming cities?  – March 10, 2016

2015

  • 5th Annual Summit on Public Consultation & Engagement – “Non-Traditional Public Consultation Techniques & Social Media” – December 1 & 2, 2015
  • TSA Urban Affairs Forum – Designing Toronto’s Parks – Moderator – November 12, 2015
  • ULI Toronto Symposium – “Driverless City” – November 3, 2015
  • Rail-Volution 2015 – “Integrating Health, Livable Communities & Transit: A How-To Discussion” – October 27, 2015
  • Council for Canadian Urbanism 7th Summit – Moderator of Young Urbanists’ Panel – October 16, 2015
  • 2015 RAIC Festival of Architecture – “West Campus: Lessons in Transformative City-Building” – June 2015
  • THRIVE 2015 CIP/SPPI Annual Conference – “Urban Vibrancy: Delivering On An Elusive Goal” – June 2015
  • OPPI Oak Ridges District 5th Annual Summer Solstice Event – “Global City Planning” – June 17, 2015
  • GTSWG, Switching Tracks: Towards transit equity in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, Moderator – May 31, 2015
  • TSA Urban Affairs Forum, Moderator – “Toronto Island Airport: Expansion Design Considerations” – May 28, 2015
  • TSA Healthy Cities Forum, Moderator – April 21, 2015

2014

  • Downtown Winnipeg Public Forum – Transit Oriented Development – November 2014
  • University of Toronto – Lecture on Urban Design and Resilient Communities Framework – November 2014
  • University of Manitoba – Coming to a Common Place: Indigenous Peoples and Urban Design – November 2014
  • OPPI Symposium – “Beyond Mobility:  Corridor Planning for the Bigger Picture” – October 2014
  • Alberta Association of Architects 2014 Professional Development Day – “Urban Vibrancy” – October 2014
  • Rail-Volution 2014 – “Beyond Mobility:  Corridor Planning for the Bigger Picture” – September 2014
  • 10th World Congress on Design + Health, Healthy Cities 2030 Pre-Congress Symposium Panel Member – July 2014
  • CIP/API Conference 2014 – ‘People Matter in Transit Area Design’ Presentation + Panel Member – July 2014
  • 6th Annual Transforming + Revitalizing Downtowns Summit 2014 – Conference Chair – June 2014
  • 51st International Making Cities Livable 2014 – ‘Urban Vibrancy’ Presentation + Submission of paper for publication – June 2014
  • Ontario Heritage Planners Network Meeting 2014 – “Contemporary Design in Heritage Conservation Districts’ Presentation – May 2014
  • Alberta Sustainable Building Symposium 2014 – ‘Planning for Sustainability at University of Calgary’s West Campus’ Presentation with John Lyons – May 2014
  • ULI 2014 Conference – ‘A Model for Building Healthy Places’ Panel Member + ‘Urban Wellness’ Presentation – April 2014
  • Sandford Fleming Forum 2014 – ‘Planning Resilient Communities’ Panel Member + Presenter – April 2014
  • BOMA 2014 Conference – Presenter – March 2014
  • Canadian Urban Institute 2014 – ‘Global Suburbanism’ Panel Member – February 2014
  • CAPS 2014 Conference – ‘Regional Planning’ Panel Member + ‘Transit Urbanism’ Presenter – February 2014

2013

2012

  • CIP / APPI 2012 Conference – Presenter – October 2012
  • IIDEX Canada 2012 Conference – Speaker – September 2012
  • RAIC Festival of Architecture 2012 – Session Presenter – June 2012
  • 4th Annual Transforming & Revitalizing Downtown Summit – Panelist – June 2012
  • Planning Institute of BC 2012 Conference – Presenter – May 2012
  • TCAT Complete Streets Forum – Presenter – April 2012

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