06/15/2026
Hamilton’s waterfront holds a complex legacy of industrial strength and environmental challenge. As the city contemplates the future of these former industrial lands, the path to adaptive reuse and remediation is both promising and uncertain. Experts will share their relevant experience and then have broader conversations about what can be done, the challenges encountered, and the innovative strategies being considered for waterfront redevelopment. RSVP now!
Moderator: Jennifer Kinnunen is an architect and activist based in Hamilton, Ontario, known for her strong commitment to community engagement, sustainable design, and human rights. She actively contributes to the architectural profession as Chair of the Hamilton-Burlington Society of Architects and has held leadership roles with the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, advocating for Indigenous reconciliation and youth representation.
Panellist: Christopher Glaisek is a passionate advocate for design excellence in the public realm. He is a strong promoter of sustainable city building whose professional goal is to make great urban neighbourhoods and public places. Under Chris’s stewardship, Waterfront Toronto has received more than 60 national and international design awards and nominations for its master plans, parks, and streetscape designs. He has taught design at the graduate level and regularly contributes to design studios focusing on waterfront revitalization.
Panellist: Justin Brown, as a Co-founder and Principal at MASS, Justin co-leads the Fringe Cities Design Lab that seeks to harness the unique assets—physical infrastructure, cultural heritage, and local leadership—of smaller cities to propel their revitalization.
Panellist: Chris McLaughlin, BARC
Chris McLaughlin has been Executive Director of the Bay Area Restoration Council, a charitable non-profit corporation in Hamilton, since 2011. BARC represents the public interest in the revitalization of Hamilton Harbour and its watershed. Chris has a liberal arts background and holds a PhD from McMaster University for research into decades of implementation of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.
