Michael White
Associate Vice-President
Michael White is a respected leader in urban planning responsible for a broad set of municipal functions including campus planning and design for UBC’s Vancouver and Okanagan campuses. The current strategic focus for Michael and his team is supporting the academic mission through the themes of affordability, reconciliation, sustainability and connectivity.
Michael has been with UBC since 2014 and is an urban planning professional with 25 years of experience in North America, the Middle East and Asia. His areas of specialization include urban and regional planning, transportation planning, strategic planning, community development, and Indigenous engagement.
As a key member of the City of Vancouver's Planning Department for over a decade, Michael had a leading role in community planning programs, transit integration, and citywide policy initiatives. From Vancouver, Michael moved on to become an accomplished international planner. As one of the founding managers of the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council, Michael played a key role in managing and guiding the Council's Planning Policy team from inception in 2007 to 2011. His team led the creation of a range of plans and policies, including a new capital city plan for the UAE, revitalization plans for existing communities, and pioneered public engagement in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. After returning from the Middle East in 2011, Michael became a Principal for AECOM Canada based in Vancouver, working on projects across Canada, Abu Dhabi and the Philippines.
Michael holds a Master of Science in Planning from the University of Toronto, a Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia and is a Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners.
Stefani Lu (She, Her, Hers)
Office and Administration Manager
As Office and Administration Manager, Stefani and her team are the savvy multitaskers and meticulous organizers who are responsible for managing and coordinating the offices’ day-to-day operations and ensuring everything runs smoothly and efficiently. They operate as the backbone behind the scenes at Campus and Community Planning.
Stefani joined the department in 2008 as an Administrative Assistant, bringing with her extensive experience in administration and real estate from both private and non-profit sectors. In 2014, she progressed to her current position. Stefani holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration Management with a minor in Economics from California State University, Los Angeles. Inspired by her aspiration to be a leader and empower others to lead themselves, Stefani also completed a Certificate in Applied Leadership from the Justice Institute of British Columbia.
As a passionate advocate for equity, diversity, and inclusion, Stefani co-founded the C+CP Equity Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Committed to fostering inclusivity, she embarked on a journey of growth through courses in these areas. Learning from challenges and mistakes, Stefani is dedicated to making our workplace better for every staff member, every day. She strives for a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can thrive.
Carole Jolly
Director, Community Development and Transportation
As Director of Community Development and Engagement, Carole is responsible for supporting the University’s strategic priority of making its campus more vibrant. This includes leveraging public space, campus landscape and infrastructure investments with cultural and social assets to develop strong community programs and create extraordinary campus experiences.
Carole joined UBC in 2001 while working on her Master’s degree and was the Director of Transportation Planning from 2006-2013. Throughout her career, Carole has invested over 12 years of volunteer work with the Planning Institute of British Columbia, serving on several committees in support of the profession and is currently a member of PIBC council.
Carole holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with an honours in Geography from the University of Guelph (1998) and a Master’s degree in Urban Planning from the University of British Columbia (2003). She is a Registered Professional Planner and a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners.
Matthew Roddis
Associate Director, Campus Design
Matthew is UBC’s Associate Director, Campus Design, where he leads a team of professionals responsible for shaping the built environment across UBC's three campuses. As an urban designer and professional planner, he focuses on creating memorable and engaging places for the campus community.
With over 25 years of experience in both private and public sectors, Matthew previously served as the urban design lead for a prominent Pacific Northwest architecture firm. In this role, he spearheaded the design of numerous large-scale projects such as the Evergreen Line LRT and Whitecaps FC waterfront stadium. Additionally, he led the development of neighborhood plans in Penticton, Edmonton, Tacoma, and Vancouver's Olympic Village. During his tenure managing the City of Vancouver's Urban Design Studio, Matthew directed design efforts for significant initiatives including the Cambie Corridor Plan.
Matthew holds a BA in History and Geography from SFU and a Master of Environmental Design (Urban Design) from the University of Calgary. He spent a term studying design and city planning in Barcelona where he enjoyed a temporary reprieve from the cold Calgary winters.
Joanne Proft
Associate Director, Community Planning
Joanne is Associate Director of Community Planning at UBC and has over 20 years of local and international experience in planning for sustainable, resilient communities. In her role at UBC, Joanne leads and collaborates on the development of major land use and community plans, projects and policies for the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.
Prior to joining UBC in 2014, Joanne was a Project Manager at TransLink where she led the development of plans and initiatives to support sustainable transportation across Metro Vancouver. She then served as Planning Manager for the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council where she managed the planning program for a new Capital District for the United Arab Emirates.
She is a proud alumnus of UBC with graduate degrees in both urban planning and landscape architecture and holds a Bachelor of Music from McGill University. Joanne is a registered professional planner and a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners.
Grant Miller
Director of Planning, Development Services
As Director of Planning, Development Services, Grant and his team are responsible for ensuring that development of the Vancouver Campus, including its residential neighbourhoods, proceeds in accordance with UBC’s Land Use Plan and related policies. They coordinate the review of complex development and building applications, issue permits and perform inspections.
Grant came to UBC in 2015, with 18 years municipal planning experience in Vancouver. His experience includes current planning, policy development, area planning and transit oriented development. Most recently, during a time of unprecedented development activity, Grant led a team of Planners assessing rezoning applications for the South Division of the City of Vancouver Planning Department. He holds a B.A. in Geography from Simon Fraser University and was in the first cohort of SFU’s Urban Studies Graduate program.
Janeen Alliston
Director, Engagement & Communications
As Director of Engagement and Communications, Janeen leads a team of skilled and passionate engagement and communications professionals who plan and implement inclusive engagement programs and a range of communications campaigns to support the department's ongoing operations as well as priority initiatives including SkyTrain to UBC, Climate Action Plan 2030, updates to UBC's Land Use Plan and neighbourhood planning processes.
Janeen is a senior communications, engagement and marketing professional with 20+ years of experience in the higher education sector. Janeen joined UBC in 2011 as Director, Student Communications Services and stepped into her current role in 2018. Prior to joining UBC, Janeen managed student recruitment and related services within the Marketing and Communications Department at the British Columbia Institute of Technology.
Janeen is passionate about putting people first to create meaningful communications and engagement experiences. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in General Studies and a Master of Arts in Adult Education from the University of British Columbia.
Gerry McGeough
Director, Planning and Design (University Architect)
Gerry and his team of planners and designers are the stewards of the built environment of UBC’s three campuses. They shape the campus neighbourhoods, precincts, buildings and landscapes by leading integrated planning, policy and design processes engaging a broad set of stakeholders and experts.
With 25 years of professional practice in planning, urban design and architecture as Senior Planner for the City of Vancouver, Adjunct Professor University of Victoria, and an architect specializing in inner city development in Montreal. He is currently a board member of the North American Association of University Architects and serves on a National Capital Commission Advisory Committee.
Gerry holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture from McGill University (1986) and a Master’s Degree in Real Estate Development from Columbia University (1992).
Chris Fay
Director, Strategic Policy
Chris leads the Strategic Policy team, a diverse group of professionals that help guide UBC's unique local governance. This includes responsibility for infrastructure and service delivery, relationships with outside organizations, GIS and planning data, housing policy, indigenous engagement, and UBC's relationship with the University Neighbourhoods Association.
A registered Professional Planner and Member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, Chris has been with UBC since 2012. Before that, he worked with the Government of Canada in Vancouver on Indigenous treaty negotiations, and in Ottawa at the Privy Council Office, Finance Department, and Treasury Board Secretariat as part of the Advanced Policy Analyst Program. Chris has a Master of Arts in Public Policy from Concordia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Calgary.
John Madden
Director, Sustainability and Engineering
In this role, John directs the activities of the Sustainability and Engineering unit. Sustainability and Engineering is responsible for developing policy on resource and infrastructure management plans, operational sustainability planning and reporting, creating sustainability engagement programs that empowers staff, faculty and students to make decisions that are aligned with the sustainability principles outlined in our 20-year Sustainability Strategy. John also oversees the development of green building policy and programs and engineering services for land use planning and permitting processes. John is responsible for advising the UBC Okanagan campus efforts in sustainability and infrastructure management planning and ensuring alignment between the University Sustainability Initiative and Campus Sustainability.
John brings over 20 years of experience working for local municipal government, international agencies and non-profit consulting working to advance sustainability policies and implementation strategies. While working in the Middle East, John led efforts in the design and implementation of an innovative green building and sustainability program which was awarded the “Best Regional Sustainability Initiative” by the World Green Building Council. John is also a sessional instructor at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design teaching on the subject of Sustainable Master Planning. He holds a B.A. from the University of British Columbia as well as graduate studies at UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning.