ULI Toronto convened this cross-continental collaboration on March 4th, 2019 at its industry event titled “Samarbejde: Partnership, Denmark & Canada’s Path to Innovative Cities.” Held at the Design Exchange, attendees were able to observe how the influence of Danish design could help the GTA overcome some of its biggest infrastructure and landscape challenges through a series of thought-provoking panel discussions. These forward-thinking discussions placed leading Danish firms alongside Toronto-based developers, policymakers, influencers and experts, and focused on three topics: waterfront revitalization, active urban spaces and innovation.

Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark himself delivered opening remarks that were followed by speeches from Lars Christian Lilleholt, the Danish Minister for Energy, Utilities and Climate, and Rod Phillips, Ontario’s Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. The event then flowed into the three star studded panel discussions each moderated by Kofi Hope, Senior Policy Advisor at The Wellesley Institute.

The Waterfront Revitalization panel kicked off the series and included Kristian Lars Ahlmark, Partner & Director, Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects; Audun Opdal, Architect MAA, Senior Partner, 3XN Architects; and Meg Davis, Chief Development Officer, Waterfront Toronto. Following presentations from Ahlmark and Opdal, the discussion then turned to the similarities, differences and mutual interests between Toronto and Copenhagen’s use and development of their waterfronts, and how this development can impact an entire city. “Water has the ability to gather,” said Opdal when speaking on how to maximize the benefit of a city’s waterfront. Opdal also emphasized that a waterfront can “become a playground for the community for creative solutions.” It’s well known that here in Toronto our access to the waterfront is very restricted by the Gardiner and railway corridor, and, as Davis points out, its “something we want to improve in the future.” Waterfronts with an industrial past are common, according to Davis. However, allowing residents to then access the waterfront space long after the factories are shut down is critical to revitalization efforts. As Ahlmark points out “our high street is our harbour space” and it’s this inclusive mentality that creates such rich urban experiences along Denmark’s 172 metres of coastline.

The Active Urban Spaces panel was up next and featured Stephen Willacy, City Architect of the City of Aarhus, Denmark; Kolja Nielsen, Founding Partner & CEO of CEBRA Architects; and Jason Thorne, General Manager of Planning and Economic Development from the City of Hamilton. After some engaging and inspirational presentations, the discussions mostly revolved around public space and the importance of polyfunctionality. Nielsen touched upon the idea of human scale within any active urban space, highlighting that He said the idea isn’t about how high a building is, but is more concerned about how it meets the street. He calls it a “sidewalk ballet” and refers to the activations that go on in and around the buildings as just as important as the design of the building itself. He encourages city builders to create diverse urban environments that allow citizens to “step out of the stream and into still waters.” Willacy and Thorne both agreed with these ideals, however, Thorne made sure to note that although he was inspired by the quality of work presented by the Danes, unfortunately, one of our challenges here in the GTA is the governance of public space. “It’s hard to watch a presentation like that without reflecting on all of the barriers and hurdles we have put in the way,” says Thorne, when speaking about the policies, standards, regulations and processes created in some cities such as Hamilton and Toronto that limit many proposed urban activations.

The final panel of the day focused on Innovation and included Michael Sorenson, Partner and Design Director at Henning Larsen Architects; Dan Stubbergaard, Founder & Creative Director at COBE Architects; and Habon Ali, Policy and Communications at Sidewalk Labs here in Toronto. Their presentations and discussion emphasized innovative and unique solutions that are currently being rolled out in various projects by the Danes. Speaking to the idea of a safe, inclusive and accessible city, Sorenson noted that here in Toronto “diversity has a hard time manifesting itself in the built environment” because of our colder “shoulder seasons.” He suggested that Toronto city builders need to become innovative with creating outdoor comfort during these times. Stubbegaard also echoed the sentiment of an inclusive and accessible city when referring to Copenhagen’s large cycling culture and says it “demands political ambition, it demands planning, but it’s also about creating amazing infrastructure for change.” Ali also shared innovative solutions and circled back to the comments on weather when referring to the piloting and prototyping that is currently underway with Sidewalk Labs with some of their heated pavers. He also posed the important question “How can we create more opportunities for people to spend more time outdoors?”

Overall, there was much to take away from the discussions. The Danes have a long and proud history of inclusive urban design which was evident from their presentations, and it will be interesting to see how this partnership continues to manifest here within the GTHA.