Caivan, University of Waterloo launch Future Cities Institute
The University of Waterloo and developers The Caivan Group have announced the launch of The Future Cities Institute (FCI), a group aimed at solving challenges facing the world’s cities.
Backed by a $10-million commitment from Caivan, the institute will bring together some of the top minds in the country and provide the resources they need to tackle the greatest challenges facing urban spaces now, and in the future.
FCI will be housed within Waterloo's Faculty of Environment. Drawing on expertise from across faculties and leveraging partnerships with industry and government, experts at the institute will take on big issues like the modernization of city planning and the optimization of infrastructure to prioritize how cities will be laid out and how they will be sustainable. It’s expected that their work will lead to the development of data-supported toolkits and practical guides for industry and governments to use.
FCI’s focus will be on four key areas of research: housing, modelling, mobility and sustainable infrastructure, and how they intersect with sustainability, economics, society, health and technology.
The Institute marks an expansion of the Future Cities Initiative, which evolved out of Waterloo at 100, the university's strategic vision guiding what the school will be known for in 2057, its centennial year. The initiative brought together global thinkers across disciplines to identify equitable and sustainable solutions for the future of cities, humanity, and the planet.
"I'm excited to see our researchers joining forces with industry experts like Caivan to combine their considerable knowledge and apply it to solving the complex challenges cities of the future will face," said University of Waterloo President and Vice-Chancellor Vivek Goel. "This is the kind of innovative, forward-looking partnership we need to embrace if we truly want to solve humanity's most challenging issues. We need academic excellence; we need on-the-ground expertise; and we need those two things to work together. I'm proud that this is happening at Waterloo."
Caivan CEOs and co-founders Frank Cairo and Troy van Haastrecht are both alumni of the University of Waterloo, and have supported the school's Future Cities Initiative since 2021, donating an initial $1 million to seed the initiative.
Caivan is active in more than 50 communities across the Greater Toronto Area and in Ottawa.
"The University of Waterloo is renowned globally for the quality of its graduates, its innovation and cutting-edge research. It's this track record that the Future Cities Institute will leverage to build a healthy, resilient, and prosperous future for all," said van Haastrecht. "Our cities' problems are complex, but the Institute's success metric is simple: devising solutions that will make a difference in the world."
"The number and magnitude of challenges humanity will be confronted with in the decades ahead will test our resolve and our ability to effectively collaborate," said Cairo. "The Institute will foster thought-provoking debate, challenge orthodoxy, and produce research that allows city builders to make evidence-based decisions. The pursuit of science and truth is the unifying element in this age of growing dogma."
The FCI will be led by Director Leia Minaker, who is also an Associate Professor in the School of Planning. It will also be overseen by an advisory board that will advise foundational knowledge for academic programming and identify opportunities to embed work-integrated learning.