UDI Webinar: Multi-Family Housing Design and Post-COVID-19 Considerations

Nicholas Desert, DID, RID, IDC, Associate - MCM Interiors Ltd. 
Nick prides himself in handling all aspects of a design, from concept to completion, and everything in between. He focuses on building and maintaining strong relationships by developing a keen understanding for each client?s unique needs and vision.
 
His instinctive creativity paired with his diverse industry experience has equipped him to approach each design with a balance of ingenuity and practicality. Nick?s commitment to excellence and attention to detail ensures that projects are handled smoothly and professionally.


Virendra Kallianpur, AICP, LEED AP BD+C, RELI AP 
Associate Principal, Urban Design Practice Leader - Perkins+Will
 
Born into a military family, Viren was exposed from a young age to constant change, which provided a diversity of experiences and created a strong foundation for his resilient nature. Having lived and worked in Singapore, India, the United States, and Canada, Viren is conscious and sensitive to the nuances of people, cultures, history, and the morphology of various cities. 
Trained as an architect, Viren turned his focus to urban design and planning, due to his fascination with cities and his eagerness to design them with a people-first approach. He starts off every project by asking, "What's best for people and the planet?" Cities are complex entities; Viren creates solutions by taking a holistic look at the issues through multiple lenses to reach the perfect balance. 
As a member of our Firmwide Resilience Taskforce and co-leader of the Vancouver studio's Resilience Lab, Viren demonstrates his passion for resilience by leading teams to create sustainable and resilient communities using performance-based design and high-quality research. 
 
 
Martin Rahn, Design Innovation Executive - Bosa Properties Inc. 

Martin has been with the Bosa Family Companies since 2016 and currently holds the position of Design Innovation Executive. An executive contributor to company strategy and growth, his primary area of focus is pre-development, project visioning and product innovation. Formally trained in Architecture and Environmental Engineering Technology, Martin started his real-estate development career over two decades ago and has accumulated a wealth of international and local development experience ranging from multi-family projects in Canada and large-scale master plan developments in the Middle East. He has been involved in the completion of more than 6,000 residential housing units in Vancouver, Dubai and Qatar. In his international experience, he has played strategic and key senior roles in the development of some of the worlds largest and most complex master plan communities. Amongst some of the more celebrated master plans are Lusail City, Qatar's largest mixed-use real-estate development, and the Canal District and Madinat Al Arab in the Dubai Waterfront development in Dubai. Since moving back to Vancouver in 2012, his focus has been to bring a unique international perspective to local projects.   

Anne McMullin, President and CEO - Urban Development Institute (moderator) 

Anne McMullin is the President and CEO of the Urban Development Institute (UDI) - the leading voice for the development industry in BC.  Anne joined UDI in 2012 following a career path which has incorporated extensive experience in Public Affairs and Community Engagement over a span of more than 20 years.  
 
Previous to her role at UDI, Anne was the President and General Manager of the North Vancouver Chamber of Commerce.  Prior to that she was Director of Communications at Port Metro Vancouver, President of the BC Salmon Farmers' Association, a reporter for Global TV in Vancouver, and a reporter and broadcaster for Mountain FM in Squamish.  Anne is a Board Member with UBC Properties Trust, a Trustee with the Jack Webster Foundation Excellence in Journalism and is a volunteer with many other community organizations. Previously Anne was a Board Member with BC's Knowledge Network, Vice Chair of Field Hockey Canada and President of the West Vancouver Field Hockey Club. 
 
Anne studied political science at the University of British Columbia, and holds a journalism diploma from the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). In 2017 Anne received the BCIT Distinguished Alumni award.