Colleen Hardwick

Colleen Hardwick is a renowned figure with a diverse background in urban planning, film production, web development, and public engagement. Her career path took a unique turn when a movie shot in her family home led her to transition into the film industry where she founded New City Productions, a successful company that generated $100 million in revenue before its sale in 2000. Transitioning to the digital realm in 2005, she launched MovieSet, combining her film production expertise with internet technology, earning accolades such as the Vortex Award for Excellence in New Media Innovation.

In 2010, Hardwick returned to her urban geography roots and founded PlaceSpeak, a groundbreaking platform aimed at enhancing citizen engagement and evidence-based decision-making in public policy development. This initiative addressed the issue of declining trust between the public and the public sector. Her expertise spans across imagining, innovating, designing, analyzing, planning, organizing, managing, and executing projects ranging from movies to urban landscapes to internet technology. In 2018, she was elected to Vancouver City Council, leveraging her diverse background in urban planning, economic development, and public engagement.