OCS Conference Funding Submission

Event Photo:

Speaking with NYC DCP Brooklyn Borough Office Director Alex Sommer

Name: Zachary Alfaro

Degree Program: MASTER OF URBAN PLANNING

Specialization: MUP-City and Community Planning

Conference Host Organization/Institution: American Planning Association

Conference/Competition Name: APA 2025 National Planning Conference

Conference Term: Spring Conference Start Date: 2025-03-29 Conference End Date: 2025-04-01

What were your takeaways from this conference/case competition?
The conference was very useful for me to see urban planning trends in the United States. Beyond attending many interesting talks, I was able to gain many new professional and personal connections that I am already leveraging. Overall, I would say the conference was a positive experience; from meeting people and visiting a new and vibrant city, I had a great time.

How will your participation in this conference/case competition support your professional development?
I met many professionals from across the United States and actually many people based in NYC, which is where I want to stay after graduation. I have been in touch with a few of them since the conference, of whom I hope to gain more connections to set my career aspirations well.

What are some next steps or action items this conference/case competition inspired?
I need to continue following up with the professionals I met at the conference to sustain those relationships to support my career aspirations. Beyond just the people I met at the conference, they also mentioned to me that they know other people whom they could connect me to.

What are some tips or best practices that you would like to share with other Wagner students who attend a conference/case competition?
While the talks at the conference were very interesting, the most fruitful thing to do was to meet people. If a student was to go to a talk that interested them, they should talk to the speakers afterwards and get their contact information. After that, they need to keep following up. I'm slowly learning that connections truly are the most important things to have.

Wagner Areas of Impact: Cities, Government, Housing, Inequality, Race, and Poverty