Intelligent Futures

Name: Intelligent Futures
Address: Calgary, AB, CA
Telephone: +14036677871

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Calgary, AB
Intelligent Futures

Intelligent Futures works at the intersection of urbanism, sustainability and community engagement.

We believe that a more creative and collaborative approach is needed to build a better tomorrow – that belief informs everything we do.

03/22/2026

We are hiring.

This summer, we are bringing on an Engagement and Communications Intern to work on real projects with real clients from day one.

We work exclusively with organizations advancing the common good. Field of study is less important than instinct and intention.

Applications close April 12. Link in bio.

11/07/2025

It was learning week at IF. Lots of opportunities to connect with students at and which always charges our batteries. Then, we wrapped the week by attending a event featuring Adam Kahane.

A learning week that embodies many of our core values:
✅ Stay curious
✅ Strive for positive impact
✅ Extraordinary collaboration

10/23/2025

We’re honoured to share that our 2SLGBTQIA+ Seniors Housing Lab received an award from the Alberta Professional Planners Institute. Thank you to our partner , the seniors, service providers, and allies who co-created this work with us.

Why this work matters: too many 2SLGBTQIA+ seniors are forced to weigh safety against authenticity. Intentional and empathetic planning and design can change that. Our Open Source Guide aims to turn lived experience into practical moves for providers and municipalities, from inclusive policies and reporting pathways, to resident councils, affirming programming, and space design that signals “you belong here.”

As process designers, our role is to translate insight into decisions people can act on. This recognition affirms that planning for dignity, choice, and connection is both possible and necessary.

If you’d like the highlights or a quick brief for your team, message us and we’ll share.

09/03/2025

Spotlight: Cochrane Age-Friendly Strategy

As one of Alberta’s fastest-growing communities, Cochrane is also experiencing rapid growth in its older adult population. To ensure that residents of all ages can thrive, the Town of Cochrane partnered with Intelligent Futures to co-create its first Age-Friendly Action Plan.

Through community engagement, research, and collaboration, the plan identifies eight key actions—from age-friendly housing and transportation to lifelong learning, health services, and safe, inclusive spaces. Together, these actions chart a path toward a community where older adults can age with dignity, independence, and connection.

This is more than a plan for seniors. By designing for older adults, Cochrane is building a stronger, more inclusive community for everyone.

Learn more at the link in our bio.

07/16/2025

How do we plan when everything is connected and everything feels like it’s breaking?

At the 2025 conference, we brought together nearly 50 planners from across Canada to explore how our profession must evolve in the face of the polycrisis—when multiple crises collide and compound. Our communities are facing converging crises, including:

Climate disruption Housing stress Infrastructure breakdown Cost of living Declining trust in public institutions

Together, we surfaced nearly 200 insights on what’s holding planning back, what’s pushing it forward, and how we can lead with equity, collaboration, and courage. We turned the session into a short publication designed to inspire action.

Hit the link in bio to read the document. 

07/11/2025

We’re thrilled to share that the Halal Housing Lab has received national recognition from the Canadian Institute of Planners through the 2025 Canadian Awards for Planning Excellence.

At the heart of this work is , a community-rooted organization grounded in compassion, empathy, and cultural care. Time and again, one challenge stood out, the lack of affordable, culturally appropriate housing for Muslim families, especially larger and multigenerational households.

IslamicFamily knew the system had to change.

So, we joined forces with Another Way, SAS Architecture, .world , with support from the CMHC Solutions Lab program. Together, we explored new pathways—integrating Islamic design principles, Shariah-compliant financing, and a systems approach to build what’s never been built before.

We also created the Halal Open Source Guide so other communities can build on what we’ve learned. This award is a powerful reminder: when community leadership and values-based innovation come together, real change is possible.

12/19/2024

Happy Holidays from all of us at Intelligent Futures! We’re closing from December 20 until Jan 2 to recharge our batteries for an exciting 2025. As we look back on the year, here are some highlights.

THE KINDS OF PROJECTS WE WORKED ON

Across 6 provinces and 2 countries, we worked on challenges such as:
* Engaging about official community planning efforts
* Integrating climate considerations into development strategies
* Designing age-friendly communities to support all generations
* Enhancing accessibility within the transportation industry
* Supporting health authorities in addressing the climate crisis
* Conducting data-driven analysis to envision the future of provincial land
* Activating community engagement through AI-powered climate solutions
* Advancing housing innovation to aid vulnerable populations
* Developing sustainability plans for post-secondary institutions
* Shaping the future of agriculture in a growing region
* Reimagining possibilities for an innovative music and arts festival

WHAT’S HAPPENED INSIDE IF
* Year two of the 4 day work week experiment continued (stay tuned for updates on that early in 2025)
* Experimentation with a profit-sharing model for the team
* Senior Strategist Jeff hit 10 years at IF (he also earned a Masters Degree in Computer Science from UPenn. No biggie.)
* Strategist Helen hit 5 years at IF
* Principal Cassandra hit Italy and many mountains during her sabbatical
* New team member Gail joined as a Strategist
* We settled into our first full year at our home at Kensington Corner

BONUS
We received 4 awards this year, reflecting the diversity of our work at IF.
* Halal Housing Lab with won an Alberta Professional Planners Institute Award
* Beaumont Urban Agriculture Plan won an Alberta Professional Planners Institute Award
* Our home at Kensington Corner won a Calgary Mayor’s Urban Design Award
* mddl School that we assisted .co won a Calgary Mayor’s Urban Design Award

As we look ahead, we’re grateful for our team, collaborators, and community. Here’s to a bright 2025 for the common good!

11/14/2024

Exciting times tonight! Our home Kensington Corner was recognized with a Mayor’s Urban Design Award for housing innovation. From the submission:

Completed in 2023, Kensington Corner is a distinctive addition to the inner-city neighborhood of Hillhurst. This innovative project seamlessly blends residential and office spaces into a compact form, serving as a model for small-scale, mixed-use developments in established urban communities.

Designed by Hindle Architects, Kensington Corner adopts a thoughtful approach to infill development, creating new ways of living and working for the family of John Lewis and the team at Intelligent Futures. The project makes a notable contribution to the definition of live-work spaces in Calgary through a balanced emphasis on architectural design, sustainability, and community engagement.

The building enhances the streetscape with its striking architectural form, refined details, and a mural by Calgary artist daniel j kirk. With its focus on accessible design and sustainability features, Kensington Corner aligns with The City of Calgary’s vision for vibrant and inclusive neighbourhoods.

This project exemplifies innovation by offering a sustainable live-work strategy that thoughtfully responds to the unique scale and context of the site.

A big shout out to all of the people who made this happen, including:
Land use:
Builder: .shirt.ltd
Landscape:

Photography by: .ptrsn

09/30/2024

We were fortunate to host Holly Fortier (Nisto Consulting) earlier this year for her wonderful Indigenous Awareness Training and can’t recommend her enough. Today, on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, we invite you to watch Holly’s production - A Mother’s Voice. This powerful video shares the moving story of her mother’s journey through trauma, strength, and love for her children and community. There is a link to the video in our bio.

07/10/2024

We’re thrilled to share that the Halal Housing Lab has been honoured with an Alberta Professional Planners Institute (APPI) award. We were fortunate to be part of an incredible interdisciplinary team supporting , which included Another Way, SAS Architecture, and .world .

In the pursuit of creating a more inclusive and accessible housing landscape for Muslim families, it was imperative that we rethink the systemic structures and cultural paradigms of how we build housing. The Halal Housing Lab embodies a pioneering approach to creating affordable, culturally appropriate housing solutions through innovative building and floorplan prototypes, Shariah-compliant financing models, and collaborative partnership and procurement agreements. The lab’s commitment to transferability and scalability is particularly noteworthy, empowering other organizations like IslamicFamily to implement these housing solutions, extending the impact of this work to Muslim families beyond Edmonton. We can no longer take a one-size-fits-all approach to housing solutions in our communities. This work serves as an inspiration and model for how housing can be reimagined to meet the diverse needs of communities across Alberta and beyond.

10/26/2022

Understanding that relationship building must remain an integral part of the engagement process, how can digital engagement be leveraged to gain the trust of community members and stakeholders? - Check out our latest episode for more!

10/24/2022

The Digital Engagement & Collaboration podcast takeover episode drops TODAY! This conversation with & Coby Williams explores how digital engagement methods have helped to change how we get communities involved in city building & decision making - Check out for more!

Address

Calgary, AB

Telephone

+14036677871

Website

http://www.intelligentfutures.ca/

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