Guillermo (Gil) Penalosa will be our keynote speaker at the Wednesday conference luncheon. His topic will be "Walk and Bike: Connections Beyond Fun and Games."

Gil is the president of Walk & Bike For Life, based in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. "This not-for-profit organisation promotes walking and cycling as activities, and parks and trails as facilities," said Gil. " Its objectives evolve from the strong linkage between walking and cycling to health, recreation, transportation, environment, and economic development."

In the late 1990s Gil was Commissioner of Parks, Sports and Recreation for Bogotá, Colombia, where he led a major re-development of its parks system, including the design of more than 400 parks and the construction of more than 170 parks. He also brought about the closure to cars of 91 kilometers of roads every Sunday to allow more than 1.5 million people to walk, run, skate and cycle.

He moved to Canada in 2000 as Trade Commissioner, and now works for the City of Mississauga where he managed the new 30-Year Master Plan for Recreation and Parks. He is currently immersed in strategic Placemaking initiatives. He often writes in local and national papers and is an active participant at municipal and provincial meetings, promoting awareness on the benefits of walking and cycling, especially as related to transportation, recreation and personal and public health.

Gil has presented at conferences and seminars in many countries including Denmark, Poland, Italy, Mexico, Colombia, and multiple locations in the United States and Canada. He is an active advocate for walking and cycling. "I'm passionate about walking and cycling as activities and about urban parks, trails, and greenways as Great Places, because of their impact on the quality of life for everyone," says Gil.

Don't miss Gil's luncheon keynote address. Gil will also be presenting with Rob Sadowsky and Pete Rangel in Workshop #37 on the topic of Sunday Parkways: A Taste of Latin America on the Streets.