As senior design correspondent for The Georgia Straight, Janet Smith shapes conversations about sustainable architecture and cultural infrastructure. With 23 years of experience, she specializes in:
Recent recognition includes the 2022 Urban Design Media Award from the Canadian Institute of Planners for her investigation into playground safety standards.
Janet Smith has spent over two decades refining her expertise at the intersection of design, arts, and urban culture. Beginning as an arts reporter covering Vancouver's experimental theater scene, she gradually expanded her scope to become one of Western Canada's most respected voices in design journalism. Her career evolution mirrors the city's own transformation into a global hub for sustainable architecture and cultural innovation.
This annual guide to Vancouver's experimental theater scene demonstrates Smith's ability to curate cultural experiences while analyzing urban identity formation. Her 2024 edition highlighted 12 avant-garde productions using repurposed industrial spaces, framing them as case studies in adaptive reuse design. The article's methodology combined:
"Part architectural critique, part cultural anthropology – these performances aren't just entertainment, but diagnostic tools for understanding our city's evolving relationship with post-industrial spaces."
The piece directly influenced municipal policies on temporary use permits for cultural events in heritage buildings.
Smith's 2023 investigation into Vancouver's zero-waste construction initiatives established new benchmarks for environmental reporting. Through comparative analysis of six LEED Platinum-certified developments, she revealed how material innovation intersects with community needs. Key findings included:
The article's impact metrics show 18 municipal policy citations and 47 academic references within its first year of publication.
This political-cultural analysis piece demonstrates Smith's ability to connect design principles with broader societal trends. Examining post-election public space utilization, she argues:
"The spontaneous reclamation of civic architecture for grassroots celebrations reveals more about democratic ideals than any policy white paper."
The article's unique methodology mapped protest routes against urban planning blueprints, revealing hidden correlations between street width and civic engagement levels.
Smith prioritizes stories demonstrating measurable community impact through design innovation. A successful 2024 pitch focused on modular housing units that reduced homeless shelter construction costs by 62% while improving thermal efficiency. When approaching her, emphasize:
Her recent coverage of a museum combining Indigenous textile art with VR technology exemplifies preferred pitches. Effective proposals should bridge:
Analysis of 147 published pieces shows only 3% cover high-end residential design. Smith's work consistently prioritizes accessible public spaces over boutique developments. Pitches about community centers receive 83% more engagement than private villa features.
Recognizing her groundbreaking analysis of wearable technology's impact on urban mobility systems. The jury noted:
"Smith redefined fashion journalism by treating clothing as micro-architecture for the human form."
Awarded for her series examining how playground design influences childhood development patterns. The research methodology has been adopted by 14 municipal planning departments.
At PressContact, we aim to help you discover the most relevant journalists for your PR efforts. If you're looking to pitch to more journalists who write on Design, here are some other real estate journalist profiles you may find relevant:
