The National American Planning Association (APA) is a nonprofit education and membership organization. Members include practicing planners, planning students, elected and appointed officials, planning commissioners, and interested citizens. APA and its professional institute, the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), are dedicated to advancing the art, science and profession of good planning. https://www.planning.org/

The New York Upstate Chapter of the APA has over 800 members from 48 upstate counties. The Upstate Chapter's mission is to serve and support the professional, student, and citizen planning community in New York and to improve the quality of life through the use of planning. The NY Upstate Chapter has five different sections; we are the Western New York Section which includes the Counties of Erie, Niagara, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany, as well as Southern Ontario. https://www.nyupstateplanning.org/

The WNY APA Section aims to bring people together from these counties to network, plan, and support our region through various events such as Student/Professional Mixers, our Annual Awards Event, lunch-and-learns, and many other events. The WNY APA Section has put a great effort into keeping our planners connected, engaged, educated, and involved in the Western New York Region and we hope to continue that trend into the future!