At the Convenor's Annual Reception for the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Scotland on 9 December, Dr John McCarthy of the School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society was presented with an award for longstanding commitment to the RTPI's Partnership Boards, which accredit Universities throughout the world teaching town planning. John served for eight years as Chair of the University of Reading Partnership Board, and for two years as Chair of the Liverpool John Moores Partnership Board.
The Boards involve local employers and practitioners as well as Universities, and seek to ensure the ongoing effectiveness of planning schools in delivering innovative, creative and flexible planning education.
John is also a member of the RTPI's Education and Lifelong Learning Committee, and was one of four academic members of the RTPI's Partnership Board Review Group which reported in 2014. He was recently appointed as Chair of the University of Hong Kong Partnership Board, considered as a possible model for potential future partnership arrangements in China.