Behzad Abdi
Council · Coquitlam
- Neighbourhood:
- Coquitlam Westwood plateau
- Years in the community:
- 17
About
Dr. Behzad Abdi is an AI researcher, engineer, educator, and longtime Coquitlam community leader. He has led local nonprofit initiatives for over a decade and is running for City Council to bring practical, data-driven solutions to City Hall.
Policy commitments
Buildings
We all want healthy, affordable, and comfortable homes. These policies will help to lower energy bills, cut pollution, and improve indoor air quality.
✓
Incentivize electric heat pumps and air filtration systems.
Supportive
✓
Incentivize renewable energy, battery storage, and smart-grid technologies in new and existing buildings to improve energy security.
Supportive
✓
Scale up energy retrofits for existing homes, businesses, and public buildings.
Supportive
Climate Justice
Our community is already experiencing the harmful impacts of climate change caused by fossil fuel pollution, and taxpayers are on the hook to upgrade and repair critical infrastructure.
~
Enact a moratorium on AI data centres to protect our energy and water resources.
Neutral
✓
Collaborate with Indigenous peoples as partners in the stewardship of the land, air, and water, and work towards reconciliation.
Supportive
Ecosystems
The air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat all rely on healthy ecosystems. Nature can also help protect our community from extreme weather by controlling floods, protecting shorelines, and cooling neighbourhoods. Access to nature improves the health and well-being of residents, and supports biodiversity.
✓
Protect and restore ecosystems, which are essential to human survival, health, and economic well-being.
Supportive
✓
Expand and protect tree canopy, parks, and green infrastructure to cool neighbourhoods, clean air, and manage stormwater.
Supportive
✓
Prioritize native tree planting in all areas, especially those with low tree cover, higher population densities, and more vulnerable residents.
Supportive
✓
Create connected urban greenways for people and wildlife.
Supportive
Land Use
We envision vibrant, walkable communities that protect nature and improve food security.
✓
Build affordable homes near jobs, schools, shops, and transit.
Supportive
✓
Upgrade critical infrastructure for heat, fire, flood, and storm resilience.
Supportive
✓
Increase food security by supporting local agriculture and community gardens.
Supportive
Transport
Connecting neighbourhoods through public transit and active transportation networks will cut pollution, improve public health, and make our communities more affordable (and fun!).
✓
Advocate to improve regional public transit between communities.
Supportive
✓
Build bike and roll networks that are safe for everyone.
Supportive
✓
Expand EV charging infrastructure.
Supportive
Watersheds
Climate change, increasing populations, and overconsumption threaten our water security. Healthy watersheds and forests are critical to support clean drinking water, stormwater management, climate resilience, and biodiversity for future generations.
✓
Implement water conservation plans and educate the public to conserve drinking water.
Supportive
✓
Protect and restore watersheds as vital municipal infrastructure.
Supportive
~
Develop and implement a water security plan.
Neutral
Zero Waste
Zero waste policies reduce pollution, keep waste out of landfills, build resilient local economies, and safeguard public health by shifting society away from a disposable culture toward a sustainable circular economy.
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Implement zero waste bylaws to divert organic waste and recyclables from disposal.
Neutral
✓
Support the development of a circular economy to eliminate waste and improve resilience.
Supportive
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Implement bylaws to eliminate waste from new buildings, renovation, and demolition projects and to use existing buildings as efficiently as possible.
Neutral
✓ Supportive
~ Neutral
× Opposed
– No response
Climate action
How have you contributed to climate action in your community through advocacy, past work, advisory committees, volunteer work, and/or reducing your personal carbon footprint?
My approach to climate action has focused on practical, evidence-based solutions. As an engineer, AI researcher, educator, and longtime community leader, I have consistently promoted the use of data, technology, and innovation to improve efficiency, reduce waste, and make better decisions.
In my personal life, I have also moved toward lower-emission transportation by driving an electric vehicle.
I believe meaningful climate action should produce measurable results while remaining practical and affordable. This includes improving energy efficiency, expanding cleaner transportation options, protecting trees and natural areas, and making infrastructure more resilient to heat, flooding, and other climate risks.
I also believe municipalities should work closely with residents, experts, businesses, First Nations, and other levels of government rather than trying to solve these challenges in isolation.
In my personal life, I have also moved toward lower-emission transportation by driving an electric vehicle.
I believe meaningful climate action should produce measurable results while remaining practical and affordable. This includes improving energy efficiency, expanding cleaner transportation options, protecting trees and natural areas, and making infrastructure more resilient to heat, flooding, and other climate risks.
I also believe municipalities should work closely with residents, experts, businesses, First Nations, and other levels of government rather than trying to solve these challenges in isolation.
Questions for Coquitlam
To be community oriented, new housing development must be integrated with local infrastructure - jobs, schools, shops, transit, walkable nature, green energy. How would you ensure adequate infrastructure to support increased density and population?
Growth should be supported by infrastructure, not simply by adding density.
I would use long-term planning and data to connect new housing with the infrastructure residents need: transit, roads, schools, childcare, utilities, parks, recreation, emergency services, shops, and employment opportunities.
Higher density makes the most sense where residents can walk to daily needs and access reliable public transit. At the same time, infrastructure capacity should be assessed as neighbourhoods grow, with clear performance indicators and transparent reporting.
I would also pursue partnerships with developers and provincial and federal governments so the cost of growth does not fall disproportionately on existing taxpayers.
We can streamline development approvals and build housing faster without lowering infrastructure, environmental, or community standards. The goal should be complete communities where housing, services, transportation, green space, and economic opportunities grow together.
I would use long-term planning and data to connect new housing with the infrastructure residents need: transit, roads, schools, childcare, utilities, parks, recreation, emergency services, shops, and employment opportunities.
Higher density makes the most sense where residents can walk to daily needs and access reliable public transit. At the same time, infrastructure capacity should be assessed as neighbourhoods grow, with clear performance indicators and transparent reporting.
I would also pursue partnerships with developers and provincial and federal governments so the cost of growth does not fall disproportionately on existing taxpayers.
We can streamline development approvals and build housing faster without lowering infrastructure, environmental, or community standards. The goal should be complete communities where housing, services, transportation, green space, and economic opportunities grow together.
Tree canopies provide micro climate benefits. New planted trees reduce overall emissions by breathing in CO2 but take decades to reach mature tree canopy cover. How would you increase city retention of mature trees and establish adequate canopy standards?
I would start with retention, not simply replacement. A newly planted tree cannot immediately replace the environmental and cooling benefits of a healthy mature tree.
Healthy mature trees should therefore be identified early in the development process, with professional arborist assessments, appropriate root-zone protection, and site-design adjustments where reasonably possible.
Where removal is necessary, replacement requirements should consider species, location, biodiversity, long-term canopy potential, and changing climate conditions.
I support implementing Coquitlam’s Urban Forest Management Strategy with measurable outcomes and transparent annual reporting. Particular attention should be given to neighbourhoods with lower canopy coverage and greater exposure to urban heat.
Canopy standards should be evidence-based and appropriate to different neighbourhood densities and land uses. We need to protect and grow our urban forest while also accommodating housing, infrastructure, public safety, and responsible growth.
Healthy mature trees should therefore be identified early in the development process, with professional arborist assessments, appropriate root-zone protection, and site-design adjustments where reasonably possible.
Where removal is necessary, replacement requirements should consider species, location, biodiversity, long-term canopy potential, and changing climate conditions.
I support implementing Coquitlam’s Urban Forest Management Strategy with measurable outcomes and transparent annual reporting. Particular attention should be given to neighbourhoods with lower canopy coverage and greater exposure to urban heat.
Canopy standards should be evidence-based and appropriate to different neighbourhood densities and land uses. We need to protect and grow our urban forest while also accommodating housing, infrastructure, public safety, and responsible growth.
Describe your position on early adoption and implementation of the Zero Carbon Step Code* for new residential buildings? (*introduced in 2023 by BC government to allow cities to limit fossil fuel use in new buildings to reduce CO2 emissions)
I support moving toward lower-carbon new buildings through a clear, phased, and evidence-based approach.
Implementation of higher levels of the Zero Carbon Step Code should consider housing affordability, construction costs, industry readiness, energy capacity, and the availability of proven technologies.
I would work with builders, energy experts, residents, and other levels of government to establish predictable timelines and identify incentives that can help with the transition.
Where the evidence shows that higher emission-performance levels can be achieved without creating unreasonable barriers to new housing, I support moving forward.
Our objective should be both environmental and economic: reducing building emissions and energy consumption while protecting housing affordability and supply.
I favour measurable targets, transparent cost-benefit analysis, incentives where appropriate, and regular review rather than sudden regulatory changes.
Implementation of higher levels of the Zero Carbon Step Code should consider housing affordability, construction costs, industry readiness, energy capacity, and the availability of proven technologies.
I would work with builders, energy experts, residents, and other levels of government to establish predictable timelines and identify incentives that can help with the transition.
Where the evidence shows that higher emission-performance levels can be achieved without creating unreasonable barriers to new housing, I support moving forward.
Our objective should be both environmental and economic: reducing building emissions and energy consumption while protecting housing affordability and supply.
I favour measurable targets, transparent cost-benefit analysis, incentives where appropriate, and regular review rather than sudden regulatory changes.
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