Gil Penalosa, executive director of 8-80 Cities, an international non-profit organization that seeks to transform cities into places where people can walk, bike, access public transit, and visit parks and public places, is the featured speaker at the opening session of APTA’s 2014 Public Transportation & Universities Conference, March 29-April 1 in Champaign, IL.

Penalosa, who also gave the keynote speech at APTA’s 2013 Annual Meeting, will address key aspects of sustainable mobility and how to ­create healthy communities that include ­public transit. He will also conduct other conference sessions.

The conference, hosted by the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (MTD), will address the unique transportation needs of university communities and the diverse populations they serve. It also presents an opportunity to tour MTD, the agency that serves the University of ­Illinois, one of the nation’s largest universities.

The conference is specifically designed for university transportation officials, planners, employees, and ­suppliers. It features multi-track, interactive sessions on partnerships, emerging technologies, trends, new business models, safety and security, emergency preparedness and response, marketing, and financing.

The hotel reservation deadline is Feb. 13, and the early-bird registration ends on Feb. 21.

For details and to register, click here.