The Plan Canada Awards were introduced by the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) to recognize the best short and feature articles published in Plan Canada the preceding year. These articles are evaluated by the Plan Canada Awards committee and judged according to: the extent to which the article serves the needs and interests of Plan Canada readers; writing style and clarity; good journalism (including insight, imagination, depth of reporting and analysis); and demonstrated leadership and innovation.

The 2016 Feature Article of the Year has been bestowed to Bryce Sharpe and Professor Wayne Caldwell in the Rural Planning and Development program, University of Guelph for the article:  "The Cart Before the Horse:  Policy Perspectives on Farm Parcel Creation".  More details on the article can be found on the CIP website here [1].