Empowering Change - OAA Annual Conference 2019

On May 23, for the OAA Annual Conference 2019 – Empowering Change, our coinvestigator André Casault and our students researchers Marie-Claude Gravel, Pierre-Olivier Demeule and Antonin Boulanger Cartier were invited to discuss architecture as a catalysts for leading change from where we are today to where we need to be tomorrow, from climate change to housing affordability to social cohesion.

Indigenous Housing Canada 2017: An Ideas Competition The purpose of this competition was to raise awareness of Indigenous housing and improve opportunities available to design, deliver and maintain housing for Indigenous Canadians. Over 80 submissions were received from around the world. The winning entry by architectural students Marie-Claude Gravel, Pierre-Olivier Demeule and Antonin Boulanger Cartier of Living in Northern Quebec research partnership conceives a new housing development strategy for the Inuit community of Salluit in Nunavik, northern Quebec. The team’s concept called for contemporary open-plan homes clustered close together to reduce infrastructure costs and provide storage for hunting and fishing equipment. It also includes public spaces and an emphasis on using local workers and materials. For more information about their project: click here.

Architecture’s Social Impact: The Missing Pillar of Sustainability? Architecture Sans Frontières Québec, the humanitarian arm of the Ordre des architectes du Québec (OAQ), invited André Casault to take part in the dialogue. A guest speaker from White Arkitekter, Sweden’s largest architectural firm, have lead the way by sharing insight into socially and culturally appropriate architecture. Subsequently, a panel of Canadian experts have reflect on ways to increase architecture’s social impact. Speakers : André Casault, architect and professor at University Laval School of Architecture; Nathalie Dion, architect and chair of the Order of Architects of Quebec; Victor Kolynchuk, architect and Practice leader at Architecture49; Robert Davies, architect, Principal, Montgomery Sisam; and moderated by Diane Thode, architect and project director at Architecture Sans Frontières Québec.

For more information https://www.oaa.on.ca/news%20&%20events/oaa%20annual%20conference/conference-program