Running for Council

Councillors have the same role and duties as the directors of a corporation. They participate in decision-making that charts the direction taken by the architecture profession. As a regulator, the OAA’s primary objective is to protect the public, which it does using the legal powers granted to it by the Architects Act. Councillors, as directors of the OAA, owe the Association a fiduciary duty imposed on them by law, meaning they must put the OAA’s interests (i.e. the public interest, rather than the interests of the profession, who the OAA is tasked with regulating) before their own when acting as Councillors.

The duties of a Council member are set out in Section 7 of the Bylaws, and include:

• becoming familiar with the laws and rules that govern the profession;
  
• attending and participating in every Council meeting;
  
• serving on OAA Committees and Task Forces; 
  
• taking an active role in one of the regional Local Architectural Societies; and
  
• performing such other duties as may be agreed upon.
  

Council is an opportunity to share your subject-matter expertise and help shape the future governance of the profession. It also allows you to learn about other aspects of the profession, regulation, the Association’s structure, as well as numerous programs and services. 

For Council elections, the Province of Ontario is divided into six Electoral Districts:

- Province of Ontario: four seats for licence holders and one seat for a limited licence holder;

- Northern Ontario: one seat for a licence holder;

- Western Ontario: two seats for licence holders;

- Central Ontario: two seats for licence holders;

- City of Toronto: four seats for licence holders; and

- Eastern Ontario: two seats for licence holders.

For the 2025 elections and terms beginning in January 2026, there are five seats available for Architects and one seat available for Licensed Technologists.

The members of Council whose terms expire on December 31, 2025 are:

- Thomas Yeung (Central Ontario);
- Loloa Alkasawat (Central Ontario);
- Settimo Vilardi (Western Ontario);
- Marek Zawadzki (City of Toronto); and
- Natasha Krickhan (Province of Ontario).

Additionally, there is a new seat for a holder of limited licence.

To view district boundaries, click here.

Being a Councillor is a voluntary position. Only the President and Vice Presidents receive a modest honorarium in recognition of the significantly higher workload of their positions within the Council.

Architect seats are for three-year terms. An individual may be elected for up to three successive terms.

Holders of a licence (Architects) or limited licence (Licensed Technologists) are eligible for election to the Council if they:

• are Canadian citizens; 
  
• are residents of Ontario;
  
• have an address of record in the Electoral District that they want to represent; and
• are members in good standing.
  

A member is in good standing in the Association where:

• they are not in default of payment of any fee prescribed by the bylaws, or any fee, levy, or costs imposed under the Architects Act or the regulations;
• their professional conduct or competence is not the subject of proceedings before the Discipline Committee; and
• their licence or limited licence is not under suspension.

Note: Holders of a limited licence are eligible only for that specific seat in the electoral district for the Province of Ontario. Holders of a licence may be eligible for the Province of Ontario or the electoral district in which they have an address of record.

All candidates seeking to run for Council must be nominated by three members of the electoral district in which they are running. You can read more about the nomination process on the Election Procedures page.