Meet our diverse, knowledgeable, and talented speakers who will be conducting sessions at the Conference. They will definitely be sure to inspire, captivate, educate and motivate you.
Adrian Blackwell
Associate Professor, Architecture University of Waterloo
Adrian Blackwell is an artist, designer, theorist, and educator, whose work focuses on the relation between physical spaces and political economic forces. He is one of six co‐organizers and designers of Architects Against Housing Alienation's Not for Sale! campaign, which occupied the Canadian Pavilion at the 2023 Venice Biennale of Architecture. He has been invited to exhibit has art and architecture in the Shenzhen, Chengdu, Toronto, and Chicago Biennials. Blackwell's research focuses on the nature and potentials of public space, the exclusionary function of private property, and the utopian possibilities of architecture. Recent publications include “The City from Sign to Medium: Private Property, Public Space, and the Pragmatics of Architecture” and “Planning a Value Network of Exploding Infrastructures and Imploding Centers in Shenzhen." He is leading funded research projects on the long‐term quality of multi‐unit residential buildings in Waterloo Region, using tiny homes to address housing insecurity, and on the history of land division and urban formation in Canada. Blackwell has taught architecture and urbanism at Chongqing, Michigan, Toronto, and Harvard Universities, in an associate professor at the University of Waterloo School of Architecture, a founder and editor of the journal Scapegoat: Architecture/Landscape / Political Economy and co‐editor of the current issue 12 c\a\n\a\d\a: delineating nation state capitalism (with David Fortin).
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a's Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Alex Morrison
Development Industry and Housing Consultant Niagara Region
Alex Morrison is a development industry and housing consultant working in Niagara Region’s Strategic Transformation Office under its Growth Strategy and Economic Development Department. His current portfolio involves managing the implementation of Niagara Region’s Consolidated Housing Master Plan.
Alex is a Registered Professional Planner (RPP) who completed his undergraduate program in the School of Planning from the University of Waterloo and has more than eight years of progressive working experience at the Region in a variety planning policy and development review roles. Alex works closely with the Region’s Housing Development Project Managers to support the creation of new affordable housing units across Niagara.
Session:
CE13- Prioritizing Affordability: Niagara Regional Housing Approaches
Ali Shamas Qadeer
BA, MFA Associate Professor, OCAD University
Ali Shamas Qadeer is a designer and educator based in Toronto. After completing a BA in philosophy and religious studies at McGill University, he developed an independent design practice in New York City before returning to school to complete an MFA at the Rhode Island School of Design in 2014. His work focuses on algorithmic form‐making, interaction design, the intersection of design labour and political economy, as well as digital surveillance. After returning to Canada in 2014, Ali joined the faculty of OCADU where he is an Associate Professor in the graphic design program. In his teaching practice, Ali champions a critical approach that always refracts through a practice of formalism and material production.
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a's Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Alison Brooks
Founder and Creative Director, Alison Brooks Architects
Alison Brooks, founder and creative director of Alison Brooks Architects, is one of the United Kingdom’s most highly awarded and internationally acclaimed architects. A native of Guelph, Ontario, she studied architecture at the University of Waterloo before moving to the UK in 1988. Since founding her practice in 1996, she has emerged as one of the UK's most inventive architects with works encompassing urban design and housing, higher-education buildings, private houses, and public buildings for the arts. In addition to receiving more than 80 awards for design achievement, she is the only UK architect to have received all three of the profession's most prestigious architectural awards: the RIBA Stirling Prize, the Manser Medal (twice), and the Stephen Lawrence Prize.
Alison's unique architectural approach springs from invested research into specific geographies, climate, and cultures of each project so that her design solutions emerge as both unique and relevant to the constituencies they serve. This is beautifully exemplified by her recently completed Cohen Quadrangle at Exeter College, Oxford. The first Oxford College to be designed by a female architect, this building demonstrates the conceptual rigour, sculptural quality, and ingenious detailing that is her practice trademark. Current large-scale urban projects in Canada include a 60-storey tower in Toronto’s Quayside development, and a 1M-sf mixed-use urban quarter in Surrey, B.C.
In 2020, she was awarded Dezeen Architect of the Year and BD Housing Architect of the Year. Alison has held numerous teaching positions, including the Architectural Association, the Bartlett, Harvard GSD, ETSAM in Madrid, and more recently, Cornell AAP. She lectures internationally on architecture and urban design and serves on numerous international design competition juries.
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a's Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Andrew Geldard
Director, BDP Quadrangle
Originally from the United Kingdom, Andrew Geldard knew he wanted to become an architect because of his natural aptitude for the sciences and creative drawing throughout his studies. Andrew has several years of experience working in Canadian and international architectural firms. He joined the BDP Quadrangle team in 2011 and is often involved in a project from the pre‐design conceptual stage through to design development. Andrew was the lead designer for notable projects, including 1181 Queen Street West and Duke Condos. In his role as design director, Andrew takes initiative in promoting design excellence across all BDP Quadrangle projects, acts as a mentor, and injects passion for design into the working process and atmosphere of the Studio. At BDP Quadrangle, Andrew utilizes and enhances his skills in building information modelling (BIM), which has sparked his growing interest in emerging design technologies. Andrew’s prior professional experience has made him well‐versed in institutional, commercial, and residential projects.
Sessions:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE 52-Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
Andy Thomson
MCM.Arch, OAA Director, Thomson Architecture
Andy Thomson, an architect since 2016, boasts 28 years of experience in green building, design, research, and writing. A UBC M.Arch program graduate, he's been practising as an Intern Architect since 2003. In 2018, Andy founded Thomson Architecture, Inc., a research‐based firm specializing in advanced ecological, prefab, and BIM design services for complex, high‐ performance projects in Canada, the United States, and the European Union. He's an active member of the Ontario Association of Architects' Climate Action Advisory Group. A lecturer with Toronto Metropolitan University, Andy also engages in local and international public speaking to promote cost‐effective, high‐performance ecological design.
Sessions:
CE37-Tools for Lifecycle Analysis, Energy, Materials, and Carbon: Part 1
CE43- Tools for Lifecycle Analysis, Energy, Materials, and Carbon: Part 2 - The TEUI Calculator
Anne‐Marie Armstrong
AIA, MRAIC Founding Principal AAmp Studio
Anne‐Marie Armstrong is an
architect and educator. She is a co‐founder and principal of AAmp Studio, and
an assistant professor, teaching stream at University of Toronto’s Daniels
Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design. Anne‐Marie holds a Master of
Architecture from Yale University, where she studied on a Fulbright
Scholarship, and an Honours Bachelor of Architectural Studies from the
University of Waterloo. She is a registered architect in California and
Ontario. Anne‐Marie is a founding member of BAIDA and is on the Board of
Directors of People for Education.
Session:
CE34- Community Memory Meets Modern Intervention: Jones Multi‐Unit
Anya Barkan
Sustainability Manager Multiplex
Anya Barkan is a sustainability professional with 14 years of experience in construction, real estate development, and community‐building. Her experience spans across a variety of regions and sectors, and she has had the opportunity to be part of exciting projects such as the Regent Park Revitalization and Tour de Sustainability. Experienced in construction of residential, commercial, and life science buildings as well as infrastructure,
She continues to push the envelope when it comes to supporting the environment through her company’s sustainability‐driven initiatives, including the aim to reach net zero carbon emissions. She is constantly seeking change and improvements for the businesses and communities in which she builds, and has dedicated herself to changing the built environment through environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategies.
Sessions:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
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Arne Suraga
OAA, CPHD Associate, Diamond Schmitt Architects
Arne Suraga joined Diamond Schmitt Architects in 2013, and became an Associate in 2019. Throughout his career, he has been engaged on projects of truly varied scales, from temporary pavilions sheltering dozens through to multi‐tower developments housing thousands. His portfolio of experience includes a broad range of building typologies, from institutional academic facilities to residential projects, through to commercial spaces and installations. Developing designs hand‐in‐hand with sustainable objectives is a key element of his design ethos, and this belief in implementing real‐world solutions drew him to become involved in the PH community, culminating in becoming a Certified Passive House Designer in 2017.
Session:
CE48- Gladstone Village: Addressing Community and Climate Needs
Aylin Ozkan
Technical Director, Associate
Aylin oversees the Energy Consulting services at RWDI. She is a recognized expert in the field of thermal resilience and energy efficiency in building design. She teaches Simulation, Data Visualization and Resiliency at the University of Toronto. Aylin has contributed to projects such as the development of the MURB Design Guide and Thermal Resilience Design Guide and her research continues to advance thermal resilience design practice. She has provided consulting to notable architecture firms on a variety of projects including Residential Buildings, Affordable Housing, Hotel and Spa, Libraries, Community Centers and several post-secondary buildings. Aylin’s areas of expertise include energy modeling, solar studies, daylight modeling, CFD, sustainable design, building enclosure solutions and performance enhancement for existing buildings.
Session:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
Bohdana Innes
B.A.S., M.Arch Intern Architect, J.L. Richards
& Associates Limited
Bohdana Innes is Môsonîskwew, a member of Moose Cree First Nation on Treaty 9 Territory. Born in Moose Factory and raised in Wawa, Ontario, she currently lives in Ottawa, on the Traditional Unceded Territory of the Algonquin Aninshaabeg people, and is an Intern Architect with J.L. Richards & Associates Limited. Bohdana is a graduate of McEwen School of Architecture at Laurentian University in Sudbury, a Northern design school that prioritizes holistic learning. She has worked continuously throughout her educational and professional career to gain knowledge in the Indigenous process and its relation to design. Bohdana has experience working with Indigenous communities throughout Turtle Island (North America) through professional work as well as during her architectural master’s degree thesis. As an Indigenous Intern Architect within Ontario, Bohdana strives to apply her education and Indigenous background to solve issues impacting Indigenous communities relating to the built environment and sustainability. She aims to empower Indigenous communities to establish independence though community‐based engagement/projects and bring their culture to life through built form.
Session:
CE15- mînawâcihiwewi‐ ne‐ wîkiwnan/Healing our Home: Moose Cree Housing Prototype
Bram Atlin
Principal, Smith + Andersen
Bram Atlin has designed and managed the delivery of numerous projects, taking on increasingly complex roles. His roots with Smith + Andersen run deep—he worked with the firm as a co‐op student while completing his undergraduate degree at the University of Waterloo and joined S+A the same year he graduated. Bram leads the multi‐unit residential team based out of Toronto, providing innovative solutions on some of the GTA's most impressive high‐rise developments. Bram has designed and managed a wide variety of projects across the country, including high‐rise residential, institutional, commercial office, data centres and community centres, and continues to grow his extensive technical experience.
Sessions:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
Cathy Tafler
B. Arch., Architect, Tafler Rylett Architects
Cathy Tafler has a bachelor of architecture degree from the University of Toronto’s School of Architecture where she graduated with honours. Since founding her firm in 1986, she has become adept at understanding client needs and building consensus with large groups. Working with the authorities having jurisdiction to help expedite approvals is another aspect of her work.
Cathy's focus is on the environmental aspects of the firm's designs. She was chair of the OAA's Committee on the Environment, is a member of the Toronto Alliance to End Homelessness (TAEH), and works on the approval processes for the firm's supportive housing projects.
Session:
CE36- Raise the Roof on Innovative Mass Timber Vertical Additions
Cole Webber
Cole Webber is the author of four books (both fiction and non‐fiction) and has patents in multiple countries. He is an international keynote speaker at more than 40 events in six countries, including a TEDx event, on topics ranging from sustainable development, technology, education, and construction to both academic and industry audiences alike. Cole has served on advisory boards to international organizations focusing on design and development. Based on his first patent, he assembled a team and won the National Research Council (NRC) of Canada’s COVID‐19 Digital
Clearinghouse Challenge, receiving $1.3 million in grants to examine healthcare supply chains and prototype technology solutions. This work evolved with the NRC to explore applications in the construction sector.
Session:
CE16- Innovating a Design and Construction Solution to the Housing Crisis
Conrad Speckert
Intern Architect, LGA Architectural Partners
Conrad Speckert is an intern architect at LGA Architectural Partners in Toronto with degrees from McGill and Waterloo. His graduate research proposed a building code change to allow for single-staircase buildings and has evolved as CMHC-funded research project to change the National Building Code of Canada. He joined LGA as project manager for “ReHousing the Yellowbelt,” a collaboration with the University of Toronto to study gentle densification and support multiplex zoning reform across residential neighbourhoods. He is well-versed in the design of “missing middle” and mid-rise residential buildings, having previously worked for architects in Toronto, Vancouver, Berlin, and Tokyo.
Session:
CE58- Single‐Stair Buildings
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a's Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Craig Nicoletti
P. Eng Partner, Structural Engineer Engineering Link Inc.
With 15+ years of structural engineering experience, Craig Nicoletti’s tenacity and drive bring a high level of proficiency to the numerous structural engineering projects he leads across all sectors. Craig’s commitment to each project and his responsiveness to the needs of clients has recently earned him the position of partner at the firm. Craig also co‐manages and mentors a team of 15 structural engineers and designers, providing technical auditing support and guiding them toward becoming the next generation of skilled engineers and project leaders.
Session:
CE36- Raise the Roof on Innovative Mass Timber Vertical Additions
Craig Webber
Principal, Group2 Architecture
Craig Webber is a principal with Group2 Architecture, and early adopter of IPD with direct experience on 30 projects. Past‐president of the Integrated Project Delivery Alliance (IPDA), he works as a consultant and as a collaborative advisor for numerous teams and is one of the most knowledgeable speakers on collaborative delivery in North America. Craig is committed to advancing collaboration in the construction industry as he has witnessed it act as a catalyst to innovation unlocking advancements in BIM, prefabrication and Lean for a variety of teams. This collaborative approach between designers, engineers, contractors, and trade partners has more recently helped Integrated Teams adapt to escalation, product shortages and supply chain issues with more strategic and resilient responses. Craig has presented at more than 40 events throughout North America on collaborative topics ranging from target value delivery and innovation to contract impacts on profitability, insurability, and risk.
Session:
CE16- Innovating a Design and Construction Solution to the Housing Crisis
David Fortin
PhD, OAA, SAA, MAA, Architect AAA, AIBC MRAIC, LEED AP
Professor Waterloo Architecture, University of Waterloo
David Fortin is a professor at the University of Waterloo School of Architecture and an architect in the provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia. He completed his doctoral studies at the University of Edinburgh in 2009 and has since taught undergraduate and graduate courses in architectural design, history, and theory in the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada. David was the inaugural Associate Director of the Maamwizing Indigenous Research Institute and the Director of the McEwen School of Architecture from 2018 to 2021. He is a citizen of the Métis Nation of Ontario and member of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Indigenous Task Force. He has twice been selected with colleagues to represent Canada at the Venice Biennale (2018, 2023). His research and practice focus on questions surrounding speculative futures, Métis architecture and design, and the relationship between design practice and reconciliation.
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a'a Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Dean Pilon
CET, Housing Development Project Manager Niagara Region
Dean Pilon is an accomplished new housing development project manager at Niagara Region since 2019 and brings to the table nearly 30 years of noteworthy experience in the construction industry. Prior to joining the public sector, Dean contributed his expertise to a multitude of projects across Canada while working in the private sector. As a Red Seal certified carpenter and a Certified Engineering Technologist (CET), Dean combines his hands‐on experience with technical proficiency. His strategic leadership and wealth of industry knowledge position him as a driving force behind the success of new development initiatives in the Niagara Region.
Session:
CE13- Prioritizing Affordability: Niagara Regional Housing Approaches
Dermot Sweeny
Architect and President/Founder, Sweeny & Co. Architects
Dermot Sweeny, architect and president/founder of Sweeny & Co Architects Inc., has been an industry leader for 35+ years. With a broad base of clientele including internationally recognized corporations, developers, and institutions, he brings together building design, urban design, urban economics, real estate development, architectural heritage, and adaptive reuse to maximize the value of each project. His passion for sustainability has put him at the forefront of green design in Canada, with a multitude of projects that exceed sustainability benchmarks.
Session:
EL02 - Vines & Design: Architectural Innovation at Pearl Morrissette and Redstone Wineries
Dorsa Jalalian
MUD, B.Arch Associate, Senior Urban Designer DIALOG
As an Associate and Senior Urban Designer at DIALOG, Dorsa Jalalian brings more than 10 years of expertise in shaping vibrant and equitable urban spaces. With a background in architecture and urban design, her career spans across North America, focusing on master plans, city‐wide planning studies, and design guidelines. Passionate about placemaking, Dorsa has been dedicated to creating public spaces that are lively, bustling, and welcoming to all. More recently, she has focused on ensuring these spaces are also thermally comfortable, adding a crucial layer to their vibrancy and usability.
Session:
CE28- Thermal Comfort Study
Dory Azar
OAA, Architect, Dory Azar Architect Inc.
Dory Azar is an architect and social media influencer who captivates large audiences with his distinctive blend of architectural knowledge and humour. With more than 150,000 followers on Instagram and 90,000 on TikTok, Dory's videos have amassed over 65 million views and over 1 million shares. Dory has redefined the way people perceive architecture through his laid‐back approach, demystifying a profession that can seem enigmatic to the public. His unique take on discussing architecture has been featured in media outlets such as The Daily Mail, Archello, and City Life Magazine.
Session:
CE09- Social Media for Architects Unlocking Possibilities and Benefits
Drew Toth
Founder/President, Elevate Living
Drew is the founder/president of Elevate Living Inc, a Niagara-based developer and home builder inspired by New Urbanism. Toth currently has more than $200 million in assets under management throughout the region, and works closely with appointed and elected government officials and municipal staff, engineers, planners, architects, and investors to oversee projects from vision to reality. Toth actively believes in the power of real estate in solving today and tomorrow’s needs by creating various housing forms from rental to home ownership options.
Drew currently sits on the Innovative Affordable Housing Committee at Niagara Regional Headquarters and provides input and ideas from a private developer/builder viewpoint, believing that the private sector is an important part of the solution to providing attainable housing. He is a member of Welland’s Affordable Task Force, has an ongoing partnership with local Home for Good programs to build multi-unit buildings for people in need of long-term housing, and is on the Niagara Regional Housing Board.
Session:
EL11 - Studio Living: Case Study
Eitaro Hirota
Architect AIBC Principal, Eitaro Hirota Architecture
Eitaro Hirota is an architect and researcher based in Vancouver. He is Principal of Eitaro Hirota Architecture Inc. (EHA), and has more than 15 years of experience designing various forms of housing and commercial projects, with a specialization in seniors housing and age‐friendly and dementia‐friendly design. While at NSDA Architects, he was the lead architect for “The Village Langley,” a first of its kind dementia care community in Canada. Currently at EHA, he is engaged in several projects in Canada and the United States, which include several multi‐generational dementia‐ friendly communities, a culturally sensitive care home for Japanese seniors, a community‐oriented campus of care for seniors, and a six‐storey modular social housing project. Eitaro is also actively engaged in the community with his research, and through lecturing and giving presentations, and volunteer work at places such as the Robert Nimi Nikkei Seniors Home, which is vital part of his creative process—to make honest spaces that are empathetic and create delight and enjoyment for the people that use and inhabit them.
Session:
CE30- Age‐Friendly Community‐ Oriented Design in the SFH Neighbourhoods
Emilia Floro
Emilia Floro is an urban designer and the director of urban design at the City of Toronto. She has been involved in creating transformational urban design visions and implementation strategies, delivering on city-building projects. Influencing development through her work in both the public and private sectors with a focus on the re-urbanization of downtowns, urban centres, waterfronts, and transit corridors, she has contributed to the quality of the built environment and public spaces. She has played a leading role in promoting design competitions as a means of achieving design excellence and is a collaborator whose core values centre on diversity and inclusion. Sustainability, resilience, and tackling climate change are priorities in her life and work.
Emilia holds a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Toronto, is a member of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), and the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP), and is a Registered Professional Planner.
She regularly participates in academic reviews, talks, and design workshops.
Session:
CE61- Meet your Municipal Urban Design Leaders!
Emilio Raimondo
President, Raimondo + Associates Architects Inc.
Emilio brings award-winning design and more than 30 years of experience as a respected and reputable architect working in the Niagara Peninsula. Passionate about architecture and his community, he has clear knowledge of the processes of construction. Emilio is an excellent and well- organized communicator and has been involved in complex projects, with the proven ability to deliver them on time and on budget to the satisfaction of his clients. The firm and its team share in Emilio’s philosophy and this has resulted in the creation of unique buildings of quality and individual character that are notable in Niagara.
Session:
EL06 - Walker Sports and Abilities Centre and the Neil Campbell Rowing Centre
Emily King
Associate, Sustainable Performance Group Entuitive
Emily King has more than eight years of experience working in the engineering industry with a background in structural engineer. She is the sustainable performance lead at Entuitive. Her expertise on projects in various applications includes transportation, institutional, industrial, healthcare, residential, and restoration. With a specialized focus in carbon‐responsible, energy efficient buildings, Emily works collaboratively with service experts and design teams to guide the design of low‐carbon structural and building envelope elements. Her expertise in lifecycle assessment helps reduce the embodied carbon of systems and materials, supporting the transition to zero carbon buildings.
Session:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
Emma Cubbit
Principal, Invizij Architects
Emma Cubitt is a principal of Invizij Architects in Hamilton, Ontario, and specializes in housing, work with non-profits, and sustainable design. A graduate of both the University of Illinois and the University of Waterloo, she has designed more than 1,500 units of passive house multi-residential dwellings that are either in design phases or constructed. Emma’s passions in liveable small spaces, affordable housing, heritage, and sustainability have shaped her as a designer, where she is driven by values of justice and inclusion. Involved in various community-building initiatives in downtown Hamilton, and an advocate for laneway housing and Passive House design, she was awarded “Environmentalist Of The Year” by Environment Hamilton.
Session:
CE05- Adaptive Reuse as a Sustainable Housing Solution
Eva Russell
OAA, LEED AP, CPHD Project Manager, Construction Ottawa Community Housing
Eva Russell is an architect and Certified Passive House Designer with over 15 years of experience in the field of sustainable architecture and energy efficient design. Currently working as a project manager with the New Construction Team at Ottawa Community Housing (OCH), Eva has a passion for affordable housing and dedication to meet OCH’s goal of delivering 1000 new homes a year. Eva has been instrumental in incorporating Passive House principals into OCH’s new affordable housing projects and seeks to collaborate with the trades to improve construction sequences and details with the ultimate goal to deliver the best and most energy‐efficient buildings possible.
Session:
CE48- Gladstone Village: Addressing Community and Climate Needs
Giulio Cescato
MCIP, RPP, Director of Planning and Urban Design, City of Markham
Giulio Cescato graduated with a master’s degree in environmental studies (planning) from York University in 2007. He first worked as a planner under Robert Millward for two years before taking a job as an Assistant Planner with the City of Toronto in the North York Centre. In 2010, he was promoted to Planner and transferred to Scarborough District, Waterfront Section. The following year, he was transferred to the downtown east as a planner and then promoted to senior planner in Midtown Toronto. In 2016, Giulio was promoted to manager of community planning in the North York Centre and acted as director in 2020. In 2021, Giulio left the public sector to become associate director of planning for Arcadis IBI Group in its Toronto office. He grew the planning practice, significantly increasing revenue and productivity, while fostering a supportive and collaborative work environment.
During his career, he has worked on complex development applications, completed the Downtown East Planning Study, co-led the Downtown East Revitalization Initiative, and founded Planners in Public Spaces–an innovative public consultation strategy now routinely used in Toronto. Giulio is the past Vice Chair for the Railway Association of Canada's proximity guidelines committee, taught Policy Planning at Toronto Metropolitan University, and created the City of Toronto's digital consultation strategy for planning applications and studies.
Giulio believes in being progressive on issues of housing and fostering a policy environment that promotes equitable outcomes. Housing is economic development and the single biggest competitive advantage municipalities can give themselves. He believes it is imperative for local governments to do everything in their power to create an environment where young people, in particular, can find housing and start their careers on the right foot. Giulio is the current director of planning and urban design with the City of Markham, supports and works closely with the Mentorship Initiative for Indigenous and Planners of Colour (MIIPOC), writes about planning policy and theory, and loves being a full-time dad and occasional player of video games.
Session:
CE61- Meet your Municipal Urban Design Leaders!
Gordon Szaszi
Housing Development Project Manager, Niagara Region
Gordon Szazsi continues to enjoy his role as housing development project manager with the Niagara Region. He specializes in affordable housing multi‐ residential development in both Government and non‐profit sectors, and is responsible for providing full development consulting and project management services through all project phases. Gord has over 17 years of experience in development financing, planning, design, and construction.
Session:
CE13- Prioritizing Affordability: Niagara Regional Housing Approaches
Graeme Stewart
FRAIC, OAA, AIBC, AAA, RPP, MCIP, CAHP, Principal ERA Architects Inc.
Graeme Stewart is a Toronto‐based architect and urban planner. He is a principal at ERA Architects and founding director of the Centre for Urban Growth and Renewal (CUG+R), an interdisciplinary urban research organization supporting policy and action toward more equitable and resilient urban regions. Graeme is a member of the Toronto Community Housing Design Review Panel and a regular lecturer in Universities in Ontario and abroad. He is also the co-editor of Concrete Toronto: A Guidebook to Concrete Architecture from the Fifties to the Seventies, and a recipient of the Jane Jacobs Prize for his ongoing work related to Tower Renewal.
Session:
CE50- Preservation is Supply: Tower Renewal and the Canadian Housing Crisis
Graham Cubitt
Director of Projects and Development, Indwell
Graham Cubitt is the director of projects and development at Indwell, a Hamilton-based Christian charity that creates affordable housing communities that support people seeking health, wellness, and belonging. Graham has overseen development of housing for more than 1,000 households. Indwell’s approach to affordable housing focuses on creating vibrant, livable communities—often through adaptive reuse of derelict buildings or by new construction. Indwell has adopted Passive House design strategies for its current three projects under construction, becoming a Canadian leader in demonstrating the economic and environmental benefits of energy-efficient and accessible buildings.
Session:
CE05- Adaptive Reuse as a Sustainable Housing Solution
Harrison Chan
OAA, MRAIC, Principal WZMH Architects
Harrison Chan has been responsible for numerous high‐profile, large‐scale, and complex projects at WZMH including recladding, adaptive reuse, full building retrofits, and new construction. His client portfolio includes government agencies, utility companies, and established development companies across Canada. Recent recladding projects include the 120 & 130 Richmond Adelaide Centre and 121 King St. West. His working methodology balances design sensitivity and technical proficiency. He holds an architectural technology degree from Montréal’s Vanier College and a bachelor of architecture degree from the University of Toronto. Harrison joined WZMH in 1996 and became a Principal in 2013.
Session:
CE24- WZMH Recladding Guide: New Envelopes for Existing Buildings on the Path to Net Zero
Ian Marlatt
Ian Marlatt is a transportation analyst with 12 years of experience in passenger flow modelling, planning, and technical design utilizing static and dynamic modelling principles for the analysis of passenger movement in transit stations. His project experience includes pedestrian flow analysis for GO/SmartTrack stations, analysis of metro stations in the REM Montreal rapid transit system, and evaluation of emergency egress for underground transit stations and road tunnels. Ian is knowledgeable in J.J. Fruins Pedestrian Planning and Design, TCRP Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual, NFPA 130, and modelling using PTV Vis walk pedestrian simulation software. Ian’s experience in Design and CAD coordination allows him to bring together client needs to the design team, ensuring quality and that deliverables are completed on time. Ian has been involved in major transit and tunnel projects, including the Regional Express Rail, Ottawa Light Rail Transit, Eglinton Crosstown LRT, City of Toronto Path Pedestrian Tunnel, and numerous other TTC and Metrolinx projects.
Session:
CE41- Pedestrian Modelling: Micro‐ Simulation to Understand Traffic Flow Within Buildings
Jack Zhou
MEA Owner, A & J Energy Consultants Inc.
With a background in building science, Jack Zhou has worked in low‐rise residential construction since 2004; he was the first to apply and receive the Master Energy Advisor designation in Canada. Early in his career, Jack worked as a framer, insulator, drywaller, installed high‐velocity ductwork, and performed energy simulation. He later earned the HRAI Residential Air System Design Technician and Residential Hydronics Design Technician Designation and started designing HVAC systems and performing energy audits for existing homes. Jack teaches energy‐efficient housing techniques through both private and public sector organizations, colleges, and universities in Ontario, British Columbia, the Republic of China, and South Korea. He also works as a Technical Committee member for the Ontario Home Builder’s Association (OHBA), Canadian Home Builder’s Association (CHBA), Natural Resources Canada ENERGY STAR for New Homes Standard, and Canadian Associations of Consulting Energy Advisors (CACEA). Jack enjoys cost‐effectively accelerating the transition to sustainable housing.
Session:
CE44- Are Net‐Zero Homes Affordable?
Jaegap Chung
B.Arch, OAA, MRAIC, Principal Studio JCI
Jaegap Chung graduated with a bachelor of architecture from the University of Toronto. He has extensive experience in a wide range of project types and sizes with a specialization in high‐end residential design. Jaegap is a founding principal of Studio JCI, a Toronto‐based architecture firm designing and building over eight million square feet of residential projects annually. Recognized for his leadership as an architect, Jaegap is committed to bolstering timeless projects that contribute to the social, economic, and cultural fabric of the built environment. With over 25 years of extensive experience in high‐end residential design, Jaegap’s innovation and project leadership spans varying scales, neighbourhoods, and municipalities. He is an advocate for the critical role that designers play in shaping the city and expanding ways in which architects add value. While Jaegap has gained much recognition for his exclusive designs, his true passion is society‐ shaping, residential innovation that prioritizes community‐building and future‐proofed sustainability. Jaegap’s work has been influential in shaping several City of Toronto municipal planning policy initiatives in support of encouraging the design and construction of multiplexes and mid‐rises, all in favour of restoring the city’s missing middle.
Session:
CE55- Development Triage: Reviving Projects Impacted by the Pandemic
Jan Knikker
Partner Strategy and Development MVRDV
Jan Knikker is a partner and director of strategy & development at MVRDV, where he drives business development and public relations efforts, spearheading a large and dynamic studio that also includes the office’s visualization capacity. Jan further leads the office’s branding efforts, and MVRDV’s expansion into new markets, by supporting the office’s ambition to generate solutions to global challenges through a multifaceted approach to architecture and urbanism. He regularly lectures at international, commercial, and academic venues in Europe, the United Kingdom, Israel, Colombia, and Australia, and has written and contributed to numerous publications and exhibitions. Jan is a member of the HNI Heritage Network, and Gestaltungsbeirat of the City of Wiesbaden; he led the online design magazine Dafne, and was a member of the International Projects commission of the Netherlands’ Architecture Funds.
Session:
CE40-Housing Research, Housing Crisis, New Ways of Living
Jared Della Valle
FAIA
CEO, Founder
Jared Della Valle has been a real estate professional and architect for more than 20 years and has managed the acquisition and predevelopment of more than 2 million sf in New York City along the Highline, In the Hudson Yards, in DUMBO and in Downtown Brooklyn.
Jared Della Valle is co-chair of the Downtown Brooklyn partnership, sits on the Board of the the Architecture League of New York, and is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council. He has previously taught at Columbia University, Syracuse University, Washington University, Parsons School of Constructed Environments and Lehigh University. Jared has widely lectured at major universities and institutions and his work has been the subject of more than 150 articles and publications including a monograph entitled “Think/Make” published by Princeton Architecture Press. He holds a B.A. from Lehigh University and Master’s degrees in both Architecture and Construction Management from Washington University, St. Louis, MO. He is a LEED Certified, licensed Architect in New York State, holds an NCARB (National College of Architectural Registration Boards) Certificate and is a licensed real estate broker and a Fellow of the AIA (American Institute of Architects).
Session:
CE46- 100 Flatbrush: NYC’s First All‐ Electric Skyscraper
Jason McMillan
NWTAA, MRAIC Managing Associate, Architect Taylor Architecture Group
Jason McMillan manages TAG’s Whitehorse office, overseeing the firm’s Yukon‐based projects. His recent experience includes Dän Laachewdäw Kú gathering house for First Nation of Na‐Cho Nyak Dun, Kêts’ádań Kù ̨ K‐12 school for Kluane First Nation, a new wellness centre on the traditional territory of Yellowknives Dene First Nation, and a wide variety of housing projects across the Northwest Territories. Before joining TAG, Jason was awarded the OAA Guild Medal and Canadian Architect Student Award of Excellence for his research on adaptable collective housing types for Inuit communities, for part of which he spent six weeks conducting ethnographic research in Arviat, Nunavut.
Sessions:
CE31- Supporting Self‐ Determination in Northern Indigenous Community Housing
CE59 - Supporting Self‐ Determination in Northern Indigenous Community Housing
Jay Lim
OAA, OAQ, AIA, LEED AP, MRAIC, NCARB, Principal/Founder, 25:8 Architecture + Urban Design
Jay Lim is the founder of the international and award‐winning firm 25:8 Architecture & Urban Design. His work as the design director has led to numerous publications and awards both nationally and internationally. In parallel to leading architecture practice, he has established himself as a well‐ respected educator and leader in the design and construction industry. He is known for his passion for developing the next generation of talent. He is currently an Adjunct Professor in Architectural Design and Building Technology at Carleton University in Ottawa. He has taught and been a visiting critic at Columbia University, the University of Waterloo, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Toronto Metropolitan University, and Conestoga College. In addition to his work in architecture and academia, Jay is also a successful entrepreneur who founded the acclaimed 5:2:8 Creative Coffee Collective and real‐estate development company, Ample Architectonic Assets.
Session:
CE39- Building New Business Models: Creativity + Caffeine = 25:8 Architecture
Jeanne Ng
OAA, Senior Principal, MJMA Architecture & Design
Jeanne Ng is a Senior Principal at MJMA Architecture & Design who has been instrumental in furthering the studio’s architecture, community engagement, and sustainability goals since 1997. She has taken a leading role in many of the firm’s most notable community‐focused projects like the Regent Park (Pam McConnell) Aquatic Centre, Ajax Audley Recreation Centre & Library, and the Wellesley Community Centre and St. James Town Library. Jeanne has also led many of MJMA’s research initiatives in net zero energy and carbon, as the project principal for the Western North York Community Centre and the Embodied Carbon Benchmarking Project.
Session:
CE12- Accelerating the Decarbonization of Community Buildings
Jessica Hawes
Acting Chief Development Office, Toronto Community Housing
Jessica Hawes is the Acting Chief Development Officer at Toronto Community Housing. TCHC’s Development team of architects, planners, engineers, project managers, and engagement and relocation specialists lead some of Ontario’s largest community renewal projects. The team is also actively supporting the City of Toronto in its mandate to increase the delivery of new affordable housing for Toronto residents.
As a licensed architect, registered planner and urban designer, Jessica has more than 20 years of experience in the sustainable planning of new communities with a focus on urban renewal and intensification. She has extensive planning and architectural experience in the design, approval, and construction of complete communities. This work has included the delivery residential buildings, public spaces, art centres, retail centres, community facilities, waterfront communities, as well as office and commercial developments. Her professional work extends internationally throughout North America, Europe and Southern Africa.
Session:
CE19 - City Building Roundtable: Building Affordable Housing in Ontario Cities
Jeff Davies
Housing Development Project Manager Niagara Region
Jeff Davies construction career began in 2014 when he began studying at Niagara Collage in the Construction Engineering Technology Course. Gradating in 2016, Jeff took an interest in estimating, and project management while working with Horne Construction on various custom homes and commercial projects in the Greater Toronto Area. Since launching his career, Jeff has worked on a number of projects for the Hilton, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and began working for Niagara Regional Housing in January of 2021. Jeff has primarily lead projects for NRH’s Homelessness Division. Over the past three years, he has primarily worked on pilot projects for bridge housing, supportive housing, and transitional housing for women and children. These projects aim to assist those suffering from long‐term homelessness by providing housing, rehabilitation, and eventually moving them into employment and long‐term housing solutions.
Session:
CE13- Prioritizing Affordability: Niagara Regional Housing Approaches
Jennifer Davis
OAA, NSAA, MRAIC Strategic Business Development Lead WZMH Architects
Jennifer Davis is experienced in the design and project management of residential, institutional, and commercial building types in Ontario and abroad. Prior to joining WZMH in 2021, she spearheaded multi‐unit residential projects for affordable housing clients such as Toronto Community Housing Corp. and Wigwamen Inc., Ontario’s largest urban Aboriginal housing provider. Through this work, she gained a strong understanding of renovation and overcladding initiatives, as well as experience with community engagement. Jennifer holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Toronto where she is a sessional lecturer. In 2019, she received the Centennial Fund from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Foundation for her early contributions to the architectural profession..
Session:
CE24- WZMH Recladding Guide: New Envelopes for Existing Buildings on the Path to Net Zero
John Hackett
B.Arch., FRAIC, Vice President, Practice Risk Management Pro‐Demnity Insurance Company
John Hackett serves as Pro‐Demnity’s long‐standing Vice President, Practice Risk Management. He assists architects with concerning circumstances and risks that arise in their practice, and acts as a keen identifier of and advisor of risk issues that impact the architect’s business. John brings 37 years of experience as an architect in practice as well as 18 years of experience with Pro‐Demnity. He holds a degree from the University of Toronto and is a Member of Long Standing with the OAA.
Session:
CE32- A House of Cards: Risks in Residential Design
John van Nostrand
FRAIC, FCIP, Director, Two Steps Home
John van Nostrand is the director of Two Steps Home, and the founding partner of SvN Architects + Planners. Since 1978, he has been the driving force behind the firm’s integrated architectural, planning, landscape, and urban design practice. Over the past 40 years, SvN has focused on housing‐for‐all‐incomes, land settlement, and infrastructure in cities and landscapes undergoing constant growth and renewal. He served as Chair of the Boards of the Home First Society and Houselink Community Homes in their early days. In 2018, he created Parcel Developments to focus on evolutionary housing and its application to entry‐level housing for all incomes. Most recently, John created Two Steps Home to address homelessness more directly. John’s work and writings have been well‐recognized at home and abroad, and his awards include the World Leadership Award for Town Planning (1992), the Daniel Burnham Award from the American Planning Association (2008), and numerous local and national Awards of Excellence in Architecture, Planning, and Urban Design. In 2004, John was awarded the Jane Jacobs Award for “Ideas That Matter” and the OAA’s Order of da Vinci in recognition of his exceptional leadership in the profession, and the education of, and service to, its communities.
Sessions:
SP2 - Gimme Shelter: Coming Together to Answer the Housing Affordability Question
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a'a Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Jonathan Smegal
Associate, Senior Building Science Consultant RDH Building Science
Based in Waterloo, Jonathan is an Associate and Senior Building Science Consultant at RDH, leading projects related to laboratory research, forensic analysis of building failures, litigation, hygrothermal modeling, and field monitoring of building enclosure performance. As a researcher, he is an author on multiple peer-reviewed papers and has frequently shared his work through industry publications, webinars, and speaking events.
Sessions:
CE04- Net‐Zero Ready Deep Energy Retrofit: Kestrel Court Case Study
CE27- Mass Timber Construction Strategies, Challenges, Case Studies, and Laboratory Testing
Jon Neuert
Principal, Baird Sampson Neuert architects (BSN)
Jon Neuert is a renowned architect with over 30 years of experience in sustainable community development and bioclimatic building design. A Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), he has spearheaded BSN's reputation for innovative design and sustainability, having served as design lead on many of the firm’s award-winning projects. Notable early experience includes his role as project architect of the Butterfly Conservatory in the Niagara Parks Botanical Garden completed in 1996. Jon's commitment to collaborative, sustainable, and holistic building reflects the enduring design integrity of the firm with numerous accolades that include three Governor General awards, 14 OAA awards, and three Canada Green Building awards. Serving as a subject matter expert for the OAA's Climate Action Advisory Group and a design critic at esteemed institutions, Jon continues to shape the future of architecture.
Session:
EL14 - Metamorphosis: Architectural Study at the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory
Julia Di Castri
M.Arch., MA, BA Design Reach Studio Head architects—Alliance
Julia Di Castri heads the Design Research Studio of architects—Alliance, which explores the ideas and impacts of architecture and urbanism as they play out in the modern city. In 2023, Julia and the research studio developed The Weight, a multimedia installation for the European Cultural Center’s 2023 Venice Architectural Biennale that considered the Leslie Street Spit as an index of the city’s unrestrained cycle of self‐destruction and reinvention as it has grown, explosively, in a single generation. A graduate of the University of Toronto, with postgraduate degrees from the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, and the School of Architecture, University of Illinois at Chicago, Julia is a lecturer at the UofT John
H. Daniels School of Architecture, Landscape and Design. She continues to interrogate the value of architecture in the 21st century city.
Session:
CE14- Intensification: The Tools We Have, the Tools We Need
Kripa Gyawali
OAA, M.Arch, B.A.S (Co‐op) Architect, Hatch Architecture Ltd.
Kripa Gyawali is an architect in the province of Ontario with more than seven years of experience in designing industrial facilities, transit, and infrastructure projects. She has experience in various stages of design and construction of buildings, including development of conceptual design, reference concept designs, schematic design, digital 3D modelling and visualization, construction documents, tender sets, site plan approval packages and construction administration of projects. Kripa’s recent project experience revolves around infrastructure and transit projects such as rapid transit stations, underground LRT stations, aviation facilities, and wastewater treatment plants.
Session:
CE41- Pedestrian Modelling: Micro‐ Simulation to Understand Traffic Flow Within Buildings
Kristel Derkowski
Manager of Research and Development Taylor Architecture Group
Kristel Derkowski is the R&D Manager at TAG’s Yellowknife office (Northwest Territories). Her recentwork focuses on three areas: Identifying driving factors behind the Northern housing crisis, understanding the landscape of training and employment in remote communities, and applying these findings in real‐world scenarios. Her recent projects have included masterplanning for three campuses and 21community learning centres of a polytechnic university, and the facilitation of a locally led initiativeto establisha Construction Centre in the remote community of Fort Good Hope, NWT. Kristel has an educational background in architecture, environmental design and welding, and diverse professional experience including as a published author, remote camp foreman, and president of Makerspace YK, a Yellowknife‐based non‐profit supporting hands‐on skill‐building.
Sessions:
CE31- Supporting Self‐ Determination in Northern Indigenous Community Housing
CE59- Supporting Self‐ Determination in Northern Indigenous Community Housing
Kristina Reinders
Program Manager, Programs and Strategies Urban Design City Planning Division, City of Toronto
works for the City of Toronto as the Urban Design Program Manager for Programs and Strategies. She is a passionate advocate for high‐ quality public realm and forward‐thinking policies that promote livability and make urban life rewarding and enjoyable for all. Kristina has spearheaded a number of public realm and streetscape initiatives, which have resulted in the creation of meaningful, connected public spaces for residents, workers, and visitors, all while actively combating climate change. This is demonstrated by the TOcore Downtown Parks and Public Realm study, which received the national RAIC Urban Design Award, as well as CSLA and ASLA Awards of Excellence for Planning and Analysis. The Plan establishes a clear 25‐year vision and framework for the future of parks and public realm, ensuring a high‐quality of life for the rapidly growing downtown population. In her current role, Kristina leads a diverse work program to deliver on Toronto’s Strategic Priorities. The portfolio consists of a Civic Improvements capital program, city‐wide studies and guidelines, Design Review Panel, Percent for Public Art Program, streetscape design with a focus on green streets and the Toronto Urban Design Awards. This diverse work program is dedicated to combating climate change through policy and guideline development and built demonstration projects; achieving equity in public space investment and design through strategic planning; and celebrating and pushing the agenda of design excellence. Kristina holds a Masters of Arts in Urban Design and is a full member of the Ontario Association of Landscape Architects.
Session:
CE28- Thermal Comfort Study
Kurt Hofstetter
Director, Vienna IBA, Vienna City Planning Department, Austria
Kurt Hofstetter, 1963, is a graduate of the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences in Vienna. As an employee of the City of Vienna since 1991, he has been involved in various leadership functions with urban planning and development issues, including zoning and development planning, as well as landscape planning for the whole of Vienna. From 2003 to 2015, he was significantly involved in the urban development of Seestadt Aspern in Vienna. From 2016 to 2022, he was director of the International Building Exhibition, “IBA_Vienna – New Social Housing”, which held its final presentation in 2022. Since 2023, as an expert on housing topics, he has been involved with strategic projects for the City of Vienna, as well as with international contacts.
Session:
CE20- Maintaining the Attitude, Adapting the Measures
Leighana Mais
Leighana Mais was raised on Eglinton West since she was three and has a wealth of memories, experiences, and knowledge of her community. Her experiences aren't all light and fluffy, but filled with cultural experiences, trauma, loss, belonging, and involvement in community. She truly believes Eglinton West has sculpted much of who she is today. Leighana shares her story of her resilient community, overlooked for decades— only now receiving attention when residents came together to empower themselves after recognizing all of our systemic hardships. Leighana has been an active volunteer in her neighbourhood, Little Jamaica, since she was a pre‐teen. She graduated from Centennial College School of Business in Business Administration and has a strong passion for community and entrepreneurship. Leighana excels at mobilizing people toward positive change, utilizing her diverse experience in community development, project coordination, and marketing to inspire and empower community members. With more than 15 years of experience in event coordinating and communications, Leighana is well‐versed in community engagement, advocacy, and empowerment. She founded the Keele and Eglinton Residents group and established the Little Jamaica Community Coalition, aiming to connect resources for community benefit, including a Community Land Trust for affordable housing and ownership, and food sovereignty initiatives.
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a'a Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Len Abelman
Principal and architect, WZMH Toronto
Len Abelman has worked as an architect in multiple countries and his international experience brings lateral and creative insights to all phases of the design process. From large-scale master planning and urban design projects through to the design of individual buildings and detailing, he brings all-around skills to the project team in resolving complex requirements. As a project architect, Len has coordinated the work of office staff and consultant teams, and liaised with client groups, city officials, and public working groups in guiding projects to their fruition.
Len is inspired by the role of the architect in creating built environments for future occupants: the cities around us, offices we work in and homes we live in, and their impact as backgrounds to our daily lives. Len strives to design practical solutions balancing the needs of clients, budgets, and municipal regulations to improve the surrounding urban fabric. Len joined WZMH in 2005 and became a principal in 2014. He is licensed with the Ontario Association of Architects and currently sits on its Policy Advisory Coordination Team (PACT). Len has also written extensively about architecture and has been published in numerous magazines and web journals.
Session:
CE61- Meet your Municipal Urban Design Leaders!
Leslie Parker
OAA Architect, Risk Services, Pro‐Demnity Insurance Company
Leslie Parker is an experienced architect with extensive knowledge in contract administration and project management of large teams, as well as deep expertise of built environments for healthcare, long‐term care homes, and design for seniors. As Senior Architect, Risk Services at Pro‐Demnity, she monitors new developments in the profession and leverages this knowledge to contribute to the research and development of Pro‐Demnity’s risk education material, initiatives, and programs, while offering relevant and timely one‐on‐one risk guidance to architects. She is a licensed Ontario architect, with a BA from St. Thomas University, Fredericton, New Brunswick, as well as a bachelor’s degree in environmental design studies and a master’s in architecture from Dalhousie University in Halifax.
Session:
CE32- A House of Cards: Risks in Residential Design
Levi J. Brown
B.Eng., EIT, Building Science Consultant, Morrison Hershfield
Levi Brown has specialized expertise with Whole Building Air Leakage Testing of new buildings and additions to existing buildings targeting Passive House and Zero Carbon performance. This expertise adds to his new construction experience with cladding and below-grade waterproofing design and construction review. Levi’s new construction work is informed by an understanding of deterioration mechanisms developed from his work in assessment, investigation, and rehabilitation of existing buildings. Levi also has experience with facility condition assessments of large facilities like correctional institutions and airports.
Session:
CE21- Amicable Separations: WBAL Testing and Connected Buildings
Liza Stiff
Vice President, Impact Implementation and Innovation, TAS
Liza Stiff oversees connecting TAS’s impact goals with project pipeline, from early engagement and project visioning through to construction and occupancy. Liza is a design thinker and a natural collaborator. She brings more than 20 years of experience in design, architecture, real estate, and project delivery. Her previous experience includes complicated public/private partnership models in the GTA and abroad. Liza’s experience combined with her passion for driving meaningful impact helps her guide the team to innovate and strategically drive impact while pushing the traditional constraints of real estate development.
Session:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE59- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
Matthew Lee
Intern Architect, ZAS
Matthew Lee is an Intern Architect with the OAA. He is presenting his McGill University Master's graduation thesis, "Water Resilient Infrastructure: Where Does the Water Go?" Matthew was awarded the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Student Medal in 2021. His subject focuses on access to clean drinking water in Indigenous reserves. He is curious about how architectural innovations offer an alterative path for achieving water resilience for the people of Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg at the border of Ontario and Quebec.
Matthew was granted permission to conduct community engagement with the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg by the McGill Research Ethics Board. With the help of Chief Whiteduck and his band office, Matthew conceptualized two architectural interventions to address the pressing issue: a domestic ice stupa water collection system and a stormwater park. Professionally, Matthew is currently involved with the mass timber construction of Toronto and Region Conservation Authority Headquarters (TRCA) in York. Matthew has researched the impact of transit‐oriented development in urban environments at the University of Oxford for his MSc in Sustainable Urban Development. He presented essays at the World Sustainable Built Environment Conference in Hong Kong in 2017 and the International Conference on Building Resilience in Lisbon in 2018.
Session:
CE6- Water‐Resilient Infrastructure: Where Does the Water Go?
Maxine Blais
OAA, B.A.S., M.Arch., Architect
Maxine Blais was born and raised in Sudbury and graduated as part of the inaugural class at the McEwen School of Architecture (MSOA) at Laurentian University. As a francophone architect working at J.L. Richards and Associates Limited and a graduate of MSOA, a northern design school that prioritizes holistic learning, Maxine has considerable experience working with various northern communities. She strives to bring her lived experience, empathy, and social sensitivity to every project she undertakes and has a passion for helping clients realize their projects in a way that is socially, environmentally, and economically sensible. Maxine favours an integrated design approach that hinges on open communication and engagement with clients and communities. She has worked on a variety of projects throughout Ontario and, with each, aims to positively impact the lands and people affected.
Sessions:
CE15- mînawâcihiwewi‐ ne‐ wîkiwnan/Healing our Home: Moose Cree Housing Prototype
CE26- mînawâcihiwewi‐ ne‐wîkiwnan / Healing Our Home: Moose Cree Housing Prototype
Megan Nicoletti
Partner, CodeNext
Megan has been in the industry for 20 years and is responsible for the preparation of building and fire code assessments for architects, engineers, designers, developers, and building owners. This includes analyses of fire protection, life safety, and barrier-free designs of new and existing buildings. She is proficient in all scales of commercial, residential, infrastructure, transit, and public-sector projects, both in Canada and internationally. In addition, Megan is experienced in the development of fire engineering equivalencies that are specifically tailored to meet clients objectives, while still maintaining the desired architectural vision. Megan is also an active participant in the development of numerous fire and life safety standards through UL, and is a regular speaker at industry events and conferences.
Session:
CE07 - Building Code Changes
Michael Lam
Michael Lam is an architect and urbanist who has been working at Toronto Community Housing since 2016. His current role is Senior Development Director (acting), primarily focused on the revitalization of Alexandra Park, a storied inner city social housing community. Notable achievements at TCHC have included co‐editing the TCHC Accessible Build Standard with the R‐PATH Committee and launching the Passive House pilot project currently under construction. Previous roles have included project architect for institutional, recreational, and healthcare projects for multiple firms in the GTA and founding principal for Sasquatch, a design + strategy consultancy. Currently focussing on a system thinking approach to ecology, carbon, and social inclusivity in the city.
Session:
CE56- Toronto Community Housing Revitalizations: Case Studies and New Directions
Michelle Xuereb
Director of Innovation, BDP Quadrangle
Over her 25‐year architectural career, Michelle Xuereb has dedicated herself to the intersection of sustainability, research, and design realization. As BDP Quadrangle’s Director of Innovation, Michelle provides the strategic direction required to embed innovation across the firm as well as overseeing the firm’s global Innovation Hub, a mechanism for crowdsourcing global ideation. She has worked on many of the studio’s most cutting‐edge projects, a snapshot of which includes new approaches to mass timber as seen in 80 Atlantic, sensitive mid‐rises like DUKE, and the complex and intricate building additions of 130 Bloor Street West and 99 Gerrard.
Sessions:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
Nicola Casciato
OAA, MRAIC Principal, WZMH Architects
Since joining WZMH in 2005, Nicola Casciato has brought a high level of energy and creativity to the design of a number of award‐winning projects including the Durham Region Courthouse and Bay‐Adelaide Centre. He leads design teams on projects ranging from mixed‐use master plans to highly technical tower reclads. As a member of London’s Urban Design Review Panel, he contributes expert feedback on development applications and municipal developments. Nicola has a Master of Architecture from the University of Illinois and a bachelor’s degree from Toronto Metropolitan University. In recognition of his outstanding contribution to the firm, Nicola was appointed a principal of WZMH in 2010.
Session:
CE24- WZMH Recladding Guide: New Envelopes for Existing Buildings on the Path to Net Zero
Nicholas Sylvestre‐Williams
M.Eng., P.Eng., INCE Professional Engineer and Designated Consulting Engineer, Aercoustics Engineering Ltd.
Nicholas is a registered Professional Engineer and Designated Consulting Engineer in the field of acoustics, noise, and vibration. He is a partner at Aercoustics Engineering Ltd., a privately held engineering consulting company specializing in the field of acoustics, noise, and vibration. Nicholas manages the engineering services of Aercoustics, and has worked extensively on architectural and planning projects, completing many studies on the noise and vibration impacts for proposed residential, industrial, mixed‐use, andcommercial buildings. He has worked on projects such as the Drake Hotel renovation, The ONE, 500 Lakeshore, 900 St. Clair West, and Manitoba Hydro Place, which, in 2012, was Canada’s largest LEED Platinum office tower and one of the first to be designed as climactically responsive. Nicholas has provided expert witness testimony at Civil Court and at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB)/Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT) on noise issues for land use planning projects. He has provided input on the master plan of Vaughn Metro Centre, Shoppers World, Pickering’s Durham Live, and Beltline Yards. Nicholas has presented at many national and international conferences on acoustics and has taught acoustic theory and practice for various organizations.
Session:
CE42- Rethinking Density: Noise and Vibration in the Urban Core
Noah Slater
Director, Housing Development, Renewal and Improvement at the Housing Secretariat, City of Toronto
Noah Slater is the Director, Housing Development, Renewal and Improvement at the Housing Secretariat at the City of Toronto. In this role, he is responsible for the delivery of net new affordable housing units in accordance with the City’s Mandate to Urgently Build More Homes. Through that work, Noah leads the team in the delivery of residential construction projects, taking them from conception to occupancy.
Previously, Noah was the Director of Capital Planning, Design & Engineering for Toronto Community Housing (TCHC). There, he oversaw the ongoing renewal of over 50 million square feet of residential space -- a public asset portfolio worth over $10B. As an architect with nearly 20 years of senior experience, he has led the delivery of a wide variety of complex mixed-use, residential, commercial, and institutional projects. Noah’s recent work is focused on implementing a transformative capital action.
Session:
CE19 - City Building Roundtable: Building Affordable Housing in Ontario Cities
Oprite Bobmanuel
MASc, EIT, Project Consultant, Vortex Fire
Oprite Bobmanuel is a dedicated professional with a Master of Applied Science in Fire Safety Engineering and a background in Structural Engineering. Oprite specializes in building and fire code consultancy, accessibility, and various fire engineering related tasks at Vortex Fire Consulting Inc. With four years of experience in fire protection engineering, her vast experience includes residential, industrial, office, healthcare, and mixed-use building code reviews, including mass timber projects, engineering judgments, alternative solutions, and fire safety plans.
Session:
CE36- Raise the Roof on Innovative Mass Timber Vertical Additions
Osemele Airewele
Associate, BDP Quadrangle
Osemelu Airewele is an accomplished U.K. architect whose passion lies in socially responsible and inclusive design. With a deep commitment to equity in innovation, Ossie is a prominent thought leader at BDP Quadrangle, encouraging meaningful conversations about the future of inclusive design, leading key residential and mixed‐use projects, and driving the North American expansion of the studio. His affiliations with the ULI Toronto’s Curtner Urban Leadership Program and the Black Planners and Urbanists Association reflects his dedication to urban development, at BDP Quadrangle he demonstrates excellence in conceptualization, design, and execution.
Sessions:
CE45- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon
CE52- Accelerating Housing and Low Carbon Residential
Patrick Chouinard
Patrick Chouinard is the founder of Element5 and is responsible for corporate citizenship. Element5 is Canada’s newest and most fully automated mass timber manufacturer in St. Thomas, Ontario. He is a driving force behind this rapidly growing company that not only manufactures mass timber components, but also provides a complete range of services to successfully execute timber construction projects on a large scale. Patrick believes mass timber is the essential building material of the 21st century—it is a natural, renewable and sustainable construction material and the company is proud to manufacture their products from sustainably sourced Ontario wood. Patrick is a passionate advocate for construction industry transformation and believes that prefabricated mass timber is key in making the significant gains in construction efficiency and building performance needed to meet today’s significant housing and infrastructure demands, while contributing to a low‐ carbon future.
Session:
CE17- Mass Timber and Affordable Housing
Paul Backewich
Senior Architect, Calnitsky Associates Architects
Paul Backewich is an architect and creative problem solver, who had worked with WZMH Architects, DIALOG, Diamond + Schmitt Architects Inc., Robbie Young + Wright Architects, Adamson Associates Architects, as well as Pellow and Associates Architects Inc. and dkstudio architects inc. He is currently working at Calnitsky + Associates Architects based in Winnipeg, where the practice is focusing on designs for significant First Nations projects. He has worked with some of the most successful development organizations in Canada (Cadillac Fairview, Oxford Properties, DREAM, etc.) as well as community groups including Children’s Aid Society and Woodgreen.
Sessions:
CE08- The Lines We Draw
CE33- The Lines We Draw
Paul McDonnel
Past AIA Buffalo/WNY President
For 32 years, Paul McDonnell served the City of Buffalo and the Buffalo Public Schools as an architect working to ensure that Buffalo’s historic civic buildings were preserved and its new ones were well designed, high quality, and enduring. A native and life-long resident of Buffalo, Paul’s career has been shaped by the love of his city, its architecture, and its history. Paul graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo with degrees in both Environmental Design and Architecture. In his tenure with the Buffalo Board of Education facilities department, he would be responsible for maintaining the district’s school buildings. His most important role was with the Joint School Reconstruction Program (JSCB), a $1.4 billion project that completely renovated 48 schools over a 15-year period to help ensure Buffalo’s schools were the finest learning environments in New York State while still maintaining their historic and cultural integrity. The project would ultimately be recognized as the largest historic preservation and public works project Buffalo has ever seen.
Paul served as the chair of the Buffalo Preservation Board for 11 years is a co-founder and president of the Campaign for Greater Buffalo History, Architecture, and Culture–the region’s most important advocacy organization working to preserve Buffalo’s architecture. The Campaign developed the most respected architecture tour program in western New York and in 2007 began offering tours on the “Open Air Autobus.” In 2011, he was elected president of the Buffalo/WNY chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and in 2023 he was elected president AIA/ New York State representing 9,000 NYS architects.
Retired from the Buffalo Schools, Paul continues to speak about the impact good architecture has on students, residents, visitors, and the the region region with community groups, preservationists, architects, and educators.
Session:
EL01 -Buffalo: Explore the City's Architectural Innovation & Preservation
Paul Sapounzi
OAA, NSAA, FRAIC, AIA, CAHP, CEO,+VG Architects
Paul brings over 36 years of experience designing buildings that resonate with their sense of place, context, and community. He has completed hundreds of key public buildings throughout Ontario and beyond, emphasizing heritage to reinvigorate communities with imaginative solutions that celebrate their history, enhance visitor experience, and create new opportunities for public engagement. These projects range from iconic buildings such as the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Niagara Power Station, Milton Civic Centre, and Toronto Old Don Jail to several civic campuses across Ontario.
Paul’s leadership qualifications are based on exemplary heritage and new-build projects, professional recognition at a national level, numerous achievements, and teaching appointments. He is a practising member of the OAA, a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), and a member of the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals (CAHP). His firm has offices in Toronto, Brantford, and Ottawa and more than 70 talented staff who serve Ontario and beyond. In its 52-year history, the firm has received over 200 awards for design excellence.
Session:
EL03 - Powering Innovation: Architectural Insights from Niagara and Toronto Power Stations
Peggy Chi
PhD Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto
Dr. Peggy Chi is a licensed landscape architect whose work focuses on research, knowledge mobilization (i.e. bridging academic research to practice), and using evidence to inform the design and decision‐making of aging environments. She integrates methodologies from landscape, architecture, health services research, dementia care mapping, and organization management to transcend disciplinary boundaries in research and practice. She works as a postdoctoral fellow, leading knowledge mobilization and research initiatives on long‐term care environments at the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation at the University of Toronto, and she provides consulting services to healthcare providers as a design strategist. She serves on the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects' (CSLA) Human Health & Well‐Being Committee and publishes her research in peer‐reviewed journals. Ottawa Life Magazine published a story about her work on enabling and empowering environments for older adults
Session:
CE3- Long‐Term Care: Natural Environments' Influence on Outcomes
Persis Lam
Associate, Diamond Schmitt Architects
Persis Lam is a Toronto-based architect, born and raised in Vancouver. Her practice is inspired by collaborative and beautiful design rooted by site and user relationships. She loves architecture for the constant strive to balance the arts and sciences and a technical approach. Beyond design, keeping projects on time and on budget is her strength, managing a variety of client, consultants, and teams while maintaining project goals.
Since joining Diamond Schmitt in 2002, Persis has a wide breadth of experience from dense urban developments such as The Hudson condominium and the Prince Arthur Medical Clinic, to complex labs and programs at the Papadakis Integrated Sciences Building at Drexel University and the Queen’s University School of Medicine. Persis is also instrumental in many multi-unit residential and student residence projects across the southern GTA. She is a licensed architect with the Ontario Association of
Architects and is a Passive House Certified Designer.
Persis was recently a project manager for the Lonsdale Residences, a 177-unit rental building geared to the luxury rental market in Toronto and managed the redevelopment of 1.5M square feet of residential and mixed-use in Mississauga. The site is one of the first projects to adopt the new Built Form Standards.
Session:
CE11 - Strategic Planning for Shaping a Diverse and Inclusive Workplace
Phil Fung
P. Eng., LEED AP BD+C, CEM, Living Future AP, CBSA, Managing Partner, Anchor Corporation
Phil Fung is a Consulting Engineer in Ontario, and holds several professional designations including LEED AP, Certified Sustainable Building Advisor, Certified Energy Manager, Living Future Accreditation, and Certified Building Commissioning Professional. His areas of expertise are energy‐efficient and sustainable building design, nature‐inspired regenerative building design, and energy modelling. Phil founded SRS Consulting Engineers and HiGarden (nature‐inspired systems) in 1999 and 2015, respectively. In 2012, Phil accepted the part‐time professorship at Humber College. Phil’s latest research grants from NSERC are applying biophilic design to work‐from‐home workers and designing indoor food system models for food banks.
Session:
CE10- Therapeutic Food Systems in Regenerative Dwelling Design
Philip Ghosh
BA, JD Senior Legal Counsel, Pro‐Demnity Insurance Company
Philip Ghosh is Pro‐Demnity’s managing counsel, in‐house litigation. He is an experienced litigator with a practice dedicated to defending architects against professional liability lawsuits at Pro‐Demnity, which he joined in 2020. He has successfully represented clients at all levels of Court in Ontario, as well as at mediations, arbitrations, administrative tribunals, and professional colleges. Philip was called to the bar in 2012 after graduating from Queen’s University Law School in 2011. Further, he completed an internship at the Khmer Rouge Tribunal in Cambodia. He is a member in good standing of the Law Society of Ontario (LSO), the Ontario Bar Association, and Canadian Defence Lawyers.
Session:
CE32- A House of Cards: Risks in Residential Design
Robert Allen
Partner, MJMA Architecture & Design
Robert has led a variety of key public projects at MJMA over the past 25 years, helping define the role of community-based buildings in Canada. Rob has dedicated his career to sport and recreation architecture, with a unique expertise in the multi-use recreation facility (MURF) project typology. His projects are recognized as models for a new form of hybrid community recreation buildings that bring together different user groups under one roof, integrating interior and exterior wellness programs, and creating true community hubs. An experienced architect, his work demonstrates technical excellence and sensitivity to issues of landscape and sustainability. He has taken a lead role in many of MJMA’s most complex projects, including the Walker Sports and Abilities Centre at Canada GamesPark.
Session:
EL06 - Walker Sports and Abilities Centre and the Neil Campbell Rowing Centre
Robert Cadeau
Partner, OAA
Robert Cadeau. OAA, partner, project architect, and a founding member of a—A, is an innovative architect with 30 years of experience in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean with a particular expertise in the integration of contemporary built form into heritage structures and precincts, on projects ranging from the delicate St. James Cathedral Centre, to master planning and design concept for 1,028,138‐sf residential, commercial, and retail programming that helped launch the rebirth of the Distillery District, a 19th century heritage industrial site on Toronto’s waterfront. Rob is currently guiding the design of a 132,270‐sf addition to the Château Laurier Hotel in the national capital, and a new contemporary Ismaili Jamatkhana and community center in Thorncliffe Park, which was a recipient of the Canadian Architect Award of Excellence, a Progressive Architecture Award, and a Faith and Form Award. Rob has also served as a visiting critic at Schools of Architecture at UoT, Waterloo, TMU, and Penn State University.
Session:
CE23- Intensification of Heritage Sites
Robin McKenna
Associate, Studio JCI
Robin McKenna has a divergent past working for contractors, structural engineers, and his own design-build firm before joining Studio JCI in his current role as an associate. His explorations and passions have led him to focus on sustainable and communal design with careful consideration of proportional and materiality. He has had the unique opportunity to develop several Toronto based projects seeking to bring together multiple levels of innovation to make places that serve both the community without and within the project boundaries. Architecture can foster so much social good, and his continuing work seeks to explore what that can be.
Session:
CE02- Innovation in Communal Life
Rong Yu
Project Manager, Urban Design City Planning Division, City of Toronto
Rong Yu is the urban design project manager for the City of Toronto. She has been with the City for more than 20 years and is the urban design lead on a number of complex planning studies and large projects. Some of her recent works include Mid‐Rise Buildings Rear Transition Performance Standards Review and Update, Thermal Comfort Study for the outdoor public realms, EHON Major Street Study, Yonge Street North Planning Study, Don Mills Crossing Secondary Plan, and Mirvish Village redevelopment. Rong holds a Bachelor of Architecture and a Master of Urban Development and Design and is a full member of the Ontario Professional Planning Institute (OPPI) and Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP).
Session:
CE28- Thermal Comfort Study
Russell Acton
Russell Acton, Architect AIBC, AAA, OAA, FRAIC, Principal, Acton Ostry Architects Inc.
Russell Acton is a principal of Acton Ostry Architects. He was the principal architect for the ground‐breaking, 18‐storey, Brock Commons Tallwood House that at the time of completion was the world’s tallest contemporary mass wood building. He is currently Acton Ostry Architects’ principal architect for Limberlost Place, an international competition‐winning project done in collaboration with Moriyama & Teshima Architects, currently under construction on the George Brown College waterfront campus in Toronto.
Russell has a keen interest in the design of economical mass wood structures for multi‐unit residential buildings that are comparable in cost to concrete equivalents.
Session:
CE29- Short Wood 8 Mass Wood and Light‐Frame Wood Multi‐Unit Residential Prototype
Salvador Knafo
OAA, MRAIC Lead Architect, Pro‐Demnity Insurance Company
As lead architect, Sal Knafo guides Pro‐Demnity’s in‐house architectural team and provides an architect‘s perspective across all facets of the company, working with leadership, stakeholders, claim specialists, legal counsel, and with Ontario’s Certificate of Practice holders and their architects. Sal’s breadth of experience includes having worked in professional liability claims with architects, construction dispute, as well as interacting with insurance underwriters in product development and other initiatives within the Company. He is an Ontario architect with over 30 years of experience at Pro‐Demnity, and holds degrees from the University of Waterloo.
Session:
CE32- A House of Cards: Risks in Residential Design
Sanne van der Burgh
Architect and Associate Director, MVRDV
Sanne van der Burgh is an architect and an associate director at MVRDV, and head of the practice’s NEXT (New Experimental Technologies) in‐house R&D group, which focuses on the development of visionary tools that help cities become more dense, more green, and more resilient. These tools and cutting‐ edge technologies helped make complex projects such as the Floriade plant layout and the facade of Valley possible. She leads multiple teams within MVRDV, realizing projects of various scales, phases, and across several continents, including the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen Depot, the refurbishment of the Lyon Part Dieu shopping center, and a visionary project for revitalizing New Delhi’s sanitation and infrastructure: Barapullah Springs. Sanne is a versatile architect with demonstrated design achievements. In 2019, Architizer named her as one of 25 young architects to watch. In 2021, she was the winner of a Female Frontier Award for “Innovation in Architecture,” organized by World Architecture News . A dedicated advocate for environmental awareness in architecture, urbanism, and our daily lives, Sanne believes in the capacity of design to inspire and have a positive impact on people and their surroundings.
Session:
CE01- Carbon, Collaboration, and Relevance
Scott Armstrong
BSS, CET, LEED AP
Scott Armstrong is passionate about buildings and often speaks publicly about their design and construction, ongoing performance, deterioration and failure, opportunities for decarbonization and retrofit, and their renewal. His expertise is diverse and includes facade systems and cladding, decarbonization, the science and art of building enclosures, roofs and vegetated roofs, building retrofits and renewal, sustainable services, and integrated design facilitation for new and existing buildings. Scott’s project experience includes commercial, institutional, heritage, recreational, mid‐ and high‐rise residential, and neighbourhood developments in Canada, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. A LEED Accredited Professional, past Secretary and Board member of the CaGBC Greater Toronto Chapter, a Building Science Specialist (BSS), and Certified Engineering Technologist (CET), Scott successfully bridges the traditional gap between architectural and engineering disciplines.
Session:
CE18- Deep Retrofits: Carbon Reduction and Resilience Strategies for Housing
Sean Fine
OAA, AIA Managing Director Weston Williamson
Sean Fine is an Ontario, California, and Florida architect with more than 18 years of experience. He has worked on a broad variety of project types; including airports, rail stations, museums, courthouses, large multi‐family residential buildings, tenant improvements, historic preservation, and adaptive reuse. Sean leads the Transit Oriented Communities team as Technical Advisor for the Yonge North Subway Extension and Scarborough Subway Extensions. His work is focused on the integration and interface between development and transit buildings from a financial, physical, and governance perspective. Sean
has worked in multiple jurisdictions throughout North America, and is currently leading WWP’s North American operations.
Session:
CE38- Toward Good Governance: The Making of Transit‐Oriented Communities
Shahrzad Davoudi-Strike
Manager of Urban Design and Cultural Heritage, City of Vaughan
Shahrzad Davoudi-Strike is the manager of urban design and cultural heritage in the City of Vaughan, overseeing a multi disciplinary team of urban designers, architects, landscape architects, heritage planners, and project managers delivering expertise in urban design and cultural heritage to both policy and development planning departments, as well as delivering a wide range of capital projects such as feasibility studies, design guidelines, listing/designating heritage resources, streetscape design, and construction within intensification areas.
Prior to joining the city, Shahrzad worked in private sector for over 15 years as an urban designer and project manager on a wide variety of project types, scales and scopes, ranging from visioning studies, to detail design development for mixed-use developments both in Canada and overseas. She is also a qualified Land Use Planner and Urban Designer at the Ontario Land Tribunal and have provided expert design and planning evidence on behalf of developers and communities.
Session:
CE61- Meet your Municipal Urban Design Leaders!
Sharon Mittman
Manager, Urban Design, City of Mississauga
Sharon Mittmann is the manager of urban design at the City of Mississauga, the sixth largest city in Canada. She has an undergraduate degree in architectural science from Toronto Metropolitan University and a master’s in city planning from the University of Manitoba. She held several positions of increasing responsibility in areas that include architectural control, policy development, heritage planning, and special-needs housing prior to joining Mississauga in 1999. In her current role, she works in the Planning and Building Department, and directs a team of urban designers, architects, landscape architects, and landscape architectural technologists. Her team develops strategic policies and implementation plans, as well as provides expert review of development applications to ensure great urban design as the City of Mississauga grows and develops at a rapid pace. Sharon is passionate about how developments interact with the public realm. She is a former board member of the Design Industry Advisory Committee (DIAC) and an active member of the CanU Urbanizing Suburbia Caucus.
Session:
CE61- Meet your Municipal Urban Design Leaders!
Sidsel Vincents Jansen
Sustainability Lead, Formfaktor
Sidsel Vincents Jansen is a master student at the Technical University of Denmark where she specializes in building information modelling (BIM), sustainability, life cycle assessment (LCA) calculations, and machine learning. Sidsel works as a student assistant at Formfaktor, where she has been a key driver in the development of DesignLCA that is a 100% BIM‐based LCA calculator. Sidsel continues to be an integral part of the continuous further development of DesignLCA. On several occasions, Sidsel has presented DesignLCA at trainings, seminars, as well as webinars.
Session:
CE53- LCA as Part of the Building Codes: Learning from Denmark
Simon Edwards
M.Eng., P. Eng., Associate, Senior Acoustical Engineer, Howe Gastmeier Chapnik Limited
Simon Edwards is a member of HGC’s built environment division, whose acoustical work has spanned the permitting, design, construction, and post‐ occupancy phases of residential and commercial buildings. He has experience working on buildings of every material type. Simon is a leader in HVAC noise control and an expert at conducting sound transmission testing (e.g., ASTC, NIC, AIIC, and ISR), including both theoretical calculations and experimental sound transmission testing (“Kij Testing”) to specifically evaluate sound transmission flanking in accordance with ISO 12354 and ISO 10848. He is a member of both the ISO and ASTM Technical Committees on Building Acoustics and a contributing member to the development of ongoing ISO and ASTM standards that govern industry‐wide measurement and calculation methodologies around the world.
Session:
CE36- Raise the Roof on Innovative Mass Timber Vertical Additions
Stephanie Hong
OPPI, CIP, RPP, Qualified Land‐Use Planner Planning Lead, Weston Williamson
Stephanie Hong is the planning lead at WW+P’s Toronto and Montreal studios. She holds 10 years of professional work experience in the public sector and non‐governmental organizations. She is a qualified expert witness on land use planning matters at the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) and Toronto Local Appeal Body (TLAB). Her in‐depth knowledge of Ontario’s planning system and various policies is credited to her previous experience as planner for the City of Toronto on a variety of both small and large‐scaled development projects surrounding major transit station areas in downtown Toronto and North York.
Session:
CE38- Toward Good Governance: The Making of Transit‐Oriented Communities
Steve Murray
P. Eng., BECxP, Principal, Director, Building Science, Morrison Hershfield
Steve Murray has broad experience in new construction, rehabilitation of existing buildings, and deep energy retrofits targeting Passive House and Zero Carbon performance. He has developed expertise with six-storey timber-framed low-rise structures and multi-storey mass timber buildings and the unique envelope challenges they entail. Recent work has focused on high-performance buildings pursuing Passive House and Zero Carbon Building certifications, and the Building Envelope Commissioning (BECx) processes necessary to achieve these objectives. Steve has particular expertise with pre-fabricated envelope systems for both new construction and retrofit projects. He thrives in providing architect and developer clients with envelope design assistance, design review, and energy optimization advice.
Session:
CE21- Amicable Separations: WBAL Testing and Connected Buildings
Sudipto Sengupta
Hon.B.A.S, M.Arch, OAA Principal, Studio JCI
With more than 15 years of experience in design and project management, Sudipto Sengupta plays a pivotal leadership role in establishing Studio JCI’s project delivery standards, core values, and culture. Sudipto has overseen numerous landmark projects at the firm that encompass commercial interiors, custom homes, mid‐ rise designs, a 45‐storey residential tower in Toronto’s Weston Village, and a master‐planned community in Napanee. Sudipto’s commitment to design excellence is complemented by his comprehensive knowledge and experience, spanning feasibility studies, design development, project phasing, construction, and site contract administration. In his role as principal, Sudipto leads by example, guiding colleagues to comprehend the broader picture of development and how architects’ creativity can enhance processes, engage stakeholders, and contribute to the community. Sudipto serves as a mentor who champions an inclusive and respectful work environment, promotes collaboration by leveraging individual strengths, and fosters professional development at every career stage. A recipient of the E. Lewis Dales Travelling Fellowship, Sudipto earned a master’s degree of architecture and a certificate in urban design from the Weitzman School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania, furthering his education at the Architectural Association in London.
Session:
CE55- Development Triage: Reviving Projects Impacted by the Pandemic
Tam Tran
OAA, AAA, MAA, MRAIC, M.Arch., B.A.S. (Co‐op) Global Discipline Director Hatch Architecture Ltd.
Tam Tran is an architect in the provinces of Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta with over 19 years of experience in architectural design and project management. Tam oversees design production teams and consultants from conceptual design through completed construction for a range of project delivery methods. His responsibilities have included schematic design and optioneering, critical review and design selection, design, code compliance reviews, contract document preparation, as well as contract administration and construction supervision. Tam’s expertise includes providing design advice while ensuring collaboration and communication between all internal resources and external stakeholders throughout the life of the project. He has excellent analytical, interpersonal, and technical skills to address infrastructure‐related architectural projects. Tam has a comprehensive knowledge of the NBC, OBC, TTC Design Manual, and the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
Session:
CE41- Pedestrian Modelling: Micro‐ Simulation to Understand Traffic Flow Within Buildings
Tara Bisharat
OAA, Space and Earth Architect, Founder, Consultant, Designer
An Earth and Space Architect, Tara is an OAA Architect with experience in Germany and Canada. Tara’s project experience includes science and research centres, educational campuses, condominiums, and high‐rise projects. She completed a B.Sc. in Architecture and a M.Sc. in Space Architecture, and has a passion for designing and engineering habitats for extreme and extraterrestrial environments. Tara's field of study and research is in additive construction and innovative construction solutions for Earth and beyond, and her work focuses on systems engineering and mission planning for habitats that can be built in‐ situ using local materials and resources.
Session:
CE57- Additive Construction: 3D Printing of Concrete Vernacular Architecture
Ted Watson
Partner, MJMA Architecture & Design
A partner at MJMA Architecture & Design, Ted Watson focuses on the design of comprehensive public space, collaboratively leading the design of many of the studio’s most challenging and ambitious projects. He brings 25 years of experience focused on projects in the recreational, community, and academic sectors. Framing design solutions around social, technical, and environmental challenges, Ted strives to advance the architecture of these project typologies as critical infrastructure for collective human engagement—aiming to ‘Elevate the Civic Experience’ and create impact beyond the immediate site.
Session:
CE12- Accelerating the Decarbonization of Community Buildings
Thomas Graabæk
CEO, Formfaktor
Thomas Graabæk is an experienced keynote speaker within all areas of building information modelling (BIM), digitization of the building industry, life cycle assessment (LCA), and OpenBIM. Since 2020, he has been owner of Formfaktor, a BIM‐focused software developer and reseller company. Prior, he was a partner in a BIM consultancy for seven years and practised internationally as an architect for a decade. In autumn of 2019, he helped establish buildingSMART Denmark as a subsidiary of MOLIO, and has worked as a consultant for buildingSMART for the past four years. Thomas holds a master’s degree in architecture from the Danish Royal Academy of fine Arts in Copenhagen from 2002.
Session:
CE53- LCA as Part of the Building Codes: Learning from Denmark
Toon Dreessen
OAA, FRAIC, AIA, LEED AP, President DCA Architects Inc.
Toon Dreessen is a graduate of Carleton University, served as OAA President (2015 and 2016), and was inducted into the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) College of Fellows and the OAA Order of da Vinci. He leads Architects DCA and is responsible for award‐winning and high‐profile projects. DCA is a company with roots dating back more than 40 years and is ISO 9001:2015 Certified. He leads the company’s activism and the role of architects in a strategic, visionary, and thoughtful planning.
Session:
CE49- Growing a Public Conversation on the Built Environment
Tura Cousins Wilson
Architect, Studio of Contemporary Architecture (SOCA)
Tura Cousins Wilson is an architect, educator, and cofounder of the Studio of Contemporary Architecture (SOCA), based in Toronto. He is inspired by creating uplifting spaces of beauty and contends that architecture’s power lies in its ability to transform collective imaginations and narratives into reality. His professional experience and interest span a variety of scales and types including housing, cultural spaces, heritage, urban design, exhibition design, and public art. Tura is equally passionate about the impact of small‐scale architecture and exploring the craft and intimacy of private residential design. Tura received an undergraduate degree in architecture from Toronto Metropolitan University, a master’s degree in architecture, urbanism, building sciences from Delft University of Technology, and is an architect in both Ontario and the Netherlands. He is a founding member of the Black Architects and Interior Designers Association in Canada (BAIDA) and currently a sessional instructor at the University of Toronto and Toronto Metropolitan University.
Session:
CE60- c/a/n/a/d/a'a Not For Sale Campaign: Architecture and Activism in Action
Tyler Walker
Principal, MJMA Architecture & Design
A principal at MJMA, Tyler brings thoughtfulness and rigour to every project, balancing simplicity, functionality, and attention to materials to realize the aspirations of the communities with whom he works. Tyler believes the primary aim of design should be furthering human well-being, and his focus at MJMA has been the research and advancement of sustainability–in particular, mass timber structures. He has a wide-ranging portfolio that encompasses community, recreation, and campus architecture, with recent examples including the Churchill Meadows Community Centre in Mississauga, and the Neil Campbell Rowing Centre in Port Dalhousie.
Session:
EL06 - Walker Sports and Abilities Centre and the Neil Campbell Rowing Centre
Ute-Maya Giambattista
B.Arch, M.Pl., RPP, MCIP, LEED AP, Principal, Urban Design, O2 Planning and Design
As an urban designer and planner, Ute Maya-Giambattista approaches her work with the understanding that design can be a vehicle for creating healthy places and communities while being aware of the complexities of urban spaces and the potential of infrastructure to transform the vitality of a place. Integral to all her management and design work is her commitment to the integration of social, economic, and environmentally sustainable practices from the early stages of the process. With more than 22 years of practice, Ute’s experience in Canada, the United States, Russia, and China include site, master, and community planning developments ranging in size from 10 to 8,000 acres, working for private and public clients.
Ute is the President of the Council for Canadian Urbanism a thinktank focused on urbanism matters across the country, a member of the City of Vaughan Design Review Panel, a member of the Province of Ontario’s provincially appointed AODA Design of Public Spaces Standards Development committee, the Vice-President of the Toronto Design Industry Advisory Committee, a past member of the Planning Issues Strategic Group at OPPI and the past chair of the Women’s Leadership Initiative Allies in Action sub-committee at the Urban Land Institute. Ute is a member of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute and the Canadian Institute of Planners.
Session:
CE54 - Moving Toward Complete Communities
Walton Chan
OAA, MRAIC, Senior Associate, Diamond Schmitt Architects
Walton is a senior associate with Diamond Schmitt. He has a degree in electrical engineering and a master’s degree in architecture. After his architectural studies, Walton worked in Egypt as surveyor, architect, and designer for an archaeological mission based in Cairo. He joined Diamond Schmitt in 2001. Walton’s diverse experience includes the Weston Innovation Centre at the Ontario Science Centre, Fanshawe College’s School of Tourism, Hospitality, and Culinary Arts (which incorporated the heritage Kingsmill Building in downtown London, Ont.), the $136M expansion of the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary, and the Thompson Rivers University Law School in Kamloops, B.C.
His portfolio includes the LEED Platinum-certified Centre for Green Cities at Evergreen Brick Works in Toronto, the LEED Platinum-certified Algonquin Centre for Construction Excellence at Algonquin College in Ottawa, and the LEED Gold-certified Southbrook Vineyards in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Within the last five years, he has demonstrated leadership in Diamond Schmitt’s growing portfolio of transit projects, including Ottawa’s Confederation Line Extension, the new, mass-timber SmartCentres Place Bus Terminal at the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre, and the Allandale Transit Terminal in Barrie, which is targeting Net Zero Energy. Walton’s recent engagements include skilled trades centres for Conestoga College and Georgian College.
Session:
EL10 - Sustainable Visions: Architectural Excellence at Stratus and Southbrook Wineries
Ya'el Santopinto
OAA, FRAIC, Principal, ERA Architects
Ya’el Santopinto is a Principal at ERA Architects, where she leads the deep retrofit and affordable housing practice. Ya’el is also the Director of Research and Partnerships at the Centre for Urban Growth and Renewal (CUG+R), a non‐ profit organization advocating for supportive policy frameworks around the preservation of Canada’s affordable apartment housing supply, and leads research related to Tower Renewal initiatives to catalyze reinvestment and community building in apartment tower neighbourhoods. Ya’el has overseen the retrofit over 1,500 units of housing for not for profit and public housing providers including the ground‐breaking Ken Soble Tower.
Session:
CE50- Preservation is Supply: Tower Renewal and the Canadian Housing Crisis
Yew‐Thong Leong
OAA, FRAIC, Professor, Toronto Metropolitan University
Yew‐Thong Leong is associate professor at Toronto Metropolitan University and managing director of ssg architecture inc. A graduate of Ryerson University and the Pratt Institute in New York, he has taught and practised concurrently for close to four decades. He has designed clinical and research labs in the life sciences, healthcare and long‐term care facilities, and specialized housing.
Session:
CE51- Healthy Housing: People‐Planet Integration