It's time to renew your membership for the coming year. The RAIC has had a challenging and productive year amidst the global pandemic. The RAIC fiercely advocates for our members and the built environment, and are proud to offer new and innovative ways to save you money, provide opportunities, and help keep you stay connected.  

Renew online quickly and easily with a credit card or select the cheque option to be emailed an invoice.

You can also renew by phone at 1-844-856-RAIC (7242) ext 2000.

Presented by:  The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and the U.S. Embassy in Canada 

Date: Thursday, January 21, 2021 

Time: 1:00 p.m. ET  

Free for Members

In celebration of the first anniversary of the Accessible Canada Act and the 30th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the RAIC and the U.S. Embassy are coming together to present a one-hour discussion on the similarities, differences, challenges, and opportunities that these two national acts pose for architects, and those they are designing for.  Canadian architect Annie Boivin and American architect Karen L. Braitmayer will present their experiences and insights on designing functional, accessible, barrier-free environments that are inclusive for all users. Host Thea Kurdi will also address the landmark legislation in both countries, the development of accessibilities codes, and the implications for the design and building industries. A moderated Q+A session will explore the similarities and differences that these two national approaches pose to accessible design.   
 

The RAIC is saddened to announce the passing of Barry W. Sampson FRAIC. Barry’s influence on both the professional practice in Canada, through his work as a principal at Baird Sampson Neuert Architects, and through education as a professor emeritus in the Daniels Faculty at the University of Toronto, was immense. 

Barry was known for his generosity, passion and expertise in the architectural field, and he will be missed by his family, friends, colleagues, and all those who had the pleasure of knowing him. 

Join the Climate Action Community on RAIC Connects! Here, members can post climate-related questions, participate in discussion threads on pertinent topics, stay up to date with the latest 2021 Congress on Architecture news, and meet other members interested in sustainable and regenerative design.  

Following the launch of the RAIC Members community, RAIC Connects is excited to be adding topic-specific communities where members can come together over shared interests and areas of practice. Be sure to watch for more communities coming soon. All open communities can be found be found in the Explore Communities > All Communities menu. 

Our organization is proud to partner with BMS Canada Risk Services (BMS) to offer the RAIC Insurance Program—which has been offered since 2018. In this edition of RISK Insight, BMS delves into the full breadth of services offered in the program and highlights common questions architects may have about their insurance policy and plan. 
 
View the BMS Risk Insight magazine for the RAIC. 

Find out more about the RAIC Insurance Program.

The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada invites submissions for its portfolio of annual awards for 2021.

The categories under the Awards of Excellence include:
- Advocate for Architecture

- Allied Arts Medal

- Green Building—in partnership with Canada Green Building Council

- Innovation in Architecture

- President’s Award for Multimedia Representations of Architecture

The deadline for consideration is January 22, 2021. Entrants are solely responsible for timely submissions. This date and time are firm without exceptions.

Join us in thanking Uniglobe Travel for donating two $500 gift certificates as the top prizes for the 2020 RAIC Industry Knowledge Hub.

Uniglobe Travel is a leading provider of travel management services in Western Canada. As part of a large, global organization with agencies in more than 60 countries across six continents, Uniglobe Travel is a recognized brand. They specialize in managing the diverse and changing travel needs of companies and travelers.

The RAIC Foundation is pleased to announce a new student scholarship to be launched in the 2022-2023 academic year. The Vince Catalli Scholarship in Sustainable Design Innovation has been created to promote and encourage innovative, practical, scalable and transferable approaches to sustainable design among the next generation of architects in Canada.

Endowed by a generous donation from Vince Catalli, this award will be open to students in the last two years of a professional degree program in a registered school of architecture anywhere in Canada, or in Part III of the RAIC Syllabus Program.

Vince Catalli studied architecture at Carleton University, then worked as a student and intern in the offices of KPMB, WZMH and Leonard Koffman. While facing employment uncertainties in the unpredictable economy of the 1990s, he attended an OAA conference where he had what he calls ‘a light-bulb’ moment.

Listening to a lecture by William McDonough, Vince learned about the concept of Cradle to Cradle design, the circular economy, the complexity and opacity of supply chains and the harm being done through the use of toxic substances in consumer goods. From that moment on, he decided to devote his career to the promotion of sustainable design. After an intensive process of self-education, he started his first consulting firm, By Design Consultants in 1994. Finding himself ahead of the green building curve, he began initiating projects of his own.

As market transformation began in the late 1990’s , Vince worked on consulting contracts with public and private sector clients till 2005, then later spent time with architects HOK as their Business Development Manager and with the Canadian cement industry as their first Director of Sustainability. His recent major contract was with the federal government, developing a strategic framework for the identification and implementation of a climate change resilience plan for the Parliamentary Precinct in Ottawa.

Asked why he chose to endow a scholarship of this kind, he replied:
“I always valued my architectural education because it caused me to think, to problem-solve with people and enabled me to work on very tangible things that positively affect people’s lives. It is all very rich and gratifying and I want to encourage the next generation to find and develop a similar passion.”

Vince will be actively involved in the first few years of the scholarship, promoting it to architectural schools and acting as a professional advisor to the jury.

The RAIC Foundation would like to extend its profound thanks to Vince Catalli for initiating this scholarship and looks forward to working with him as the scholarship program unfolds.

Jim Taggart FRAIC
Executive Director, RAIC Foundation
T: 604 874 0195
E: foundation@raicf.ca
W: www.raicf.ca