Nunavut Inuit Heritage Centre: International Design Competition - INTERN

Nunavut Inuit Heritage Centre: International Design Competition

This webinar is part of the RAIC 2024 Conference on Architecture, now available to stream!

Topics: History, Heritage and Culture

Length: 1 hour | What's Included: Video, Quiz, and Certificate of Completion 

The Nunavut Inuit Heritage Trust (NIHT) hosted a unique international architectural competition to select architects for the Nunavut Inuit Heritage Center, a project that was promised in the Nunavut Agreement 30 years ago. This session explores the unusual approach and successful conclusion of this international competition. An approximately 55,000 ft2 Centre will be built in Iqaluit with a mandate to foster the development of centres in each region and coordinate territory-wide collaborative exhibitions and programs. The NIHC will focus on living heritage – the continuity of Inuit culture and language, the preservation and exhibition of cultural belongings, artifacts and specimens, and support reconciliation and healing by bridging generations and allowing Inuit to connect with their Elders and ancestors as well as with non-Inuit through objects and stories.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Discuss innovative ways of selecting architects for significant cultural facilities
• Recognize ways in which Inuit culture influenced the design of the architectural selection process as well as the result of the competition
• Implement new insight into future arctic development strategies
• Explain how Canada and Nunavut participate in international conversations about contemporary architectural and cultural expression.

Subject Matter Expert:

Vivian Manasc
AOE, Architect, AAA, AIBC, NWTAA, SAA, PP/FRAIC, LEED AP
Principal Architect, reimagine Architects

Vivian Manasc heads Reimagine, a global Architectural and Engineering Studio with 100 team members and offices in Canada and the EU. She's an RAIC Past President with over 30 years of leadership in professional organizations. Vivian leads Reimagine's designs, including projects like LEED Gold Water Centre in Calgary, Calgary's EOC, and urban revitalization works such as WSP Place in Edmonton.

She served on the National Capital Commission Advisory Committee on Design, chaired Athabasca University's Board of Governors, and is an Order of Athabasca University member. In 2017, she received the Alberta Order of Excellence and an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Alberta in 2019. Vivian has also been a juror and Jury Chair for the Canadian Foundation for Innovation [CFI].

Since 1985, Vivian has designed alongside First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut. Her latest book, "Old Stories New Ways," shares her journey in sustainable buildings with these communities.

Nicole Luke
B.Env.D, MARCH,
Intern Architect, Verne Reimer Architecture

Nicole Luke, B.Env.D, M.ARCH - is an emerging Indigenous architectural intern who is passionate about culture and design. Born in the territories with family residing in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut, she is one of the first Inuk graduates to receive her Bachelor's and Master’s Degrees from the University of Manitoba. She aspires to be one of the first Inuit architects in Canada and aims to involve herself in projects that will inspire youth in northern communities to pursue education in the design field. She is dedicated to Indigenous initiatives, learning sustainable building practices, and understanding her role as a designer. Nicole continually explores new opportunities in learning and leadership. She is a fellow for the Inuit Futures in Arts Leadership Project (The Pilimmaksarniq/ Pijariuqsarniq Project), which supports Inuit/Inuvialuit to become leaders in their communities and an Indigenous design consultant/representative for the Parliament of Canada Welcome Centre's restoration/renovations project.