As the national voice for architecture in Canada, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) plays an active role in shaping the global architectural conversation. The RAIC’s international mandate reflects a commitment to advancing Canadian architecture on the world stage fostering collaboration, learning, and knowledge exchange across borders.
Through partnerships with international organizations, the RAIC ensures that Canadian architects are connected to global networks of advocacy, innovation, and professional excellence. These relationships allow the RAIC and its members to learn from international best practices while sharing Canadian leadership, values, and expertise in return.
The RAIC’s international engagement supports its Strategic Plan priorities: Advancing Excellence in Architecture, Championing Sustainability and Climate Action, and Strengthening the Profession through Connection and Collaboration and is realized through participation in key global and regional networks:
Commonwealth Association of Architects (CAA)
The RAIC advances its objectives through active engagement with the Commonwealth Association of Architects (CAA), a global network that connects national architectural organizations across the Commonwealth.
This engagement reflects the RAIC’s commitment to advocacy, sustainability, and advancing architectural excellence, aligning directly with the CAA’s mission to foster cooperation among member organizations, promote architecture’s role in sustainable development, and address the challenges of rapid urbanization and climate change.
Through its involvement in the CAA Knowledge Sharing Partnership and in Professional Development and Education initiatives, the RAIC contributes to collective learning, capacity-building, and the strengthening of professional standards across regions. These activities reinforce the RAIC’s strategic goal of expanding global collaboration and leadership in sustainability and climate action, while ensuring that Canadian insight and expertise both inform and are enriched by the broader international architectural community.
By engaging in the CAA’s work, the RAIC fulfills its mandate to position Canadian architecture within a global framework of knowledge exchange, sustainability, and professional excellence.
Federación Panamericana de Asociaciones de Arquitectos (FPAA)
The RAIC engages actively with the Federación Panamericana de Asociaciones de Arquitectos (FPAA), the regional organization that unites national associations of architects across the Americas.
The FPAA’s focus is to promote unity, cooperation, and the professional and cultural advancement of architecture throughout the continent. It encourages collaboration among member countries, fosters the exchange of ideas and best practices, and advocates for architecture’s role in addressing shared regional priorities including sustainable development, heritage preservation, social well-being, and climate resilience.
Through its participation in the FPAA, the RAIC contributes Canadian leadership and expertise to pan-American initiatives that strengthen the architectural profession and its impact on communities. This engagement reflects the RAIC’s strategic priorities of advancing design excellence, championing sustainability and climate action, and fostering collaboration across borders ensuring that Canadian values and innovation inform, and are informed by, the broader architectural dialogue throughout the Americas.
The “Five I’s” Partnership
The RAIC actively participates in the “Five I’s” strategic partnerships among the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), Australian Institute of Architects, Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects, and the RAIC.
This collaboration supports the RAIC’s strategic goal of connecting the profession and strengthening international relationships by fostering ongoing dialogue among leading national institutes. Through the exchange of knowledge, resources, and best practices, the alliance promotes shared learning and reinforces a collective commitment to architectural excellence, ethics, and sustainability.
The RAIC’s involvement in the Five I’s enables Canada to both contribute to and benefit from international perspectives on the profession’s most pressing issues from climate action and education to professional standards and innovation. Through this work, the RAIC advances its strategic objective to strengthen Canada’s voice in the global architectural community while learning from others and sharing Canadian leadership and creativity in return.