Green Design

Passive House

A first Passive House retrofit in Halifax

Once complete, it will serve as an inspiration for others pursuing deep retrofits of existing buildings, an endeavour that offers the most hope for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Halifax.
standard

New standards for sustainable material use

A new set of standards defines minimum sustainability criteria for high-volume materials used in architecture and interior projects.
Centennial

Reconciling through design at Centennial College

A look at the recently completed $112-million expansion project at Centennial College built on Indigenous values.
net-zero

Archival preservation facility is a net-zero first

Library and Archives Canada’s new preservation storage facility opened as the first net-zero carbon archival centre in the Americas,
World Workplace

A recap of IFMA’s World Workplace

In the past, cleaning suppliers, landscapers, and pest control companies dominated FM shows. Not anymore.
Grande Prairie

Designing for patient dignity in Grande Prairie 

Inside the 681,000-square-foot facility, people are able to experience the landscape and natural light, even throughout Alberta’s harsh weather extremes.
shopping

Designing the shopping experience of the future

New theories on retail centre on how experiences, convenience and a sense of community can draw people to a physical site.
Passive House

Inside a Passive House first in Surrey, B.C.

Designing the ​​Clayton Community Centre to become Passive House certified for ultra-low energy use was no easy feat, especially since the international standard had never been pursued for this type of facility in North America.
Canada LEED

Greening your washroom for the good of the planet

Four tips for operating a more sustainable washroom in celebration of the International Day of Forests.
Deep Retrofit Challenge

York Region piloting Passive House at new facility

A new men's emergency and transitional housing facility, set to rise in Aurora, Ontario, has opened the door to pilot-testing Passive House in York Region.
healthcare facilities 

Guidelines inform resilient healthcare facilities 

Newly released guidelines offer a standard for approaching the planning and designing of healthcare facilities from a resiliency perspective.
campus

Campus high-rise brings health to new heights

Dingy is a word that conjures thoughts of old institutional spaces. Academic buildings with dimly-lit hallways and windowless classrooms punctured with fluorescent glare. Rarely are
Indigenous hub

Purpose-built Indigenous hub will be Ontario first

Construction is officially underway on what will be Ontario's first mixed-use, purpose-built Indigenous hub in the West Don Lands of Toronto.
Indigenous

Indigenous voices hushed in planning processes

Indigenous communities across Canada continue to be sidelined or completely excluded from initial planning phases of new developments and renovations.
zero carbon

Ottawa hockey facility a zero carbon first

How AMPED Sports Lab and Ice Complex in Ottawa, Ontario, became the first Zero Carbon Building Performance Standard certified arena.
VRCA trades

Vancouver’s largest seismically safe school underway

Construction has begun on Eric Hamber Secondary school, the largest seismic school replacement project in Vancouver’s history.
low-carbon

Can purchases help reverse global warming?

When considering products with recycled content, pay attention to the types of recycled materials that are in them.