There is a notable disproportionate representation of Black, Indigenous and Persons of Colour (BIPOC) within the architecture and design professions. Gensler is committed to developing mentorship and community engagements to further enrich the design professions with a variety of cultural views and practices. Gensler Toronto is partnering with BAIDA (Black Architects and Interior Designers Association) and BEAT (Building Equality in Architecture Toronto), to host a virtual BIPOC Portfolio Collaboration.

Students that identify as Black, Indigenous or Persons of Colour are invited to participate in a portfolio review session to align with the upcoming Design TO festival on January 29, 2021.   

Join Gensler, along with other leading Canadian architects and designers, for a collaborative review of resumes and portfolios to assist this generation with the next steps of their careers. Students will be granted a half hour review session with two professionals within the fields of architecture, interior design, landscape architecture or architectural technology. This will be an opportunity for students to engage conversation with members of the design community while refining their interview skills. Strategies and advice will be shared by all participants to gear students towards design excellence and enrichment within their future careers.

BEA Canada is pleased to announce that we have joined hands with Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design, University of Toronto and the Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture, McGill University to celebrate and honour the lifetime achievements of Blanche Lemco van Ginkel - Architect, urban planner, educator, and activist.  

Speakers:
Phyllis Lambert (Canadian Centre for Architecture)
Mary McLeod (Columbia University)
Ipek Mehmetoglu (McGill University)

with an excerpt from 'City Dreamers,' a film by Joseph Hillel

Moderated by
Brigitte Shim (Daniels Faculty) and
Laura Miller (Daniels Faculty).

As an architect, urban planner, educator, and activist, Blanche Lemco van Ginkel has inspired generations of architects. With H.P. Daniel (Sandy) van Ginkel, she founded the firm Van Ginkel Associates in 1957. The firm’s work is distinguished for its integration of planning and architecture and bold, Modernist solutions. 

Lemco van Ginkel is also distinguished as an architectural educator. Following her graduation in architecture from McGill University (1945) and in city planning from Harvard University (1950), she taught at the University of Pennsylvania (1951-57), Harvard University, Université de Montréal, and McGill University. In 1977, she joined the University of Toronto, where she served as Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Landscape Architecture from 1980-82. 

In 2014, McGill University awarded Blanche Lemco van Ginkel an honorary doctorate. This year, 2020, she has been awarded the Lifetime Design Achievement award from the Ontario Association of Architects and the Gold Medal from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, reflecting her extraordinary contributions.

*When completing the RSVP form, please check BEA supporter/BEAT member.*

About the speakers:

Supported by:
Ontario Association of Architects (OAA)
Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC)

LET’S GET WITH THE BEAT!

 One of the reasons women leave the architecture profession at a higher rate than men is due to:

Being sidelined to limited areas of work, often based on protective paternalism, preventing development experience *

The Facades Conference will  be coming to Toronto on Friday October 11th, 2019.  It will be bringing together some of the world’s most productive building professionals.  This is an opportunity to be inspired and learn how to innovate all steps of facade implementation, from systems and materials to designs and delivery strategies.

 BEAT will be giving away 10 complimentary Student Tickets to the event!  To qualify for the draw – all contestants need to complete CONTEST ENTRY by Thursday October 3, 2019 at noon.

Winning names will be drawn on October 4, 2019 at noon.  Successful recipients will be contacted via email and their names and schools posted on BEAT website and social media platform.

Tickets are non-transferable so please ensure that you are available to attend Facades Conference on October 11th prior to entering raffle!    

* Canadian Architect; “Because It’s 2017: Gender Diversity in Canada’s Architecture Profession”  February 2018

Bringing together some of the world’s most productive building professionals

Be inspired and learn how to innovate all steps of facade implementation, from systems and materials to designs and delivery strategies.

The Symposium -

Attend a full day of stimulating presentations and panels that examines the fast-paced evolution of facade technology, addresses new perspectives on building skins, and explores innovative, sustainable design practices. Includes access to Methods+Materials Sponsor Gallery.

The Expo Floor -

Visit the Methods + Materials gallery to meet with industry-leading manufactures of every possible product from cladding, glazing, framing + facade systems to advanced materials and services. Over sixty companies on hand to field questions and demo products for all of your project needs.

The Workshops -

Engage in in-depth conversations with the industry’s leading design professionals in an intimate, seminar-style setting. Customize your schedule by selecting one morning and one afternoon sessions which match your level of expertise and interest.

People notice race and colour. There is no alternative to getting around this fact. Many senior and executive leadership teams avoid conversations about race and colour out of fear of saying the wrong thing. Many people of colour avoid these conversations in the workplace out of fear of being seen as a com-plainer, disruptor — or worse. But pretending that the elephant in the room isn’t there won’t make the current challenges and barriers faced by many in the workplace go away.

What we know is despite Toronto’s demographic composition of being comprised of over 52% people of colour, there are less than 15% in senior and executive leadership positions. Racial and ethnic diversity in the workplace – from recruitment to the advancement of people of colour – continues to progress at an unimpressive pace. The needle is moving so slowly that it appears to be broken.

With organizational culture being so critical, it is the responsibility of senior and executive leadership
teams to create an environment that fosters success among employees from all backgrounds.

Therefore, striving to establish an equitable and inclusive organizational culture just may be the single
most crucial factor in building a diverse workforce.

A meaningful conversation on the importance of partnerships between men and women focused on race, colour and gender equity. While most IWD events have showcased women only themes, our intent is to spotlight how men are required to be included in the conversation, recognizing that inclusion and the advancement of equity in leadership is not a women’s issue, it is a collective opportunity to elevate business strategy.

The Conversation continues! BEAT’s Managing Director, Camille Mitchell, will join an incredible panel with a broad range of experience for the Matrix360 and International Women’s Day discussion on Race, Colour and Gender within the Real Estate Industry!

Register Here: https://bit.ly/2YzH9yE hashtag#leadership hashtag#inclusion hashtag#equity hashtag#gender hashtag#IWD2019

On June 22, the day after the 2019 AZ Awards Gala, Azure will host a talk by the legendary landscape architect – and climate change activist – Martha Schwartz.

Martha Schwartz is renowned for the vibrant public spaces she has created around the world over the past 40 years: Village of Yorkville Park in Toronto, completed in 1995; Jacob Javits Plaza in New York (1997); the landscaping for the Swiss Re Headquarters in Munich; the re-programming of Place de la République in Paris and a new central park for the Beiqijia Technology Business District in Beijing. Her firm continues to design exhilarating landscapes around the world.

Schwartz herself, however, has switched gears in the past few years. In what she calls her “second career” she is pressing the landscape architecture profession to confront the realities of climate change. In tandem with her work as a tenured professor in practice of landscape of architecture at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, where she is teaching climate change mitigation, she is also a founding member of the university’s Working Group of Sustainable Cities at and an active member of the Landscape Architecture Foundation Climate Change Task Force.

In “The Long and Winding Road: Landscape, Art, and My Existential Crisis,” the topic of her Azure Talks presentation, Schwartz will discuss the beginning of her career in art, which set the trajectory for her practice – now in its fourth decade – and shaped the field of landscape architecture. And then she will turn to the topic of the climate crisis, and how she has turned her attention in academia towards understanding the science of climate change as well as the solutions that may help to create a pathway forward – with the aim of encouraging others to participate and act in behalf of achieving climate stability.

This talk qualifies for one ConEd structured learning hour. A certificate will be provided by request, post-event.

This Azure Talk is generously supported by our sponsors, Arper and Scavolini; in partnership with the George Brown School of Design.

Over the last 50 years, Toronto has undergone a startling transformation, developing into one of the world's most culturally and economically dynamic cities. That renaissance is the subject of Toronto Reborn, Ken Greenberg's riveting new account of how the work and decisions of citizens, NGOs, businesses, and governments have all combined to refashion Toronto since the 1970s. Join Greenberg, one of the world's foremost urban designers, as he discusses this remarkable rebirth with former Mayor of Toronto, David Crombie, widely credited for kickstarting the revitalization of the city's neighbourhoods and institutions. At this Toronto debut, the two bold thinkers will assess the challenges that still must be addressed to realize our city’s potential: will Toronto become one of the great, innovative and inclusive global cities of the 21st century, or will it be stymied by inequality and political polarization?

Moderated by Mary Wiens, award-winning journalist and producer for CBC's Metro Morning.

Book sale and signing to follow.

Perimeter Institute will host an inspirational half day conference on Thursday, March 7, 2019. The goal is to bring together like-minded young women with a strong interest in science and expose them to the rewards, challenges, and possibilities of a career in science.

BEAT’s Managing Director Camille Mitchell will be a panelist for the event.

Join us for the official launch of Building Equality in Architecture Atlantic (BEA Atlantic) for Nova Scotia, held at 2 Crows Brewing Co. on Thursday January 17, 2019 from 7:30 PM – 10:30 PM in partnership with Building Equality in Architecture Toronto (BEAT), a not for profit organization promoting diversity and equity for the profession of architecture. We invite friends, partners, allies, and colleagues to celebrate this exciting initiative and engage in the event by coming together to share ideas on how to propel the initiative forward in Atlantic Canada and celebrate the leaders of respective fields on the east coast.

BEAT’s Managing Director, Camille Mitchell, will be a featured speaker at Toronto’s Interior Design Show in January!

Gender, Race and the Incessant Obstacle Course

The proverbial glass ceiling is an ineffective metaphor to describe the barriers of women, visible minorities and marginalized groups within the architecture profession. There is not a singular challenge or trajectory to overcome when yearning to achieve effective work-life balance, a healthy work environment, or professional recognition. These are among the numerous inherent challenges that young women will encounter along an incessant obstacle course throughout their careers within the architecture profession. And each “obstacle course” is unique to the individual who may decide to endure it or leave if they are not presented opportunities while striving to overcome the many challenges facing them throughout their careers.

Camille Mitchell Architect, KPMB Architects

Camille Mitchell has been a part of the design team of KPMB Architects since graduating from the University of Waterloo School of Architecture. She was recently part of the design team for the of new Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and is currently a project architect for a new commercial tower development at Bay Adelaide Centre in Toronto. Camille is currently volunteering as the director for the independent organization Building Equality in Architecture, Toronto (BEAT) whose programs are dedicated to creating events and web content that support mentorship, networking and leadership opportunities for women and visible minorities in the profession. She is a firm believer in involving visible minority groups in designing their built environments and participating in various STEM programs. Camille is passionate about promoting architecture as a profession to youth and marginalized communities through career workshops and as a member of OCADU’s Black Youth Design Initiative. She continues to serve as a mentor with the Lifelong Leadership Institute, a program that promotes excellence amongst Black students as they transition to post-secondary education, work that was captured in the CBC Television documentary HERstory in Black that aired September 2017.