View this email in your browser

ASC 102 Tower Performance

Upcoming Events

Student Opportunities

Pathways to Equity Bursary is now live until October 31, 2025

Equity-deserving students are encouraged to apply early. Bursaries will be awarded to eligible students with fully completed applications, after the closing date and on a first-come, first-served basis until exhausted. Review details and register for an information session below! 

Same competition – new name.

The International VELUX Award for students of architecture is relaunched as Light of Tomorrow by VELUX for the 2026 edition of the competition and award!

Kickstart your journey – REGISTER NOW

Begin your journey by downloading the Award Brief

To receive updates and notifications, registration details, and key dates for the 2026 edition – sign up for our newsletter.

Get inspired by browsing the 2024 projects and previous winners:

• The winning projects 2024
• All projects 2024

About Light of Tomorrow by VELUX 2026

The competition and award challenges students to explore the theme of daylight – to create a deeper understanding of this ever-relevant source of energy, light, and life.

The 2026 Steedman Fellowship invites proposals exploring the theme Collective Form / Forums, inspired by architect Fumihiko Maki’s influential ideas on architecture’s role in shaping pluralistic societies. This year’s fellowship asks how architecture can bring people together, amplify overlooked voices, and engage political and cultural challenges—particularly in the face of climate change and shifting collective values. Open worldwide to architects with a professional degree earned in the last eight years, the fellowship awards $100,000 for research to be completed within 18 months, with results shared through the Washington University and AIA St. Louis communities. Applications, including a portfolio, research proposal, and supporting materials, are due by November 1, 2025.

Submit your furniture design projects by Feb. 27, 2026, for your chance to win a trip to join Formica Corporation at NeoCon 2026 and a cash prize!

Formica Corporation invites architecture and design students to submit a furniture design embodying the theme “mood-boosting design”.

As expressive, meaningful and mood-boosting spaces are on the rise, Formica Corporation is inviting students to answer the call and create furniture pieces that inspire, emotionally uplift and spark joy. This can come to life, for example, with bold colors, unexpected color combinations, layered textures — all elements that can be achieved by experimenting with optical and physical textures across Formica Corporation’s product range. Pieces can be used for any residential and commercial setting and must incorporate at least three or more Formica® Brand and/or FENIX® products.

Critical intervention into the urban field requires first recognizing the contested spatial and institutional power dynamics that drive today’s urban and bio-regional crises. The 2026 Lyceum Fellowship competition asks participants to first expose and visualize a particular conflict—reflecting on the requisite political, economic, social, and spatial processes—then design the conditions to tackle this conflict.

TMU Programming

By promoting community standards of respect, civility and safety, TMU Student Care supports students in distress and those in need of personal support. Students, faculty and staff can contact the office by email studentcare@torontomu.ca.

Students in need of counselling may contact the Centre for Student Development and Counselling, at csdc@torontomu.ca. Indicate “Architecture” in the subject line for prioritized appointments.

If you are in distress and need immediate assistance, please reach out to: The Gerstein Centre 24/7 Distress Line, a free, confidential support line for anyone experiencing an emotional crisis and needing immediate assistance:  416-929-5200; or Good 2 Talk, a free, confidential counselling support line specifically for post-secondary school students:  1-866-925-5454

If you are concerned about your own safety or the safety of a TMU community member, please contact TMU Community Safety and Security at: 416-979-5040, security@torontomu.ca, or for emergencies, please call 911.

Saturday, November 8, 2025 | 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Fuel your curiosity and transform your future at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU)!

Join us for Discover TMU: Open House on Saturday, November 8, 2025, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.! Discover collaborative classrooms and immersive learning in the heart of the city. It’s your chance to explore TMU’s vibrant community, where students learn, grow and succeed together. Don’t miss your chance to experience your life as a TMU student.

Arriving early? Visit the TMU information tent on Gould Street starting at 10:30 a.m. Bring your questions, get directions and explore the all-day vendor market.

Thursdays, October 23 – November 20
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Virtual/In-person)
Register here: https://tinyurl.com/3c95x6nh

“Let’s Talk About Us” is a 5-week wellbeing group that explores and affirms the complexity, humanity, and emotional wellbeing of Black students in a soft and supportive space.

Facilitated by Black staff, students can expect to:

• Connect with peers and share collective wisdom

• Discover practical wellbeing strategies

• Embrace lighthearted joy and community connection

External Events & Opportunities

TSA CONNECT: Newcomers

• Description: TSA CONNECT: Newcomers is a professional networking and mentorship event highlighting internationally-trained architects and their diverse paths in the industry. With degrees, licenses, and professional experience from South Africa to Venezuela, Algeria to India, our amazing lineup of Featured Guests will share how they have managed to translate their experiences into a variety of career paths in their new home. Join the TSA for a fun, insightful evening and make some connections!
• Date/Time: Tuesday, November 11, 7:00 - 9:30 PM (doors open at 6:30 PM)
• Location: CSI Spadina Lounge (192 Spadina Avenue, Toronto)
• Price: $15 + HST General Admission, Free for TSA Members (student membership is free!) Spots are limited so make sure to get your ticket today!
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-connect-2025-newcomers/

• Description: The Architecture and Design Film Festival—North America’s largest film festival dedicated to architecture and design—is coming back to Toronto for another year of great films and insightful discussions! From November 12-15, catch one of their amazing lineup of international films. As always, the TSA is proud to be once again partnering with ADFF to bring a series of post-screening panel discussions and special events to this year’s festival, bringing the conversation back to our Toronto context.
• Dates: November 12 - 15, 2025
• Location: TIFF Lightbox (350 King St W, Toronto)
• Price: $17 General Admission, $14 for TSA Members (per film)
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/?filter=films#filters=films

• Description: Wood—for foundations!? Join the TSA at our next Technical Lecture where Adam Robertson, Co-Founder and Principal of Sustainatree Consulting, will demystify Permanent Wood Foundations and share guidance on their design and construction based on the latest Canadian Standard (CSA S406-16).
• Date/Time: Tuesday, November 4, 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST
• Location: Online via Zoom
• Price: $15+HST General Admission, FREE for TSA Members (student membership is free!)
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-technical-series-permanent-wood-foundations/

• Description: Few materials in the AEC industry are as ubiquitous as cement and concrete. But how much do we really know about how it’s made, where it comes from, and most importantly: its environmental impact? Join the TSA for a Technical Lecture with Rob Cooney of the Cement Association of Canada, as we explore the fundamentals of cement and concrete through the lens of sustainability and decarbonization.
• Date/Time: Tuesday, November 18, 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST
• Location: Online via Zoom
• Price: $15+HST General Admission, FREE for TSA Members (student membership is free!)
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-technical-series-cement-concrete-and-the-path-to-decarbonization/

• Description: We’re guessing you’ve probably heard there’s a new version of the Ontario Building Code (OBC). Join the TSA and Frédéric Ouellette of Engineering Link Incorporated for this Technical Lecture as we take an in-depth look at the latest structural code updates.
• Date/Time: Tuesday, December 9, 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST
• Location: Online via Zoom
• Price: $15+HST General Admission, FREE for TSA Members (student membership is free!)
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-technical-series-navigating-changes-to-part-4-of-the-obc/

• Description: Join the TSA at the BASH: Toronto’s architectural community’s biggest celebration! A long-standing tradition, the TSA’s annual year-end BASH is an opportunity for the community to come together and celebrate in unique spaces across our city. We’re so excited to be bringing the 2025 TSA BASH to Limberlost Place, Ontario’s first institutional mass-timber tall-wood building.
• Date/Time: Friday, November 28, 7:00 - 11:00 PM
• Location: Limberlost Place (185 Queens Quay E, Toronto)
• Price: $120+HST General Admission, $60+HST for TSA Members (student membership is free!) Tickets go on sale on October 28.
• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-bash-2025/

ON NOW in the Urbanspace Gallery until December 31^st

plazaPOPS: Paradise in a Parking Lot invites visitors to celebrate the significant role that strip malls play in the social, cultural, and economic life of Toronto’s inner suburbs and the public health of local communities.

The exhibit also shares the work and future potential of plazaPOPS, a community-based not-for-profit public space organization that turns parking spaces into people places along Toronto’s strip mall main streets through partnership, co-creation, research, and advocacy.

Alumni News

Are you ready to give back to the next generation of architecture leaders?

The Discover Mentorship Program at FEAS matches senior career professionals with third and fourth year students. Our goal is to provide students with professional development, support, and guidance as they prepare to embark in meaningful careers.

Mentorship can inspire and motivate students to achieve their full potential in the transition from university to the professional world. If you have five years of career experience and would like to learn more about getting involved as a mentor, please contact Kieran Lynch at kieran.lynch@torontomu.ca.

Have DAS news to share? Please let us know:

Copyright © 2024 Department of Architectural Science, Toronto Metropolitan University, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you are part of the Department of Architectural Science, Toronto Metropolitan (formerly Ryerson) University community.

Our mailing address is:
Department of Architectural Science, Toronto Metropolitan University
325 Church Street
Toronto, ON M5B 2K3
Canada