DAS NEWS

In this issue: Picoplanktonics Exhibition Opening | New Studio Culture Guide | Year End Show 2026 | Engineering & Architectural Science Day & more!

Congratulations Dr. Azar on earning tenure and promotion to Associate Professor

Dr. Ehsan Rezazadeh Azar has earned tenure with promotion to the rank of Associate Professor, effective March 20, 2026.

This professional milestone recognizes significant and sustained contributions in areas of service, teaching, and scholarly, research, and creative activities. 

With expertise in computer vision-based data collection and monitoring of construction sites, Ehsan has published dozens of refereed journal papers and earned research grants from NSERC, MITACS and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. His service contributions include participation on the TMU Senate Academic Standards Committee.

According to one external assessment letter:

“Dr. Azar has built a strong, balanced, and impactful academic profile. Their research program is innovative, collaborative, and nationally recognized; their teaching record reflects dedication and innovation; and their service demonstrates a deep commitment to the academic and professional communities.”

Ehsan teaches courses in the Project Management (PMT) undergraduate option and Project Management in the Built Environment (PMBE) graduate program. 

The Department of Architectural Science is fortunate to benefit from Dr. Azar’s expertise, scholarship and dedication to life, learning and leadership.

Please join DAS in congratulating Ehsan on this significant accomplishment.

DAS Students Explore the Future of Design with
Game-Changing Technology

What if you could walk through your design before it's even built, feeling the scale of a corridor or the shift in light in real-time? For three DAS undergraduate students—Jade Yu Tung Wong, Avery Jordan, and Sana Galloway—this isn't just a hypothetical, but the focus of their recent research. The team presented their findings at an international conference in Sapporo, Japan, exploring how gaming engines are revolutionizing architectural education and practice. We sat down with them to discuss their journey from a summer research project to presenting on a global stage, and how these digital tools are reshaping the way they approach design.

Full story coming soon!

DAS Releases New Studio Culture Guide

Developed in collaboration with the Architectural Course Union (ACU), the DAS Studio Culture Guide reflects our shared commitment to fostering a safe, supportive, and inspiring studio environment—one of the unique benefits of architectural education.

Architecture Camp for Kids Registration is Now Open

Register now for our Architecture Camp programs or Digital Creativity program to lock in your summer of fun at Toronto Met Architectural Science Day Camps.

Picoplanktonics: Partners Exhibition Reception

Thursday, March 26th | 6:30 PM
Paul H. Cocker Gallery, 325 Church St.

Picoplanktonics: Partners is a student-led exhibition that presents the project through the perspectives of those directly involved in its making and care. Centering student voices, the exhibition reflects on their contributions to the work, through producing its components, supporting its installation, and maintaining its presence over time. Drawings, mock-ups, assembly artifacts, and reflections trace how students navigated collaboration, responsibility, and stewardship  while engaging the realities of fabrication and exhibition life. By foregrounding the experience of both building and visiting Picoplanktonics at the 2025 Venice Biennale, the exhibition offers an architectural account of learning through participation—where design is understood not only as a finished artifact, but as a lived, collective process.

Year End Show 2026 Opens May 1st

Friday, May 1st | 6:00 PM

325 Church St.

DAS encourages its students to test boundaries, explore new possibilities, and apply their skill to prevailing issues present within their evolving surroundings. The annual Year End Show presents the culmination of the 2025-26 academic term, showcasing the impressive and cutting-edge works of our top students in all four years of study and at the graduate level.

The exhibit, spanning all four storeys of the Architecture Building, collects and displays the models, drawings, and digital presentations produced in response to a variety of major themes studied throughout both academic terms. We are excited to share our hard work with the Toronto architectural community, and invite you to join us as we celebrate the year's best and brightest!

Join us on Thursday, May 1st at 6:00pm as the exhibition launches. The exhibit will be open until Monday, June 22nd, 2026.

Admission to the opening reception is free and includes food and drinks.

Engineering & Architectural Science Day 2026

Friday, April 24th | 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM EST

Daphne Cockwell Complex (DCC) - 245 Church Street, George Vari Engineering & Computing Centre (ENG)

Engineering & Architectural Science Day is an annual event that brings final-year engineering and architectural science students together to present year-end projects. This is a momentous milestone in an undergraduate student’s journey, as students work in teams to explore exciting areas of research with real-world applications.

AIA Canada Student Awards Webinar | March 25

Webinar | Design That Wins: Insights from the 2025 AIA Canada Student Design Awards
Wednesday, March 25 | 12:00–1:00 PM ET

With the 2026 Student Design Awards launching on March 25, this session offers a valuable opportunity for students to learn how strong, competitive submissions are developed—from concept through to final presentation.

Award-winning students will share their projects and reflect on the key design decisions behind their work, including site analysis, program development, material strategies, sustainability, and community impact.

DIALOG's Architectural Scholarship in Honour of Michael Evamy

This scholarship is open to students enrolled in a Canadian architecture school who are entering their final year of a professional architecture degree program.

The scholarship includes C$5,000 in funding for the recipient’s final research thesis, C$3,000 to cover travel and project-related expenses, and a public presentation organized by DIALOG. Students are invited to submit their application by May 22, 2026.

Scholarship Details

The Architectural Scholarship in Honour of Michael Evamy provides financial assistance to the selected student to undertake a specific research project based on a field of study of interest to him/her/them. The intent of the study is to enrich and advance the candidate’s personal and professional experience and knowledge on a topic relevant to the practice of architecture.

Selection will be based on the following criteria:

• The candidate’s expressed interest in the scholarship and his/her/their chosen field of study.

• The specific nature of the investigation relative to his/her/their chosen field of study.

• Demonstrated academic achievement and leadership ability.

• The successful candidate will be notified and the award will be publicly announced.

Applications are due at 11:59 p.m. MT on May 22, 2026.

Complimentary RAIC Membership for Students

Follow these three steps to apply for RAIC membership: 

• Download the application form that matches your qualifications
• Complete the fillable PDF
• Email the form and any required supporting documentation to membership@raic.org.

Upcoming TSA Events

Spring Call for TSA Volunteers

• Description: Looking to take on a more active role in the Toronto Society of Architects? They’re currently working on some exciting initiatives and need your help to make them happen! From special programs like Doors Open Toronto to recurring initiatives like our Walking Tours, there will be an initiative that is right for you. In the Spring Call for TSA Volunteers, there are four open calls throughout several of their programs:

  • Doors Open Toronto | TSA Open Studio Volunteers (Deadline: April 5)

  • Doors Open Toronto | TSA Youth Activation Facilitators (Deadline: April 5)

  • TSA at Pride | Street Fair Volunteers (Deadline: April 19)

• Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/announcements/call-for-tsa-volunteers-spring-2026/ 

TSA Forum: Catalogue and Pattern Book Housing

• Description: Catalogue housing is having a comeback. Canada, as well as many other countries, are looking towards pattern books and catalogues as ways to accelerate housing construction. Join the TSA online for this international forum as speakers from Canada, Sweden, and Australia share their jurisdiction’s contemporary examples of pattern book and catalogue housing, as well as the motivations, ambitions and strategies behind them. This event will include presentations and a moderated panel discussion.

• Date/Time: Wednesday, April 15, 2026, 4:00 - 5:30 PM EDT

• Location: Online via Zoom

• Price: FREE (RSVP Required)

• Event Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-forum-catalogue-and-pattern-book-housing/ 

TSA Technical Series: Interzonal Air Flow in High-Rise MURBs 

• Description: Join the TSA for their next Technical Lecture as Marianne Touchie, Director of the Building Energy and Indoor Environment Lab at the University of Toronto, explores the importance of air flow between households in high-rise residential buildings and its  impacts on building performance.

• Date/Time: Tuesday, April 14, 2026, 12:00 - 1:00 PM EST

• Location: Online via Zoom

• Price: $15+HST General Admission, FREE for TSA Members (student membership is free!)

• Event Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-technical-series-interzonal-air-flow-in-high-rise-murbs/ 

TSA Portfolio & Resume Clinic

• Description: Join the TSA for their third annual Portfolio and Resume Clinic, as they bring together an amazing roster of guest reviewers to give you feedback on your career documents and share their insights on what makes a candidate stand out. Their portfolio reviewers represent a wide variety of practices within the industry, and all have experience in the hiring process. There are a limited number of 20-minute sessions available with portfolio reviewers, requiring prior registration (opens for TSA Members on April 1 - save the date!).

• Date/Time: Saturday, May 2, 2026, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM (Sessions throughout the day)

• Location: Arcadis Sandbox (55 St Clair Ave W, Toronto)

• Price: FREE (with early registration for TSA Members! Membership is free for students)

• Event Link: https://torontosocietyofarchitects.ca/events/tsa-portfolio-resume-clinic-2026/#

Design Competition:
Tactical Urbanism Now! The Revolution of Public Space

Participants are invited to explore how temporary, lightweight interventions can act as powerful tools for testing ideas, responding to local conditions and rethinking the future of public space.

Rather than fixed solutions,  this competition looks for proposals conceived as prototypes: flexible, testable and rooted in real urban life. Whether addressing climate stress, reclaiming space for people or strengthening community ties, the goal is to show how small-scale interventions can unlock new possibilities and reshape the urban experience over time. Submissions due by October 20.

ACSA Competitions

ACSA has a long precedence in creating and providing competitions for students and faculty. ACSA competitions are national and international in scope, offering unique opportunities to investigate, develop, and challenge systematic approaches to design. Entries are critiqued and judged by a jury of experts with diverse backgrounds. Competitions also assist instructors with developing a range of design challenges for use in their courses.

National Capital Commission Design Challenge 2026:
Student Ideas Competition

Green Building Solutions 2026:
Scholarship application opens in January

CASA Call: Student Work Showcase

Light of Tomorrow:
International VELUX Award for Students of Architecture

Competition - Spatializing Justice: Building Blocks

Competition: Mass Timber Innovation and Design Center
of Canada

OUT-OF-MAP. Feminist Narratives of Public Space

Vertical Urbanism Resources

SSAC 2026: Call for Sessions

Choose TMU Open House on March 28th

Share your input on the Student Code of Non-Academic Conduct

Youth Research Opportunity: Share Your Experience (20-Minute Survey + $10 Gift Card)

TMU Student Care - Reminder of Services

Giving Tuesday

Call For Mentors