A way forward for Iqaluit architecture

The Canadian Arctic’s extreme weather and remoteness can present numerous challenges for builders. But architects of a new community centre in Iqaluit turned these seeming adversities into inspiration for the building’s design.

Open since November, the Inuusirvik Community Wellness Hub serves as a model for an evolving northern vernacular, one that takes an inclusive rather than a defensive approach to the arctic environment, and one that is informed by Indigenous cultures.