Inuit should lead designing and building in Nunavut, architect and economist agree

HOUSING  AUG 19, 2026 – 12:13 PM EDT Inuit should lead designing and building in Nunavut, architect and economist agree Iqaluit housing project, Kivalliq Long-Term Care Centre examined for innovative solutions A multiplex at 2701 Tulugaq St. in Iqaluit’s Tundra Ridge neighbourhood is one of five buildings explored in a recent report on Indigenous-led housing innovation, prepared for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (Photo by Mosha Folger) By Mosha Folger Building better housing in the North may lie with fostering more Inuit architects and builders, some experts say. This idea is explored in architect and professor David T. Fortin’s Current Landscape of Indigenous-led Housing Innovation, a supplementary report to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.’s Northern Housing Report, released last month. “It is crucial to have more Indigenous architects with lived experience,” Fortin wrote in an email. “Our schools need to be better at recruiting and retaining northern students and I think the future is hybrid education…. It will come, but we’re in the very early stages.” His research looks at 25 housing and other construction projects and details whether they are Indigenous-led, have an Indigenous architect or designer, and if the project is innovative in its construction. He included two Nunavut projects, both of which he noted for their innovative construction: Four social housing complexes with 46 units in Iqaluit’s Joamie Court and Tundra Ridge neighbourhoods, and the Kivalliq Long-term Care Centre in Rankin Inlet.  The housing units were designed for easy operation and maintenance, with energy efficiency that exceeds the National Energy Code of Canada. The care centre has an aerodynamic roof slope, wind shields to protect entrances and a heated crawl space under the floor where plumbing connects to the utilidor. Neither of the two projects had an Inuk architect. The care centre, though, was designed by Verne Reimer Architecture, which employs Indigenous staff, including intern Nicole Luke, a Winnipeg-based Inuk born in Yellowknife with ties to Chesterfield Inlet and Rankin Inlet. The report also states that the long-term care centre is the first such facility in Nunavut to be led by the territorial government. CMHC’s report notes that Iqaluit’s population has almost doubled from about 5,000 people in 1999 to an estimated 8,700 in 2026, and that housing has not kept up with the demand. Fortin says this is partially due to “Builders who view…