Indigenous Design

This paper identifies four foundational factors for transformative pedagogies. The first factor is the value of a collectively held and clearly articulated vision and focus. The second factor is the capacity and commitment of an academic team that supports and values the vision. Thirdly, the vision needs to meet and acknowledge place-specific knowledges and values. Finally, the pedagogy should have an action research component founded in real-world interactions. While this research-based pedagogy is place-based and specific, we argue that these four factors are transferable to other learning institutions and can support critical pedagogies for social, cultural, and ecological wellbeing.

By reconsidering our approach in how we teach design and returning to land-based practices, students may come to see the land as their partner—as a teacher.

Today, there are just under twenty registered Indigenous architects within Canada and about the same number of architectural interns. Five of these architects are women. Their names are Harriet Burdett-Moulton, Wanda Dalla Costa, Ouri Scott, Eladia Smoke, and Rachelle Lemieux. Collectively, these strong Indigenous women represent communities across Western Canada, the Territories, Labrador, the Arctic, and Arizona. They carry out their work on reserve, in urban environments, and in remote locations—work that is driven by knowledge sharing, community, and sustainability. This interview investigates the range of Indigenous methodologies and practices in the field of architecture today.

Unceded, Canada’s contribution to the Venice Architecture Biennale, is an exhibit that has no precedent – the coming together of first nations firms from across Turtle Island (a.k.a. North America) in an exploration of Indigenous architecture.

This article will discuss non-Indigenous designer engagement with Indigenous knowledge systems and the tensions that surround these areas of design practice historically. Scholarly literature demonstrates the way in which a Eurocentric design sensibility dominates design discourse and how, more recently, the discourse has shifted to first, the decolonization of design and the recognition of Indigenous design without influence or input from non-Indigenous participation and secondly, a process of collaboration which recognizes Indigenous led, Indigenous determined outcomes. Examining the argument of 'whiteness' which explains that non-Indigenous and Indigenous collaboration will demonstrate colonial power structures, this article will refer to the International Indigenous Design Charter, a document created to address this tension and guide designers on best practice protocols when working with Indigenous knowledge systems in professional design practice.

The Marika-Alderton House, completed in 1994, is located in the Yirrkala Community, Eastern Amheim Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia.