The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) regards the investments in gender equity, Indigenous communities, and research and innovation in the 2018 federal budget released on Tuesday as positive steps that will be of benefit to Canada?s built environment.
The RAIC has issued a response to the 2018 federal budget. Photo by Tony Webster via Flickr Commons.
?Architects understand that our work has a profound effect on the well-being and the quality of life of all Canadians,? says RAIC President Michael Cox, FRAIC. ?The provisions in this budget expand the resources available in the furtherance our commitment to the responsible design of the built environment.?
Indigenous communities 
The announcement of funding for housing, for First Nations, Inuit and MĂ©tis communities, among other investments toward reconciliation, is an encouraging step forward, says Mr. Cox. ?We all realize that the repeated status quo approach to housing in Indigenous communities has been an enormous failure, one that we can approach much differently moving forwards,? says David Fortin, MRAIC, a member of the RAIC Indigenous Task Force and director of the Laurentian University school of architecture in Sudbury, ON.
?To move towards successful housing for Indigenous communities necessitates Indigenous-led consultation, design, and construction processes that take significant amounts of time and input,? says Mr. Fortin. ?If done correctly, housing has the potential to stimulate jobs and economi...