WINNER OF A 2023 CANADIAN ARCHITECT AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
I love this idea of the Indigenous program wrapping around—and effectively allowing the First Nations’ program to recolonize—the ubiquitous old 20th-century academic building currently housing the law school. The plan is functionally well integrated with the existing building, but the materials and expression of the new building says: “This is a law school that understands where it is located, and is committed to reconciliation.”
— Michael Heeney, juror
The University of Victoria’s new National Centre for Indigenous Laws (NCIL) is dedicated to the study and practice of Canadian Common Law and Indigenous Legal Orders. Situated on the northwestern edge of the campus, on the traditional territory of the lək wəŋən peoples, the NCIL expands the existing Fraser Law Building and becomes the face of the Faculty of Law.
The design honours its host, the Coast Salish peoples, and welcomes students and visitors from Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities from across Turtle Island and beyond. Its slender, organic form touches lightly upon the land. Trees that were felled for its construction were first blessed by local Elders and then reused as mass-timber columns for the building. Its mass-timber roof slopes upward from the north entrance towards the forest to the south, expanding to the height of treetops.
The form brings its users face-to-face with the forest. The sloped roof directs rainwater to a new system of rainwater gardens and plantings. At the north, sheltered by a gentle berm, an Elders’ Garden is a site for reflection, ethnobotany, and cultivation of Indigenous foods and medicines. The garden connects to the Small Gathering Space—dedicated to oral knowledge sharing—and the adjacent Indigenous Initiatives, Wellness and Elders’ Suite, dedicated to student care. The sculptural cladding echoes the silhouettes of Coast Salish canoes and paddles.
At the south end, the building’s atrium and classrooms open to the forest and Learning Deck, where students can enjoy open-air classes. In concert with the goals of the NCIL, alternatives to past colonial approaches to learning space emerged: less hierarchical learning layouts and greater flexibility in space arrangements; learning immersed in nature; equitable access and inclusion across gender, age, and ability; and welcoming informal learning environments. The ideas of “forest as teacher” and “walking the path” come together in the NCIL as a pedagogical tool central to the teaching and practice of Indigenous laws and traditions. The interior circulation path is framed by a “forest of columns” that point-support a CLT mass timber roof.
The project supports the goals of the university’s Sustainability Action Plan. The choice of wood as the primary building material reduces greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration. Further energy savings derive from a high-performance building envelope and highly efficient mechanical and electrical systems.
CLIENT University of Victoria, British Columbia | ARCHITECT TEAM Two Row Architect—Brian Porter FRAIC, Matt Hickey MRAIC, Jacqueline Daniel. Teeple Architects Inc—Stephen Teeple FRAIC, Avery Guthrie MRAIC, Myles Craig, Richard Lam, Josh Rensby, Sahel Tahvildari, Amanda Kemeny, Mina Pavlovic, Chris Qiu. Low Hammond Rowe Architects Inc.—Paul Hammond MRAIC, Howard Kim, Roya Darvish, Jeff Rushton. Past and present members of the NCIL project Steering Committee; Past and present members of the NCIL project Building Committee | STRUCTURAL Fast + Epp | MECHANICAL AME Consulting Group | ELECTRICAL/LIGHTING/TECHNOLOGY/AV AES Engineering | ENERGY MODELLING/LEED Introba | CIVIL/TRANSPORTATION McElhanney | LANDSCAPE PFS Studio | ARBORIST Talbot McKenzie | CODE GHL Consultants Ltd. | HARDWARE Allegion Canada Inc. | COST BTY Group | ENVELOPE RJC Engineers | AREA 2,683 m2 | BUDGET $40.65 M | STATUS Under construction | ANTICIPATED COMPLETION Fall 2024
ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 99 kWh/m2/year | THERMAL ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 67 kWh/m2/year | GREENHOUSE GAS INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 1.1 kgCO2e/m2/year | WATER USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 0.32 m3/m2/year