RAIC 2026 awards honor exceptional firms and people in Canadian architecture

The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada has unveiled the recipients of several awards for 2026. The four honors are the RAIC Gold Medal, RAIC Architectural Practice Award, RAIC Emerging Architectural Practice Award, and RAIC International Prize. 

The Gold Medal is the highest honor bestowed by the RAIC, given in “recognition of a significant and lasting contribution to Canadian architecture.” Meanwhile, the practice award, emerging practice award, and international prize were selected to “reflect the breadth and depth of architecture’s power to shape a more equitable, sustainable, and beautiful world.”

The 2026 recipients are as follows:

2026 RAIC Gold Medal: Pat Hanson of gh3*

RAIC comment: "Pat Hanson has made a unique and sustained contribution to contemporary Canadian architecture. As founding principal of gh3*, she has seamlessly integrated architecture, landscape, infrastructure, and urbanism, while advancing an ethic of environmental responsibility, civic generosity, and design excellence. Her exceptional body of work has been recognized by five Governor General’s Medals. Her practice has focused on typologies that have largely been overlooked by more mainstream practices, specifically infrastructure buildings. These include water treatment and stormwater facilities, fire station, bus garage and public park pavilions."

2026 RAIC Architectural Practice Award: Moriyama Teshima Architects

RAIC comment: "Founded in Toronto in 1958, Moriyama Teshima Architects (MTA) has shaped Canada’s cultural and civic landscape for over six decades, with landmark projects including the Canadian War Museum, the Ontario Science Centre, and the Toronto Reference Library. Today, the firm continues to evolve under a new generation of leadership, with a growing focus on mass timber and sustainable design."

2026 RAIC Emerging Practice Award: MOTIV Architects Inc.

RAIC comment: "Founded in Vancouver in 2017, MOTIV Architects is a people-centred studio working at the intersection of housing, innovative learning spaces, and food security. Certified as a B Corporation, the firm brings a strong ethical foundation to every project — making design accessible, community-rooted, and deeply responsive to the people it serves."

2026 RAIC International Prize: Material Cultures

RAIC comment: "Material Cultures is a London-based not-for-profit design and research organisation working to advance regenerative, socially just land and building systems. Through design practice, applied research, and education, they champion low-carbon, bio-based construction as a model for the future of the built environment."