Research Initiatives
BEAC advances research at the intersection of equity, practice, and the built environment. Our work translates lived experience into data, and data into action.
Parenthood + Practice
Reframing Career Trajectories in Canadian Architecture
Parenthood + Practice is a national research initiative examining how parental leave, caregiving responsibilities, and return-to-work transitions shape career progression, retention, and leadership within architecture.
Through a national survey and qualitative research, this project aims to identify structural barriers and opportunities across the profession, with a focus on translating findings into practical tools for firms and practitioners.
This work is being developed through a Transdisciplinary Connector Grant in collaboration with the University of Calgary’s School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape and the Department of Psychology, with support from Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC).
Status: Survey now open
Outcome: Canadian Parental Leave Toolkit for Architecture
→ Participate in the survey here
→ Sign up for research updates
SSHRC Funded Research
Living Atlas of Healthy Cities: Spatializing Quality of Life
BEAC is a contributing community partner to the Living Atlas of Healthy Cities, a SSHRC-supported research initiative exploring how the built environment shapes health, well-being, and quality of life across communities.
This work examines how spatial, social, and environmental conditions intersect, from housing and mobility to access to services and public space, to better understand how cities support or constrain everyday life.
Through this collaboration, BEAC brings a practice-based lens to questions of equity, translating complex urban conditions into insights that can inform design, policy, and decision-making.
This research extends BEAC’s broader focus on systemic change within the profession, linking questions of equity in practice to the environments architects help shape.
Status: In progress