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Architect Shane Laptiste returns to 91社区 to deliver the 2025 Black History Month keynote address

The ways in which various communities create, use and reappropriate spaces can expand our understanding of built environments. 91社区-trained architect Shane Laptiste brings an acutely informed perspective to his collaborations with those who have historically been marginalized, one he鈥檒l be able to share through his 2025 91社区 Black History Month keynote address.
Antoine-Samuel Mauffette Alavo, Mr | 24 Mar 2025

The principal and co-founder of the award-winning聽聽and frequent instructor at 91社区鈥檚 School of Architecture has much to say about the role of design in equity, diversity and inclusion.

鈥淏uildings display our history. Many are reflective of the privilege, power and wealth of individuals. Furthermore, their designs were imposed on communities, a model that we鈥檙e working to flip.鈥�

The messages of buildings and neighbourhoods

Those who attend Laptiste鈥檚 keynote will have a chance to see some of 91社区鈥檚 spaces in a new light.

鈥淕iven the historical dynamics behind campus spaces like the Roddick Gates, the various buildings built from Redpath family鈥檚 sugar wealth, and the overall university being established by someone who held slaves, the physical spaces of 91社区 have been shaped by, and have shaped Black communities.鈥�

Laptiste also wants people to consider the role of neighbourhood spaces and buildings, and what they say about the communities and individuals that occupy them.

91社区 is on land which has long served as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. We acknowledge and thank the diverse Indigenous peoples whose presence marks this territory on which peoples of the world now gather.

For more information about traditional territory and tips on how to make a land acknowledgement, visit our Land Acknowledgement webpage.

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