WINNER OF THE 2025 RAIC ADVOCATE FOR ARCHITECTURE AWARD The pool at the UBC Museum of Anthropology was not completed because of site stability issues, although it was filled temporarily for Arthur Erickson’s 80th birthday in 2004. Wosk’s donations enabled the pool’s permanent reinstatement in 2010. Photo by Christopher Erickson, courtesy Arthur Erickson Foundation Dr. Yosef Wosk—a scholar, educator, author, businessperson, art collector, explorer, rabbi, peace activist, and philanthropist—has made numerous contributions to British Columbian, Canadian, and international culture. His work has been recognized with numerous awards, including Officer of the Order of Canada, the Order of British Columbia, Freedom of the City of Vancouver, honorary doctorates from Simon Fraser University and Emily Carr University, and internationally, the Culture Beyond Borders Medal from the United Nations. A defining characteristic of Wosk’s work has been his deep and longstanding commitment to the improvement and conservation of the built environment of Canadian communities and landscapes. Working quietly and behind the scenes, he has seized opportunities for engagement and support in multiple areas of architectural, landscape, and urban design culture. His lifelong interest in architecture and landscape architecture reflects a concern for his fellow citizens, and a fundamental belief in the power of our buildings and landscapes to not simply accommodate society—but to also transform it.  The resource centre at the VanDusen Botanical Garden is one of hundreds of libraries worldwide supported by Wosk. Photo Nic Lehoux, courtesy Perkins & Will Buildings and Landscapes Some of the most visible of Wosk’s contributions as an advocate for architecture are his interventions in new and existing buildings and landscapes. A recent example is the Yosef Wosk Library & Resource Centre at the VanDusen Botanical Garden (Perkins+Will Architects with Cornelia Oberlander Landscape Architect, 2011), the largest publicly accessible botanical and horticultural library in western Canada—and just one of the hundreds of libraries that Wosk has initiated, organized, and/or funded all over the world.  Wosk contributed a major grant to Bing Thom Architects in 2008 to encourage them to proceed with their master plan for the Shanghai 2010 World Exposition, and he supported the transformation of the Bing Thom-designed Simon Fraser University Surrey Campus. In appreciation for Yosef being the first to make a major donation to the project, The Yosef Wosk Learning Commons was dedicated in the new university library. Many of Wosk’s interventions enable the completion of the designers’ original vision. Wosk worked to reinstate the reflecting pool at the UBC Museum of Anthropology (Arthur Erickson Architects with Cornelia Oberlander Landscape Architect, 1975) and contributed to the building’s six-year-long seismic upgrade (Nick Milkovich Architects, 2024). A fundamental element of the original vision of the design team led by Arthur Erickson and Cornelia Oberlander, the reflecting pool was never completed because of concerns related to the stability of the site, and although the pool was filled, temporarily, for Erickson’s 80th birthday in 2004, it was not until 2010 that it was finally reinstated, thanks to Wosk.  Equally transformative was Wosk’s support of the magnificent roof garden addition to the Vancouver Public Library (original building by Safdie Architects with Downs Archambault & Partners, 1995; addition by Safdie Architects, DA Architects, and Cornelia Oberlander Landscape Architect, 2018). Yosef was the catalyst, patron, and a member of the steering committee of the 15-year project to complete the redevelopment of the top two floors and the roof garden of the library. The completed project includes a room and adjacent garden named the Yosef Wosk Poets’ Corner and Poets Laureate Garden. A Founding Pillar and first Lifetime Friend of the Vancouver Heritage Foundation, Wosk was the most generous individual donor to the Save the Buildings Fund, and a significant donor to Old School, a unique continuing education certificate program that brought homeowners, contractors, labourers, architects and engineers back to school to learn heritage conservation. Education Working closely with Indspire and the Arthur Erickson Foundation, Wosk created the Erickson-Wosk Indigenous Scholarship in Architecture and Landscape Architecture, which improves the pathway to university studies for Indigenous students and commemorates Arthur Erickson’s sensitivity to Indigenous knowledge and building traditions. Mike DeGagné, President and CEO of Indspire, recognized the award as “…a significant step in supporting First Nations, Inuit and Métis architecture and landscape architecture students to achieve their potential through education and training. They can in turn enrich their communities and create positive change in Canada.” Several years ago, Wosk also offered the University of British Columbia’s School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA) financial assistance with several initiatives, one of which was the installation of a grove of ginkgo trees in the UBC Botanical Garden. The school has accepted Wosk’s proposal for the Cornelia Hahn Oberlander Ginkgo Grove—for Cornelia, the ginkgo was a model of endurance and adaptability—and will match his donation. Wosk’s longstanding and ongoing relationship with SALA has generated numerous other transformative collaborations over the years, including the Design Discovery Indigenous Recruitment Strategy, a multi-year effort designed to attract Indigenous high school students to studies in architecture and landscape architecture, and generous support for SALA’s Arthur Erickson Lecture Series. Arthur Erickson’s home and studio, restored to the Arthur Erickson Foundation with the support of Yosef Work. Photo by Simon Scott, courtesy Arthur Erickson Foundation Research, scholarship, and design excellence For decades, Wosk has supported architectural research, scholarship, and design excellence in quiet, behind-the-scenes ways. Hundreds of events and publications in design and other disciplines—journal articles, monographs, academic presentations—are the direct result of Wosk’s encouragement and financial support. Many of Wosk’s own publications reveal his architectural insight and sensitivity. Other initiatives that have been supported, and in some cases enabled, by Wosk’s generosity include research and publications by architectural historians and critics Robert Lemon, Trevor Boddy, Hal Kalman, Robin Ward, Robert Reid, Don Luxton, and many others. Launched in 2019 in collaboration with the Vancouver Heritage Foundation, the Yosef Wosk Publication Grant Program supports research and publication in a variety of media on Vancouver’s heritage places, their conservation, and related topics. A recently announced initiative, developed in collaboration with the AIBC, SALA and Simon Fraser’s City program, is the Bing Thom Award for Architectural Excellence. Created at Wosk’s urging and managed by the Architectural Foundation of BC, the Bing Thom Award will be completely supported with Wosk’s 10-year commitment to cover all expenses.  Arthur Erickson’s home and studio, restored to the Arthur Erickson Foundation with the support of Yosef Work. Photo by Simon Scott, courtesy Arthur Erickson Foundation In 2023, Wosk contacted the Arthur Erickson Foundation with an interesting offer. Aware of the financial burden associated with the outstanding mortgage on Erickson’s iconic House and Garden, Wosk committed to make a generous contribution toward the mortgage, with the request that a viable plan to discharge the entire debt be developed and implemented immediately. Galvanized by Wosk’s intervention, the Foundation responded and by the end of the year had secured the funds to not only eliminate the mortgage debt, but also to seed Phase 2 of a longer-term fundraising plan to restore the House and Garden.  Advocate for Architecture Yosef Wosk’s record of Advocacy for Architecture is long, diverse, and compelling. It is an ongoing history of selfless philanthropy, strategic patronage, and inspired insight in relation to the opportunities created and enabled by his encouragement and generosity. A humanist with an uncanny ability to intervene at the right time and in the right place, he is committed to the well-being of society, and has used his knowledge and material resources to improve our landscapes and gardens, cities, and buildings at every level of the complex processes that shape our environment. Yosef Wosk has served our profession and this country with passion, commitment, and distinction, and will continue to do so with undiminished enthusiasm and grace for years to come. Jury Comments :: Dr. Yosef Wosk has significantly contributed to architecture in Western Canada through decades of advocacy, philanthropy, scholarly initiatives, and direct commissioning of built works. He is a champion of the public arts whose sustained efforts in education, research, and design excellence have strengthened architecture’s position in Canada. Dr. Wosk’s commitment to architectural advancement, both practical and academic, exemplifies the qualities this award seeks to recognize. His inspiring contributions leave a lasting impact on the built environment. The jury for this award included Jessie Andjelic, Chris Cornelius, Camille Mitchell (FRAIC), Maya Przybylski, and Terrence Smith-Lamothe (MRAIC). As appeared in the May 2025 issue of Canadian Architect magazine The post 2025 RAIC Awards: Dr. Yosef Wosk appeared first on Canadian Architect.