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Microsoft introduced an AI-powered video generator to its Bing search engine. Bing Video Creator is powered by OpenAI's Sora, which creates short clips based on text prompts. The free feature is rolling out to the Bing mobile app starting today a

In our June issue Our June issue looks at the housing spectrum, with a particular focus on non-market and affordable housing. Odile Hénault starts our journey in Montreal, where two shelters—Le Christin by Atelier Big City and Les Studios du PAS by L. McComber in collaboration with Inform—offer dignity to people experiencing homelessness. We next travel to Beaverton Heights, a transitional housing project in the Region of Durham, Ontario. Designed by Montgomery Sisam Architects, the complex addresses the often-invisible homelessness of a rural area, and expands the aesthetic possibilities of modular construction. In Toronto, we visit Gerrard Healthy Housing by Atkinson Architect, which aims to add gentle density to an established neighbourhood. We also tour Anduhuaun, LGA Architectural Partners’ shelter for Indigenous women, which offers a place of nurture and grounding for its clients. LGA Architectural Partners is the coordinating firm behind the new Canadian Housing Catalogue, a repository of designs for multi-family homes. John Lorinc examines the catalogue’s potential for widespread uptake. Our long-read this month is a report by Yellowknife-based Kristel Derkowski on the driving factors behind the Northern housing crisis—and ways to start addressing it. In this month’s AIA Canada Society Journal, a quartet of Canadian educators explore how architecture schools are contributing to addressing the housing affordability crisis through research, studios, and hands-on initiatives. On the other end of the housing spectrum, Adele Weder visits Revery Architecture’s The Butterfly and First Baptist Church. She looks at how the striking landmark delivers tangible benefits for both residents and the wider public. Our issue is rounded out by an obituary for Dick Mah Sai-Chew (1928-2025), and reviews of books on the history of the barrack, James Strutt’s round houses, and sustainable housing in a circular economy. -Elsa Lam, editor The post June 2025 appeared first on Canadian Architect.

Architectural education is an important part of becoming an architect. It provides a foundation in art and architectural history, basic concepts of design, and foundational technical knowledge. It promotes critical thinking, examines social and economic complexities, and encourages creativity and teamwork. I may be biased, but I believe the camaraderie and pride that are part of architectural students’ design studio experience are unmatched by any other educational program.    In this issue of the AIA Canada Journal, Pauline Thimm, Hannah Allawi and I reached out to schools of architecture from across the country. Our conversations centred on research themes in today’s design studios, with a focus on housing affordability. Students and faculties are actively engaging in challenging the status quo on the shortage of housing. It takes a village to derive plausible solutions—and schools of architecture across the country are united in bringing their voices and minds to this pressing issue. In a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)-supported partnership, AIA Canada Society is also actively participating in research on designing inclusive, sustainable and healthy cities.  We want to thank all the educators who took time to speak with us and provide their invaluable insights.  -Dora Ng, AIA Canada Society President Rick Haldenby Professor, School of Architecture, University of Waterloo Rick Haldenby, FRAIC, served as Director of the School of Architecture at the University of Waterloo from 1988 to 2013, and founded the Waterloo Rome Program in 1979. Among many accomplishments, Haldenby was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2021, and has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Council of University Schools of Architecture, the Special Jury Prize at the Kitchener Waterloo Arts Awards, and the Dr. Jean Steckle Award for Heritage Education from the Waterloo Regional Heritage Foundation. Q: Kitchener-Waterloo is known as a university town that is home to top Ontario post-secondary institutions. Tell us a bit about the twin cities. A: The Waterloo Region’s industrial development began with the arrival of German-speaking immigrants in the 19th century. Its cities were literally “founded on factories.” Its prosperity was influenced by a rail-based transport system. In the late 19th century, the extension of the Grand Trunk Railway contributed to the industrialization of the area. In the 1950s, visionary community leaders made concerted efforts to build educational infrastructure, and in just a few years created the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University and Conestoga College. The region experienced significant growth in manufacturing industries, insurance companies, and high-tech businesses over time. Home to two universities and a college, it is an education hub that attracts talents and businesses, which increases the demand for housing for students and families. The once-suburban neighbourhood of Northdale, surrounded by these post-secondary institutions, saw a surge in student population in the early 2000s, including a large percentage of international students. We saw a building boom to increase medium-density housing like stacked townhomes and row houses, as well as taller buildings up to 30+ stories in what was once a primarily low-density town. Q:  Like the building boom in Waterloo, we saw many residential high-rises going up in the GTA, but this growth still does not adequately address housing demand. In many cities across Canada, there are unprecedented housing issues including affordability and homelessness. What do you see emerging as key areas of interest and inquiry among students at your school? Is housing one of them? A: Connection between affordability and homelessness is not a one-to-one problem. The housing crisis can have many dimensions. In our undergraduate design studios, we are laying the groundwork for approaches to affordability, environmental responsibility and social justice. Many of my colleagues and graduate students at the University of Waterloo are involved in various research studies, exhibitions and campaigns, including the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale. We also try to keep a balance to cover diverse topics in architecture, including housing. Second- and third-year design studios focus on urban intensification amid the building boom, enabling students to discuss ideas for keeping cities habitable and attractive for future growth. Design studios have also worked with the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity to support the ambitious program to build affordable housing for families in need. In partnership with the City of Cambridge, Waterloo architecture students designed and built tiny homes as prototypes for emergency shelter. Photo courtesy University of Waterloo Q: Any examples of collaboration between studio projects and practicing professionals in tackling the housing crisis? A: Through collaboration and communication with the community, the School of Architecture has engaged with social housing agencies, municipality planning authorities, Indigenous groups and aging-in-place consultants to develop housing solutions for a diverse population including seniors. Moving the School of Architecture from Waterloo to Cambridge in 2004 was a communal project with great support from the City of Cambridge. Occupying the repurposed silk mill in Cambridge, the school aims to be the design campus for the city to allow exchange of creative ideas and intellectual stimulation. Since the move, we have had many opportunities to collaborate and work closely with the municipality. The Tiny Homes project is an initiative in partnership with the City of Cambridge, whereby Waterloo architecture students were engaged to design and build prototype tiny homes that offer practical, cost-effective and dignified emergency housing solutions. It is an example of collaboration that makes a meaningful difference.  Photo by Danielle Sneesby Shauna Mallory-Hill Associate Professor and Associate Dean of Research, Faculty of Architecture, University of Manitoba Shauna Mallory-Hill, PhD, is currently Associate Professor and Associate Dean of Research at the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Architecture. Her 25-year-long career spans teaching, research and advocacy, with a focus on building systems, universal and sustainable design, as well as building performance evaluation. Her sponsored research includes accessible design, along with post-occupancy work on how sustainably designed environments impact human health and productivity. Q: How is The University of Manitoba Faculty of Architecture (FAUM) specifically engaging in design explorations addressing housing?  A: In addition to hosting public events and delivering focused design studios, we are actively engaged and support research collaborations including funded research with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). We are also committed to partnering and working with communities.    In 2022, U of M professor Lancelot Coar’s undergraduate studio engaged with One House Many Nations to develop a mobile design and construction trailer for on-site design-build work. Photo by Lancelot Coar One House Many Nations (OHMN) originally started as a grassroots movement to shed light on the housing crisis faced by Indigenous communities.  For the past four years, OHMN, led by Dr. Alex Wilson and Sylvia McAdam, has been working with faculty and students from FAUM, houseless First Nations youth, and students at Saskatoon’s Nutana Collegiate to design and construct small, affordable homes that are trucked to remote Indigenous communities in Northern Saskatchewan. After a house is delivered, it is occupied by one of the youth participants. Each year, another house is built, informed by post-occupancy data that was collected on the previous year’s house(s).  First Nations youth participants have learned to advocate for community needs while gaining skills and knowledge about home-building and maintenance.  Lancelot Coar’s 2022 undergraduate architecture studio engaged with OHMN to create a mobile design lab that can be brought onsite to design-build in First Nations communities. OHMN’s work was exhibited at the Canadian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Architecture in 2023.    Q: What are key areas of interest and inquiry among students at your school? Is housing one of them?  A: We are seeing that this generation is increasingly concerned about what is happening to the world—concerns about sustainability, housing, and food deserts are paramount. Students want to work on things that are meaningful. Students also really embrace hands-on learning. Any time students are encouraged and supported to engage with community, they feel like they are making a difference.     Here in Winnipeg, we can all see the encampments of the unhoused. It is apparent that there is work to do to solve this dilemma.This past year, one of our housing-themed studios worked with a local grassroots organization, St. Boniface Street Links, in the design and construction of a prototype transitional house as a safer interim housing solution. This housing project ultimately was built and included as part of the annual Warming Huts design competition at the Forks. Q: Are there any barriers to collaborating in this way, involving practitioners and real community groups? A: We often get groups who approach us to collaborate. We need to be clear that we are not providing a design service, but we are committed to the exploration of ideas and working together on important problems.     It is important to me that doing housing research work in collaboration with Indigenous communities is respectful, responsible and reciprocal. Ensuring that some benefit of the research stays with the community is crucial, given the long history of research involving Indigenous populations where this did not happen. A willingness to listen and understand community priorities and context—and adapt—is key.  It can be difficult for some to have enough capacity to deal with added administration (meetings, paperwork, report writing, etc.); a local liaison is helpful.  The Wîkiwin student-built house is part of an ongoing collaboration with Kawéchiwasik Development Corporation at York Factory First Nation. Photo by Shauna Mallory-Hill Q: Some of your current research and design work is supported by the CMHC Housing Supply Challenge. Can you tell us a bit about that project?  A: The CMHC funding in part supports the Wîkiwin Training Enterprise of York Factory First Nation project, geared to building healthy homes by leveraging local resources and tradespeople in collaboration with the Kawéchiwasik Development Corporation. The purpose is to provide design education and construction skills in the northern communities where they are needed. A key goal is that kids won’t need to leave their communities to get skills, and communities can develop capacity to increase their self-sufficiency.    In collaboration with FAUM, the project will include a comprehensive education model based on a co-created curriculum, training programs, housing designs and research on building materials. Students earn micro-credentials through distance education to get basic training in design and construction, or have the opportunity to work as research assistants to assist with collection of data, such as indoor air quality.     Focusing on sustainable construction techniques, using local materials like stone and wood, the initiative promises to employ residents, cut production costs, and enhance housing quality. Additionally, the creation of a year-round skilled trades school facility and housing for students and teachers will boost the local labour force.    Stage 2 of the project involves the building of the Wîkiwin skilled trades training and research facility and dormitory. This phase will also see the expansion of the educational curriculum in partnership with the University of Manitoba, ultimately increasing the labour force capacity of York Factory First Nation and creating more opportunities for its youth.  Sasha Tsenkova Professor of Planning and Director of the Cities, Policy & Planning Lab at the School of Architecture, Planning & Landscape (SAPL), University of Calgary Sasha Tsenkova, PhD, is a professor at the School of Architecture, Planning & Landscape at the University of Calgary. With a background in architecture, urbanism, and planning, her work spans over 30 years of research, teaching, and professional practice, focusing on creating more inclusive and sustainable urban environments. She is a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Planners and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada/Academy of Social Sciences. Q: Major cities across Canada are seeing unprecedented housing issues. As an educator, what have you seen in research or studio projects that tackle these issues?    A: We are a nation of suburban homeowners, where much of the wealth creation in the urban system is driven by investment in housing. Today, income and wealth inequality in Canadian cities is higher than ever before, which is exacerbated by the suburban homeownership model. In cities, newcomers to the housing market—young and old—face incredible affordability constraints. Homelessness has grown exponentially and homeownership is not within the reach of the middle class. In the design world, we must begin to address, through systemic intervention, these challenges. Many of our research and studio projects focus on sustainable urbanism through designs  that explore strategies to provide affordable homes across the income spectrum and embrace different types of housing.      We cannot continue to replicate a model of postwar city building that no longer serves the needs of the people. We encourage students to learn from successful cities in Europe, Latin America, and the United States, where a more systematic approach to neighbourhood design and redevelopment allows various types of housing to be built along the same street within a community. This is a different approach to growth premised on urban regeneration and intensification, where people come before cars and community identity evolves over time.   Q: Any examples of collaboration between studio projects and practicing professionals in tackling the housing crisis?  A: We focus on community-engaged scholarship, research and teaching at SAPL. Integration with communities of practice is necessary, but so is a direct relationship with clients, so that we situate our studio projects in the real-world. The housing crisis is multi-faceted and future professionals need to be aware of the complexity of design intervention—solutions require a nexus of policy, planning and design approaches. In a graduate school, we must prepare aspiring designers, architects and planners to embrace these challenges.      The interface with critical practice is the ultimate test for us to remain relevant and committed to innovation and excellence within the realm of what we can control. Studio teaching needs to address housing affordability in a systematic way, as it will make a critical difference within Canadian society and will define the future of our cities. This requires a much stronger emphasis on sustainable urbanism and community-based projects.  Q: What policies do you feel cities in Canada should create or address to aid in addressing the housing crisis and homelessness?  A: The planning regulation, upzoning, and permitting processes can be improved to enhance infill housing, gentle density and inner-city intensification. Recognizing that cities and neighbourhoods need to be built for people and not for cars requires a focus on transit-oriented development in strategic locations where low-density retail, industrial and housing sites can be redeveloped to become mixed-use urban villages with a variety of housing types. Changes to minimum parking standards and lot coverage can energize the infusion of missing middle housing to create opportunities for multi-generational living, cohousing and home sharing with renters. But the real difference in addressing the homelessness and affordability crisis is the renewed investment into affordable housing through partnerships of federal, provincial and municipal governments with non-profit organizations. We need to grow this segment of the housing market and to make sure that it is an integral part of our urban neighbourhoods through the design process. Q: What role do you think schools of architecture and design have in tackling the housing crisis in Canada?  A: We need to make a major commitment to building knowledge and capacity that focuses on solutions to the housing crisis in our curriculum. Design thinking is premised on innovation; it is part of the competency, creativity and collaboration that we try to instill in future professionals. Architects today are absent from the design of neighbourhoods on the periphery of our cities. We need to bring back that creativity and the knowledge of architects, planners, and designers, and develop the prototypes that will provide solutions to the housing crisis.     SAPL is moving downtown so that we can be a part of downtown rebuilding and innovation. Our adaptive reuse of existing office space in Calgary’s downtown will provide opportunities to connect to local businesses and residents and offer immersion in city life that is critical for our students. Our school will be a living urban design lab, where we embrace social justice, community-inspired design work and collaborate with different communities of practice to demonstrate viable solutions for changing cities and changing societies.   Sara Stevens Associate Professor & Chair – Urban Design at the School of Architecture & Landscape Architecture (SALA), University of British Columbia Sara Stevens is an architectural historian and Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Her book Developing Expertise (Yale University Press, 2016) studies real estate development in 20th-century American cities. She is a member of the collective Architects Against Housing Alienation, curators of the Canada Pavilion at the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale. Q:  Major cities across Canada are seeing unprecedented housing issues (affordability issues and homelessness). As an educator, what have you seen in research or studio projects that tackle these issues?  A: There are so many great examples of design studios in Canada that are looking at housing challenges, such as the ‘Not for Sale’ study abroad course on contemporary housing that recently won the ACSA’s 2024 Architectural Education Award. McGill has a long history of housing research with the Minimum Cost Housing Group, which was the subject of a recent exhibition curated by Ipek Türeli. The work of Shawn Bailey and Lancelot Coar at the University of Manitoba is bringing really innovative pedagogy to the question of housing for Indigenous communities to design schools.  Q: Any examples of collaboration between studio projects and practicing professionals in tackling the housing crisis?  A: At UBC, questions around missing middle housing brought forth a collaboration between Haeccity Studio Architects and UBC students that resulted in a publication of the students’ work, co-sponsored by SALA and the Urbanarium, an organization in Vancouver that is a forum for sharing ideas about city building, particularly around climate change and housing affordability. The Urbananium’s design competitions have focused on missing middle housing, mixed-use neighbourhoods, and the codes and regulations that are barriers to housing affordability. Their current competition, Decoding Timber Towers, is focused on prefab and mass timber housing.  Q: What policies do you feel cities in Canada should create or address to aid in the housing crisis and homelessness?  A: I think that Canada needs to take UNDRIP and the TRC Calls to Action seriously. We can’t separate the issue of housing for Indigenous people, and the history of colonization that it’s part of, from the housing challenges everyone else faces. The United Nations Housing as a Human Right work is a great resource on this, as their work also points to the problems of financialization and the effect this has had on renters, social housing, and un-housed folks.  The Land Back Courtyard was part of the Not For Sale exhibition at the Canada Pavilion in the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale. Photo by Maris Mezulis Q: What role do you think schools of architecture and design have in tackling the housing crisis in Canada? A: Schools of architecture and design can play an important role by educating students about the role of architects in the housing crisis in Canada. We need the next generation of architects to understand that they have a part to play. It’s not an issue that can be solved through policy and the market alone: their expertise in design, which of course touches policy and works with the private sector, is inherently part of this issue.     To develop deeper conversations around this, I am working with collaborators in the collective Architects Against Housing Alienation to organize a super-studio across Canada for the next school year (25-26) called “End Housing Alienation Now!” that is inviting all schools of architecture to run studios on a shared set of themes and principles. (This builds off of the exhibition and campaign we did for the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale, which the teaching award I mentioned is also related to.) We have commitments from almost all the schools already, and have hosted a number of conversations with people from the schools to develop how this will work, balancing what is shared vs. independent, the different schedules and levels of students, etc.      For these studios, one ambition is that the studios work with local activists, advocates, and professional practices to show students how important these kinds of collaborations can be, and how important embedded local knowledge is. We hope to share resources and create opportunities for students to connect across geographies to ensure that many, many people with lots of passion and expertise are focused on this topic.     As appeared in the June 2025 issue of Canadian Architect magazine  The post AIA Canada Journal: Canadian educators on housing affordability appeared first on Canadian Architect.

News Science & Society Students’ mental health imperiled by $1 billion cuts to school funding Cutting mental health services will harm students over the long term, educators say The Parent Empowerment Program, or PEP, at La Mesa–Springs Valley School District in San Diego helps caregivers and their children work through various challenges. Here, mother Janet Walton leads a group activity aimed at helping children share. That includes Walton’s son, Elijah, who is passing a toy to a peer. LMSVSD PEP By Sujata Gupta May 29, 2025 at 11:00 am Four-year-old Elijah’s task was to draw a penguin, his favorite animal, and then rip up the paper so the scraps could be used for another project. The adults leading the project hoped that making Elijah uncomfortable would help the preschooler navigate similar tricky situations in his daily life. “He was not having it,” recalls Elijah’s mother, Janet Walton. “He freaked out.” For most toddlers, ripping up a beloved drawing would be a challenging ask. But Elijah’s struggles went beyond the norm. After a particularly bad tantrum at public preschool last year, a mental health expert with the La Mesa–Spring Valley School District in San Diego referred Walton to the Parent Empowerment Program, or PEP. Sign up for our newsletter We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

The Architects Registration Board (ARB) has published an action plan outlining changes to the way in which trainee architects gain and record their professional practical experience, following recommendations made by its independent Professional Practical Experience Commission. The reforms include the introduction of a new co-ordinating role for learning providers and the creation of a standardised record of competency (ROC) for trainees. The measures are intended to improve access to high-quality and consistent professional experience, and to address concerns over the uneven and sometimes unsupported nature of the current process. ARB intends to work with architectural education providers and other stakeholders through a series of focus groups to develop the new co-ordinating role. The responsibilities of this role will be detailed in ARB’s Standards for Learning Providers and its accreditation handbook, and will be subject to public consultation. The new ROC is intended to provide a more structured and consistent way for trainees to record their experience. Minimum requirements for evidencing practical experience will be set by ARB. ARB has said the changes seek to shift some of the responsibility and risk currently borne by trainees onto institutions better placed to provide oversight. The intention is to prioritise outcomes and provide a more transparent and supportive framework for those seeking registration. Alan Kershaw, chair of ARB, said: “Professional practical experience is central to a trainee’s journey to becoming an architect and achieving professional registration. The plan that we have set out today recognises the vital role learning providers play in shaping how aspiring architects gain the experience they need. “The new co-ordinating role will need to work for all learning providers, so we’re going to design it with them to ensure it is flexible but also, crucially, effective for trainees.” The action plan accepts all but one of the commission’s recommendations. ARB does not currently plan to make continuing professional development (CPD) in mentoring a mandatory requirement, but has acknowledged the role mentoring could play in supporting wider cultural change across the profession. The regulator is exploring ways to help architects develop mentoring skills. A full breakdown of the actions and implementation timelines is available on the ARB website. ARB is inviting stakeholders to join the development process via its Architectural Educators Engagement Network.

Home OpenAI Academy – A New Beginning in AI Learning News OpenAI Academy – A New Beginning in AI Learning 5 min read Published: May 29, 2025 Key Takeaways The OpenAI Academy is a collection of tutorials and live webinars that educate users about OpenAI products and LLMs. The main aim of the Academy is to enable users to understand the full capabilities of these AI tools in various sectors, such as education, business, and everyday work. With AI advancing rapidly, we might soon see artificial intelligence being offered as professional courses from recognized universities. OpenAI has launched the OpenAI Academy – a one-stop destination for you to learn everything about OpenAI LLM products, such as ChatGPT, Sora, Deep Research, and more. The portal provides extensive video demonstrations on using various features of these AI models and optimizing inputs to get the best results. Here’s a quick look at what you can learn at the OpenAI Academy: ChatGPT on Campus: Meant for students, specifically those in higher education courses. This includes tutorials on researching and writing, managing time effectively, designing resumes, and preparing for interviews. AI for K-12 Educators: Designed for educators, this module focuses on how teachers and support staff can leverage AI tools to streamline school operations and enhance communications. With detailed videos on lesson planning and student support, educators can improve education from the bottom up. It also includes detailed tutorials on using ChatGPT Edu – OpenAI’s specialized chatbot version for educators. ChatGPT at Work: This module will help you with prompt engineering, coding, introduction to ChatGPT projects, ChatGPT Search, data analytics, and Deep Research. Sora Tutorials: Sora is OpenAI’s very own video generator. It can render videos from text, images, and video prompts. Sora tutorials on OpenAI Academy teach you how to build a storyboard, recut, blend, and remix videos with the AI tool. OpenAI for Business: This module is all about personalizing ChatGPT to make it more relevant to your day-to-day work. You can learn more about ChatGPT’s Deep Research integration with GitHub, connecting ChatGPT to Google Drive to tap into internal knowledge, run multi-step workflows, and do extensive market research. In addition to these pre-recorded tutorials, videos, and ‘how-to’ articles, the OpenAI Academy hosts many live events and webinars. These sessions are quite exhaustive, from the introduction to ChatGPT to practical use cases for career development and education. There’s no debating that ChatGPT has endless real-world applications, whether in business or education. However, a vast majority of people are simply unaware. The OpenAI Academy looks to eliminate the lack of awareness around its products and show the world their capabilities. The Art of Prompts In a nutshell, the art of using AI is essentially your ability to feed these LLM models proper and effective prompts. For example, if there’s an image to be generated, an average person’s prompt might be as simple as ‘generate an image of a kid playing football.’ However, those who know what the AI is truly capable of will feed more specific prompts, such as ‘Generate a portrait image in HD showing a kid aged roughly six years old, wearing a Chelsea jersey and shorts with Nike boots playing football on a grassy ground. Keep the lighting in the image close to what we see during sunset in August.’ Here’s how the two results would vary: Interestingly, both these images have been generated using the same model, i.e., ChatGPT, with the only difference being the prompt. This goes to show that people who have fully wrapped their heads around what AI can do will be able to use it to its full potential. It’s worth noting that you can extrapolate this example to endless scenarios. For example, if you’re too lazy to read a book, you can simply ask ChatGPT to generate a mind map of the entire book. This will help you understand the text better and remember the book’s content for a long time. However, you must have professional AI training to do so. Alternatively, ChatGPT can serve up some work emails or sort numerical data. However, experienced users can also use it for tasks like strategic planning, breaking down trends and competitions, finding new strategic leads and opportunities, and generating an actionable market strategy using accurate prompts. AI Isn’t Just a Feature Anymore Gone are the days when AI was just a new, cool feature for us to try. Using ChatGPT or Gemini to write a work email, complete an assignment, or generate an AI image are just the tip of the iceberg. Using AI tools now requires real skills and comes with a learning curve and even a curriculum. If you give an average person a blank canvas and a paintbrush, he may draw a couple of houses, a river, the sun, and other basic elements. However, put the same canvas and paintbrush in the hands of a trained artist, and he’ll make you a masterpiece. Today’s AI tools are essentially the canvas and the paintbrush. In the hands of the average user, it’s hardly anything more than a text or image generator. However, those aware of their potential can design entire business plans, write and run complex codes, and learn new things almost every day. In its initial days, coding, too, was just a soft skill or an extracurricular activity. However, with time, coding has developed into a full-fledged education stream with postgraduate and PhD certifications. Something similar might happen with AI as well. As these tools become more sophisticated, the need for a structured AI education will also rise. The day isn’t far when we might see recognized universities offering professional degrees in artificial intelligence, focusing not only on designing the systems but also harnessing the most out of AI. Krishi is a seasoned tech journalist with over four years of experience writing about PC hardware, consumer technology, and artificial intelligence.  Clarity and accessibility are at the core of Krishi’s writing style. He believes technology writing should empower readers—not confuse them—and he’s committed to ensuring his content is always easy to understand without sacrificing accuracy or depth. Over the years, Krishi has contributed to some of the most reputable names in the industry, including Techopedia, TechRadar, and Tom’s Guide. A man of many talents, Krishi has also proven his mettle as a crypto writer, tackling complex topics with both ease and zeal. His work spans various formats—from in-depth explainers and news coverage to feature pieces and buying guides.  Behind the scenes, Krishi operates from a dual-monitor setup (including a 29-inch LG UltraWide) that’s always buzzing with news feeds, technical documentation, and research notes, as well as the occasional gaming sessions that keep him fresh.  Krishi thrives on staying current, always ready to dive into the latest announcements, industry shifts, and their far-reaching impacts.  When he's not deep into research on the latest PC hardware news, Krishi would love to chat with you about day trading and the financial markets—oh! And cricket, as well. View all articles by Krishi Chowdhary Our editorial process The Tech Report editorial policy is centered on providing helpful, accurate content that offers real value to our readers. We only work with experienced writers who have specific knowledge in the topics they cover, including latest developments in technology, online privacy, cryptocurrencies, software, and more. Our editorial policy ensures that each topic is researched and curated by our in-house editors. We maintain rigorous journalistic standards, and every article is 100% written by real authors. More from News View all View all

Submitted by WA Contents Rosan Bosch Studio releases nature-based campus for The Garzón School in Uruguay Uruguay Architecture News - May 28, 2025 - 04:21   html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd" For The Garzón School in Uruguay, Rosan Bosch Studio created a brand-new campus and classroom space surrounded by nature.The school's location in the middle of a thick eucalyptus forest creates a special bond with the natural world.The identity of the new Garzón School in Uruguay merges with its expansive and wild surroundings. Rosan Bosch Studio has worked closely with the school community to create a design idea that allows learning to occur both indoors and outside with ease. The new educational environment fosters natural curiosity and promotes play, exploration, and individual expression.The architecture, interior design, landscape design, and master plan were all created by Rosan Bosch Studio. Learning transcends conventional limits on this nature-connected campus because to the creative concept design's application of biophilic design principles.Nature is not only an addition to education; it is the school itself. Here, a specially created curriculum centered on experimentation and inquiry-based learning makes the students the heroes of their own education. According to the school's concept, nature is a teacher in and of itself, not just an adjunct to education.With six distinct learning zones (also known as Learning Worlds) based on six design principles—Mountain Top, Cave, Campfire, Watering Hole, Hands-on, and Movement—the Rosan Bosch Studio's concept design centers the pupils in a diversified learning environment.The six learning zones, which are created to accommodate various learning styles, give pupils significant options that promote independence and agency. Under the direction of educators and inclusion specialists, the kids are urged to go on a personal quest of inquiry and learning that transcends conventional educational frameworks.The School is the Park, and the Park is the SchoolThe nature-based campus blends a strong connection to nature with diverse learning areas that are intended to accommodate various learning preferences. It gives students a setting that encourages innovation, curiosity, and teamwork, creating real-world learning opportunities that equip future change agents.In this case, "the park is the school, and the school is the park," and all areas are interwoven with the surroundings in a continuous interaction between indoor and outdoor spaces.A meandering road round a lake and passes through a meadow before arriving to The Garzón School's "village," which is tucked away in a thick eucalyptus forest.Each student's learning journey starts here and then spreads outward as they become more independent and conscious.This endless park provides a fertile field for creativity and exploration with its winding streams and promises of adventure. It is an audacious reimagining of modern schooling.Landscape Design by Rosan Bosch StudioThe architectural concept and material selection are informed by nature and are sustainable, locally sourced, and thoughtfully chosen to blend in with the surrounding environment. The design concept combines natural light, subtle hues, and engaging textures to enhance the wellbeing of both teachers and pupils and to strengthen the bonds between them.In addition to offering locations for gathering and play, the village's landscape design plays a crucial role in identifying areas that provide kids a feeling of identification and belonging. Vernacular Uruguayan architecture is evoked by two brick plazas, and the natural environment is enhanced with indigenous plants and whimsical wooden features. These complement the sustainable buildings, which are completely composed of wood and covered in a traditional Japanese charring method called shou sugi ban. This gives the buildings longevity, personality, and a close connection to the natural environment.The new Garzón School exemplifies a transformative educational model that sets a standard for Latin America, showing how careful pedagogical, architectural, and natural integration can create spaces where learning occurs organically and students grow into capable, self-assured changemakers prepared for tomorrow's challenges.To revolutionize education, the Garzón School in Maldonado, Uruguay, has created a completely integrated ecosystem.The school's identity is interwoven with the expansive and untamed terrain.The school has created a customized, student-centered curriculum that is founded on the world's greatest teaching methods.The concept-based curriculum fosters critical and design thinking while emphasizing the development of competences, abilities, and traits. The lifelong skills and competences that students gain and develop during the process define the future-oriented curriculum. Because of this, the TGS curriculum emphasizes the development of critical 21st-century skills under the catchy heading of "Think, Act, Relate, Communicate."The campus, which launched the first phase of the project in March 2025, is a prime example of The Garzón School's dedication to providing top-notch, nature-based education and serves as a motivating example for educational institutions throughout Latin America and beyond.The project's next phase is presently being designed by Rosan Bosch Studio.MasterplanCentral buildings, landscapeColour Plan, Central BuildingsColour PlanSectionsElevationsElevationsElevationsAn multidisciplinary practice in art, architecture, design, and pedagogy, Rosan Bosch Studio focuses on creating learning spaces for students of all ages. The studio was established by Rosan Bosch in 2011. The studio operates globally, including headquarters in Copenhagen and Madrid.Project factsArchitect: Rosan Bosch StudioInterior Design: Rosan Bosch StudioMasterplan and Landscape Design: Rosan Bosch Studio Local Landscaping Consultant: Amalia Robredo Executive Architect andAssembly: Enkel Group Engineering: ArborealContractor and Mass Timber Solutions: Arboreal Carpentry: MeetlineYear of completion: 2025 (first phase)All images © Eleazar Cuadros. All drawigns © Rosan Bosch Studio.> via Rosan Bosch Studio

If you've ever worked at an industrial design or architecture firm, you've seen that closet or series of storage bins filled with material samples. Eventually there's a major office cleanup to reclaim space, and a bunch of that stuff goes. Goes where? Into landfill, according to Swatchbox, a sample-providing middleman between manufacturers and designers. "The architecture and design industry generates tons of waste from specifying materials," they write. "Every day, thousands of physical samples (tiles, textiles, laminates) are shipped out to architects and designers globally. Most end up in landfills after a single use." That's hardly a good look, if your firm touts their green credentials. To combat the problem, Swatchbox has launced a program called Second Life Samples—the first of its kind, they say—where firms can send material samples back to them, even if you didn't get them from Swatchbox. The company will then recirculate or recycle them.Since 2018, the company has already been doing this with samples they themselves have provided, but by opening up the program to all samples regardless of the source, reckon they can reduce waste by "up to 90% in participating architecture and design firms." After assessing returned samples for quality, those in good condition that are still labeled (a sample isn't much good unless you know where it came from) are made available on Swatchbox's online platform. As for the rest, "Unlabeled, discontinued, or lightly worn samples are made available to students and educators. Any material that is not recoverable due to damage is processed through Swatchbox recycling partners." The program is open to firms located in the U.S. and the U.K. You can sign up here.