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Decoding meaning in Indigenous design

TAWAW is a design-research firm dedicated to advancing Indigenous architecture. Our current research centers on the meaning found in original structures – the tipi, hogan, longhouse or wigwam - which we have come to understand as a microcosm of a larger world. Each project we undertake, offers behavioral, social and ideological meanings, that we integrate into contemporary form. Our work is not about replicating traditional designs but about understanding the meanings they hold, to bring meanings forward, making culture visible, but also stable. Join us as we explore the work of encoding and decoding Indigenous environments.  

The University of Waterloo Hagey Lectures Committee is thrilled to announce that this year’s Hagey Lecture will be delivered by Nalini Nadkarni, Professor of Biology at the University of Utah, on October 5, 2023, at 8pm in the Theatre of the Arts.

Jointly sponsored by the Faculty Association and the University, the Hagey Lectures are a free, annual series of lectures intended to challenge, stimulate, and enrich not only the faculty, staff, and students of the University of Waterloo, but also all members of the community.

The 2022 Hagey Lecture featuring Antoni Cimolino, artistic director of the Stratford Festival, is now available to watch online. 

The University of Waterloo Hagey Lectures Committee is thrilled to announce that this year’s Hagey Lecture will be delivered by Antoni Cimolino, Artistic Director of the Stratford Festival, on October 19 in the Theatre of the Arts.

The 2021 Hagey Lecture featuring Mark Jaccard, one of Canada’s foremost thinkers on climate change policy and economics, is now available to watch online. Jaccard’s thought-provoking talk focused on four key challenges to decarbonization, two elements of a simple path forward, and four barriers to overcome in order to achieve the simple path. 

The Hagey Lectures Committee is pleased to announced that the 2021 Hagey Lecture will be delivered by Mark Jaccard on October 27, 2021. Jaccard, a professor in the School of Resource and Environmental Management at Simon Fraser University, will speak about how climate-concerned citizens can overcome myths that hinder us from acting in time to prevent extreme climate impacts.

The committee and Jaccard are hopeful that the event, originally scheduled for September 2020, will have a small in-person audience in addition to a livestream. Details about the format of the event will be decided in early fall.

The Hagey Lectures are an invitational lecture series jointly sponsored by the Faculty Association and the University of Waterloo and have been held almost every year since 1970.

In the 2019 Hagey Lecture, Professor John Borrows blends Anishinaabe stories, language, theories and practices with analysis of Canadian law to illustrate the possibilities and limits of the seven grandmother/grandfather teachings: love, truth, bravery, humility, wisdom, honesty and respect.

John Borrows is Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Law at the University of Victoria.