Canada Chapter

The Canadian Chapter of ANFA is dedicated to understanding and creating meaningful experiences in the built environment, with an emphasis on the role Canada’s natural landscape, multiculturalism, and history play in shaping those experiences. We use the methods of the human sciences - ranging from behavioral science, sociology, psychology, cognitive science, to neuroscience - to quantify and qualify how behaviour, thoughts, emotion, social interactions, culture, and physiology are affected by architectural and urban design. Through our research, we offer designers meaningful insights into the effects of their designs, helping them create spaces that support the high quality of life Canada is known for. We believe that people - including their personalities, desires, cultures, and emotions - should be placed at the centre of design, and that good design can only emerge if end-users are understood holistically. As a result of Canada’s northern geography, diversity, and cultural history, we provide a unique and valuable perspective to the ANFA community, and welcome national and international collaborations with citizens, policy makers, designers, and researchers working to solve problems at the intersection of people and place.