Ted Wilson has been named the new president for the governing Council of the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA). A Sudbury-based architect and master lecturer at Laurentian University’s McEwen School of Architecture (MSoA), Wilson was acclaimed to the one-year position at the OAA Council meeting in Toronto on Jan. 23.

Wilson has worked with several Canadian architecture practices, including AECOM Canada Architects Ltd., where he co-ordinated engineering with LGA Architectural Partners for the design of MSoA, where he now teaches. For the OAA, Wilson previously served as senior vice-president and treasurer, and has chaired association committees related to governance, finance and sustainable design.

“I first ran for Council to engage in larger thinking about architects, the public interest and where the profession can continue to be effectively guided by a regulator,” Wilson said. “Now as president, I’m eager to keep listening, to use data as a resource and to be mindful and respectful in engagement. I know this is a long run and want to take the time to do it well. The public and the profession deserve it.”

The OAA regulates the practice of architecture in the province, protecting the public interest. This includes licensing architects and licensed technologists, establishing and enforcing standards for professional practice and ensuring ongoing education for the profession. Wilson’s primary goals are fulfilling the OAA’s current Strategic Plan, continuing work to modernize the Architects Act, supporting interns on the path to licensure and strengthening relations with the 14 Local Architectural Societies across Ontario.

Wilson has always been deeply passionate about architecture and the community that surrounds the profession. A graduate of the University of Waterloo, his dream of becoming an architect dates back to childhood, inspired by seeing the design work of his friend’s father.

“The two lenses of the OAA’s Strategic Plan — Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Climate Action — go so well together,” he says. “I am mindful of the need to be respectful of others, to care for others. If we are mindful in this way, we become mindful of the world of which we are an inextricable part. Care for each other, care for the natural environment. I call this environmental integrity.”

During his term as president, Wilson will continue his teaching work at MSoA. In leading the Council for 2025, he replaces Settimo Vilardi, who had completed two one-year terms and has now assumed the role of immediate past president.

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