Paper

Remote Control: Attuned Interventions in Mass Timber for Inuit-Housing

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Abstract

This paper investigates the cultural and ecological resilience offered within prefabricated mass timber housing solutions for a small, remote Inuit village at the northernmost tip of the Canadian province of Quebec. Just below the Arctic Circle, the harbor is open for less than one month a year, with no roads connecting Ivujivik to other northern Quebec communities. Timing and prefabrication of design solutions are essential to providing building infrastructure to this remote part of the planet. Additionally, this underserved community is overcrowded and lacks the necessary means of constructing suitable dwellings to withstand the long, cold winters. A brief history of this society and a rationale for why mass timber and pre-fabrication are appropriate for this remote location, followed by several lessons learned during an exploration into ecology, environmental awareness, health and well-being, and cultural sustainability towards the ultimate design project of prefabricated mass timber eco-housing for the Arctic. The studio process was threefold; 1) explore local resources of Inuit and other indigenous populations, 2) research qualitative and quantitative understanding of low-carbon and renewable materials for sustainable architectural design futures, and 3) speculate on prefabrication possibilities of mass timber in contemporary design for architectural interventions within remote locations. This paper will present several design benefits of employing pre-fabrication for construction in remote areas – from reducing waste and time of on-site labor through construction processes to durability, while also relating to the phenomenological and cultural resonance that aims to reconnect indigenous peoples to more symbiotic and biogenic building practices through regenerative and durable materials.

Keywords: Ecological Resilience, Prefabrication, Mass Timber, Culture, Environmental Awareness

How to Cite:

Raab, P. S., (2023) “Remote Control: Attuned Interventions in Mass Timber for Inuit-Housing”, Building Technology Educators’ Society 2023(1), 43–50. doi: https://doi.org/10.7275/btes.1932