The University of Calgary has announced the appointment of Dr. John L. Brown as the Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Design, which offers professional programs in architecture, landscape architecture, planning and advanced, design-based, research degrees.
John joined the architecture program in 1985, with a teaching and research focus in residential design and entrepreneurial forms of architectural practice. He served 10 years as Associate Dean (Research + International) and has been Interim Dean for the past 10 months. John is a registered architect, the principal of John Brown Architect Ltd., and a founding partner of Housebrand, a vertically-oriented residential firm that combines design, construction, interior design, real estate services, and furniture retailing into a one-stop shop for people wanting to build new homes in established communities. He is also a co-founder of the Slow Home Movement, an advocacy group devoted to improving the design quality of North American houses. John is a recognized authority on residential design, entrepreneurial practice, and age-in-place design. John is a fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), and is serving as the organization’s first vice president.
John holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of Manitoba (1980), a Master of Architecture from the University of Texas (1983), a Master of Science in Building Design from Columbia University (1984), and a PhD from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (2017), where he completed a dissertation that developed new strategies for housing Canada’s rapidly aging population.
“I am humbled to be named Dean of a Faculty committed to entrepreneurial thinking in the built environment. Our cities are facing big challenges, and we need out-of-the-box solutions to build a better future. This philosophy has a natural fit with Calgary, which is often cited as Canada’s most enterprising city. Our researchers and students are working with industry and government partners to explore new ways of disrupting the status quo in the design and construction industries, and dramatically improve the quality of the built and natural environments. In 2021, the Faculty of Environmental Design celebrates its 50th anniversary. I commit that, by that date, we will have extended and expanded our reputation as the global hub for entrepreneurial design thinking in the built environment,” said Brown.
John’s appointment is effective immediately.