Crossing Over: Danish Architecture in Canada, Canadian Architecture in Denmark
Denmark and Canada have a longer architectural relationship than most people realise.
Over the past two decades, Danish firms have built some of Canada’s most celebrated buildings, reshaping waterfronts, campuses, and cultural institutions from Halifax to Toronto to Vancouver. Now, with the CETA Mutual Recognition Agreement opening a formal pathway for Canadian architects to practice across the EU, the conversation is becoming increasingly reciprocal.
This panel brings together leading Danish and Canadian architects to reflect honestly on what that exchange has produced, what each culture has absorbed from the other, where the friction has been, and what a more deliberate, two-way collaboration could look like as Canadian practices begin entering the Nordic market.
The discussion will also explore areas where Canadian and Danish practices may have opportunities to learn from one another, including climate-responsive design, low-carbon construction, and timber innovation. At a time when both regions are rethinking how we build and adapt cities in response to climate and changing patterns of urban growth, the panel asks what meaningful architectural exchange across borders could look like moving forward.
Moderated by Lars Emil Kragh, Underdirektør, Danske Ark
Panelists:
Heather Dubbeldam is a fourth-generation architect and Founding Principal of Dubbeldam Architecture + Design, a Toronto-based studio recognised for innovative, sustainable design across residential, commercial and public projects, and recipient of the 2024 Architectural Practice Award from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. Her work — exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale and published internationally — reflects a deep commitment to livability, low-carbon construction, and the social role of architecture, placing her practice in direct conversation with the values driving contemporary Danish design. An active international speaker and advocate, Heather brings to this panel a Canadian practitioner’s perspective on what meaningful international exchange can produce, and what it requires.
Nanna Stubbe Østergaard, is Associate Partner and Senior Project Manager at SLA, where she heads the practice’s engagement with the Canadian market. She is the lead on several of SLA’s most complex schemes in Canada — including the practice’s involvement in the Waterfront Toronto and Downsview projects reshaping Toronto — and has lectured on multiple occasions about the architectural and cultural connections between Denmark and Canada. Her work sits at the intersection of landscape, urbanism, and climate-responsive design, making her a central figure in the growing dialogue between the two countries.
Audun Opdal is a Senior Partner at 3XN where he is responsible for leading the delivery of major international projects. His recent work includes the new Sydney Fish Market, a major waterfront destination that welcomed over 40,000 visitors on its opening day; and 2 Finsbury Avenue, a 35-storey tower targeting net zero carbon, now under construction. In Canada Audun led the design of 3XN’s award-winning work on the Toronto waterfront, including Aquabella, Aqualuna, and T3 Bayside. He is a keen advocate of integrated design methods and believes that great architecture can only be achieved through a collaborative effort between designers, engineers, and specialist consultants at all levels from partners to interns. He is closely engaged with academia as a mentor and external examiner at the Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen.