Barbara Lilker graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Toronto in 1996. She is founding partner of the multidisciplinary design firm Lilker Hecht Design Studio, which concentrates on small-scale residential and commercial architecture. Since 2001 Barbara has developed and taught architecture programs to children of all ages as a faculty member of the Avenue Road Arts School, an outreach instructor for Vibe Arts and for various public and private schools in Toronto. Barbara’s focus has been to use architecture as a vehicle to integrate the arts, science and social studies objectives of the Ontario curriculum. Most recently Barbara co-developed and is an educator for No. 9 Contemporary Art and the Environment’s program: Imagining My Sustainable City. This program, in partnership with the Toronto District School Board, teaches grade 7 and 8 students about sustainable urban design and architecture with a focus on enhancing eco-literacy. Barbara has taught the Imagining My Sustainable City program to over 2000 Toronto students as well as in Chicago through a partnership with The Chicago Architecture Foundation and with the Hamilton Wentworth school board. Barbara is a co-recipient of the 2018 Community Art Educator of the Year award from the Ontario Arts Education Association.
