Alixa Lacerna

Alixa Lacerna is a Master of Architecture candidate at the University of Manitoba. Her thesis pursues an  architecture of mindfulness and asks how the undervalued role of the Babaylan – a traditional Filipino  healer, shaman, visionary, knowledge keeper, and warrior – might help restore cultural well-being. Alixa  has been living her dream of doing what she loves, ever since earning an Undergraduate Research  Award from the University of Manitoba in 2019. The research she developed then continues today and  has expanded to include screenwriting; the intersections of healing and architecture; history outside of  Europe; equity, diversity, and inclusion in design; and the many different ways to be an architect. She is  co-president of the University of Manitoba Association of Architecture Students (UMAAS), supporting  student experience, and a co-founder of JAR Opener, a podcast tackling issues of equity, diversity, and  inclusion in Winnipeg’s design scene.