This thesis questions whether our dependence on the extensive river infrastructure of dams and spillways and leading edge communication technologies are sufficient means of community protection against flooding in an era of climate change and unpredictable floodplain development. Can architecture serve communities to promote a greater understanding of local rivers and raise an awareness for flooding while revealing the invisible — and often underestimated — forces of water around us?

A network of Flood Towers are proposed along the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. Subverting the legacy of prevailing water control infrastructure, these Towers stand as physical reminders of inundated villages of the past and serve as warnings to lost villages of the future. A House Moving network is proposed in partnership with the Towers to enable communities to rapidly withdraw their homes from the unstable landscapes.