Fo Guang Shan Temple of Toronto has received the 2025 Architectural Heritage Award from Heritage Mississauga, recognizing the temple’s distinctivearchitectural design and its contribution to preserving and promoting Buddhist culture and values. The award ceremony took place on November 6, where Venerable Zhi Guan, Superintendent of FGS Toronto, and Stacey Tran, White Elephant Executive of the BLIA Young Adult Division (BLIA-YAD), accepted the honor on behalf of the temple.

Founded in 1960, Heritage Mississauga is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and celebrating the city’s history, culture, and built heritage. Its annual Credits Heritage Awards Ceremony recognizes individuals, organizations, and businesses that have made exceptional contributions to heritage conservation or cultural revitalization. Award recipients are recognized as “Heritage Heroes,” and this year’s program honored 52 outstanding awardees.

As one of Canada’s most culturally diversecities, Mississauga thrives through the harmony of its many ethnic and faith communities. Since its consecration nearly 30 years ago, Fo Guang Shan Temple of Toronto has become a cornerstone of interfaith friendship and community engagement. Through Buddhist education, charitable service, and multicultural outreach, the temple continues to foster understanding, compassion, and social harmony.

Receiving the Architectural Heritage Award affirms not only the temple’s architectural excellence and cultural significance but also illustrates how Buddhist architecture can embody compassion, wisdom, and a spirit of community service within a modern urban setting.

This year’s award trophy, designed by artist Sidney Gendron, was crafted from reclaimed wood in the shape of a canoe paddle, symbolizing the courage, resilience, and forward-moving spirit of all “Heritage Heroes.”