Kristian Howald is a digital media educator and researcher specializing in virtual heritage, character design, and immersive worldbuilding. He teaches in the Computer Animation program at Sheridan College and is a co-author of Architecture and Videogames: Intersecting Worlds. Since 2017, he has been a key contributor to the Longhouse Project—a collaborative initiative using digital tools to visualize and preserve Indigenous architectural heritage in partnership with the Huron-Wendat Nation. His work on Longhouse 5.0 has been implemented in museums and educational institutions, and he now leads the development of Longhouse 6.0: a higher-fidelity, VR-based reconstruction of village life within the palisade.