Every summer for the last dozen years, Halifax architect Brian MacKay-Lyons has run a design-build workshop for architecture students and critics at his weekend farm along the rugged Nova Scotia coast. It’s called Ghost Lab, for the ghostly stone remnants of a long-abandoned settlement on the land. But this year, he decided to host a conference instead, inviting a posse of like-minded peers—mostly North American architects who share his passion for contemporary design that’s well-crafted, connected to its place, and sensitive to nature and to community. The Ghost conference drew nearly 200 architects, builders, students, and design fans. Here are some images from those June days.