American Society of Landscape Architects

This Thanksgiving, we honor the land and the stories it holds—the wisdom of Indigenous peoples who have cared for it across generations as well as the beauty and resilience you bring to it as landscape architects. Through your work, you create spaces that heal, inspire, and unite, shaping a world that is sustainable, equitable, and profoundly connected. For this, and for you, we are deeply grateful. Image Credit: ASLA 2020 Professional Awards - Honor Award, General Design. The Native Plant Garden at The New York Botanical Garden. OEHME, VAN SWEDEN | OvS. Photo credit: Ivo Vermeulen

Pamela Conrad, ASLA's inaugural Biodiversity and Climate Action Fellow, has released WORKS with NATURE: Low Carbon Adaptation Techniques for a Changing World WORKS with NATURE was the result of a collaborative effort with the United Nations National Adaptation planning team, Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA, founder of Landprocess -- with support from Climate Positive Design, ASLA, the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA), and Landscape Forms. "Amid the urgent climate and biodiversity crises, WORKS with NATURE showcases 100 proven techniques that effectively adapt, mitigate, and restore both our communities and ecosystems, paving the way for a regenerative future. Central to these efforts are Nature-Based Solutions, which draw from the harmonious co-existence between humans and the natural world" Conrad says. "These techniques may serve as inspiration for countries developing their National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and others around the world." There are many examples from the ASLA Professional Awards, Landscape Architecture Foundation's Landscape Performance Series, Harvard University Graduate School of Design's Climate by Design course, African Landscape Network (ALN), and IFLA. Access WORKS with NATURE: https://lnkd.in/ewJkGq6c Image Credit: (Cover): Private Ranch, Dordabis, Khomas Region, Namibia, Africa. / GREENinc landscape architecture, South Africa; Watersquare Benthemplein, City of Rotterdam, Rotterdam, South Holland, The Netherlands. Image Credits: De Urbanisten / Ossip van Duivenbode / Pallesh+Azarfane and Jurgen Bals; Buffalo Bayou, Houston, Texas, USA. Image Credits: SWA Group, Houston First Corporation; Realizing Urban NbS, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, East Africa. Image Credits: Kounkuey Design Initiative. Images courtesy of Climate Positive Design

“Ancestral infrastructure has been deliberately excluded from conversations. There has been an unlearning of these histories, even though Indigenous People have created the oldest man-made structures on Earth," said Julia Watson, Author of Lo—TEK Design by Radical Indigenism, during the opening general session of the ASLA 2024 Conference on Landscape Architecture in Washington, D.C. This Native American Heritage Month, support a historic call to action to co-create a future that heals land and water. The call was launched during the general session by Watson, Lyla June Johnston, the Indigenous Society of Architecture, Planning, and Design (ISAPD), and ASLA and its Biodiversity and Climate Action Committee. It outlines three key strategies: - Respect Indigenous Knowledge - Empower Future Generations - Help build an Indigenous landscape architects’ network of ASLA members and work in collaboration with groups like ISAPD Read more in ASLA's THE DIRT: https://bit.ly/4hYpKZE Image Credit: Built by the Tofinu, the city of Ganvie meaning ‘we survived’ floats on Lake Nokoué surrounded by a radiating reef system of twelve thousand acadja fish pens. / ? Iwan Baan, courtesy of Julia Watson #NativeAmericanHeritageMonth

Double Your Impact! Every dollar donated to the ASLA Fund will be matched up to $10,000! That means your generous support can help us reach a total of $20,000, empowering programs that shape the future of landscape architecture. Donate today: https://bit.ly/4fW2WYW

"We inspire communities to act. And together, we can create a path to a more sustainable future" — Pamela Conrad, ASLA, PLA, Founder, Climate Positive Design 10 landscape architects around the world show how to keep communities cool, safe, and healthy. They explain how to design a climate and nature positive world. Help tell the story of landscape architecture. Share this 7-minute video with policymakers, community leaders, clients, and partners: https://lnkd.in/e5k_Ux_c Learn more at asla.org/positive Videos produced by ASLA and directed by LANDAU Design+Technology Image Credit: Yerba Buena Park, San Francisco, California / CMG Landscape Architecture; Lubert Plaza at Thomas Jefferson University / Andropogon #LandscapeArchitecture #ClimateAction

Join us on Wednesday, December 4, at 1:30 PM ET for a webinar with urban designers Aditi Subramanian and Cassandra Rice, ASLA, PLA, as they present their research-backed study challenging traditional design ideologies in public spaces and explore how these spaces can be made more inclusive for girls and young women. Hear key takeaways from their study and engage in a conversation about reimagining public spaces for all. Register now: https://bit.ly/3V6jDJf

Join our webinar 'Inclusive Play Matters' on December 3 at 2 PM ET. Learn how to design welcoming parks that inspire intergenerational play and serve diverse communities. Discover evidence-based strategies and research insights to meet the needs of the whole child, environment, and community. Earn 1.0 PDH (LA CES/HSW) FREE for ASLA members Recording available for registrants Register now: https://bit.ly/3V3PeeD Sponsored by PlayCore Image Credit: McCandless Park in Milpitas, California / image: ? 2024 PatrickSchneiderPhoto.com courtesy of PlayCore

After many years of working with Indigenous communities and designers, “I came to understand this knowledge is relational and shaped by time and place. It’s different from Western science; Indigenous knowledge is interconnected,” said Julia Watson, Author of Lo—TEK Design by Radical Indigenism, during the opening general session of the ASLA 2024 Conference on Landscape Architecture in Washington, D.C. “There are vast networks of knowledge developed over long periods of time. These networks of knowledge enabled ancestral people to survive and adapt to climate change over thousands of years. You can’t separate their technologies from the people; they are co-evolutionary.” During the session, Watson was joined by Lyla June Johnston, an Indigenous Artist, Musician, Scholar, and Community Organizer of Diné (Navajo), Tsétsêhéstahese (Cheyenne), and European lineages. And then in conversation with José de Jesús Leal Loera, ASLA, and Paul Fragua with MIG. Together with ASLA and the Indigenous Society of Architecture, Planning, and Design (ISAPD), they launched a historic call to action: Co-create a future that heals land and water. Read more in ASLA's THE DIRT: https://bit.ly/4hYpKZE Image Credit: Aech Fish Weirs of the Yap People of Micronesia / Bill Jeffrey, courtesy of Julia Watson. A young fisherman walks under a living root bridge at Mawlynnong village, India. In the relentless damp of Meghalaya’s jungles the Khasi people have used the trainable roots of rubber trees to grow Jingkieng Dieng Jri living root bridges over rivers for centuries. / ? Amos Chapple, courtesy of Julia Watson; Symbiocene exhibition / Tim P. Whitby, courtesy of Julia Watson; Clam garden in the Broughton Archipelago, British Columbia, Canada / Wikipedia, Simon Fraser University, CC BY 2.0

"We can design to remove carbon; protect our communities from flooding, heat, and drought; and provide habitat. These strategies are at the core of what landscape architects do" — Pamela Conrad, ASLA, PLA, Founder, Climate Positive Design Landscape architects use climate and nature positive design to create a more sustainable and equitable future for us all. Pamela Conrad, ASLA, offers the way forward with Climate Positive Design and its Pathfinder tool. Learn more at asla.org/positive And on Monday, return for a compilation of the 10 videos in this series, ready to share with your network. #LandscapeArchitecture #ClimateAction #NaturePositive

Behind the scenes, ASLA and its members are preparing to host a workshop introducing environmental humanities to K-12 educators through landscape architecture—advancing our mission to foster career discovery and inspire the next generation of landscape architects! #STEMEducation