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UT Austin [Video]

As the Graduate Program in Landscape Architecture celebrates the completion of its 15th year at the University of Texas at Austin, Director Hope Hasbrouck reflects on the radical change the program has experienced since its establishment. This transformation, Hasbrouck explains, is in response to the changing context of landscape architectural design. As perspectives within the profession shift to re-orient design goals from program to performance, research and academia topics have expanded to explore the dynamics of urban systems, historical and theoretical basis for design approach, and the complexities of multidisciplinary projects. During her presentation at the Land8x8 Lightning Talks in Austin, TX, Hasbrouck shared five words she is seeing in academia that she believes will guide the...Read More

ASLA 2019: A Celebration of Authenticity, A Reminder of Harmony

The ASLA Conference on Landscape Architecture often feels like homecoming. Running around with 6,000-some of your colleagues, friends old and new, it’s almost impossible not to feel more educated, inspired, excited, and empowered. This year we celebrated, discussed, and challenged landscape architecture – how we perceive it, shape it, and share it – in sunny San Diego in November. With over 120 education opportunities, 14 special events, and 350 exhibitors gathered in concert, there is always something to do, something to see, something to learn, and someone to meet. With a wide range of topics varying from sustainable materials, BIM (Building Information Modeling), extending to identity and culture in our practice, this year’s conference felt especially powerful, timely, and i...Read More

Land8 Social Media Awards in Landscape Architecture 2019 – Winners!

Announcing the winners of the 2nd Annual Land8 Social Media Awards in Landscape Architecture! Social media has the power to significantly increase the awareness and importance of the profession of landscape architecture, and Land8 believes industry leaders in social media should be promoted and recognized. Be sure to follow the winners to help grow and promote the profession! Top 10 Social Media Accounts – Landscape Architecture Firms TBG Partners – A leader in the social media scene, TBG shows that landscape architects are powerful connectors – in cities and on projects – and showcases the scales in which they work, from macro to micro. At TBG, they make a concerted effort to demystify what it is that landscape architects do and educate followers on ALL aspects of landscape architec...Read More

5 Reasons Why You Should Go to LABash 2020

LABash is an annual, student-run landscape architecture conference that brings together students and professionals in the field for a weekend of educational sessions, keynote lectures, social events, networking, and career-building. This year, for the 50th anniversary of the conference, LABash is being held at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. During the weekend of April 2-4, students and professionals from across the country will come together to celebrate the theme “Rise Above Run” and hear first-hand from professionals about how they have overcome obstacles relating to the environment and social justice through the power of design. LABash is so much more than a conference – it is a sneak-peak into the future of landscape architecture. It is reassurance that the next generation of ...Read More

Leveraging Inevitabilities [Video]

“The future of landscape architecture includes me,” proclaims Katie Coyne, Certified Ecologist and Principal at Asakura Robinson, a planning, urban design, and landscape architecture firm. With a background in both ecology and community planning and sustainable design, Coyne leads the Urban Ecology Studio at Asakura Robinson, working alongside planners and design professionals to incorporate resilient design principles into the firm’s work. While Coyne works alongside landscape architects, she is not a professionally trained landscape architect, so when asked to present on the topic of “Next Practices in Landscape Architecture” for the Land8x8 Lightning Talks in Austin, TX, Coyne considered the economic, cultural, social, and ecological goals that must be balanced for a resilient future an...Read More

Land8 Social Media Awards in Landscape Architecture 2019 – Call for Nominations!

Land8: Landscape Architects Network announces the 2nd Annual Land8 Social Media Awards in Landscape Architecture. Land8 was founded as an online hub for landscape architecture professionals to interact with each other. It has since grown to an international community of not only landscape architects, but also those interested in learning about the field of landscape architecture with over 1.5 million followers across Land8’s social media channels. Social media has the power to significantly increase the awareness and importance of the profession of landscape architecture, and Land8 believes industry leaders in social media should be promoted and recognized. < VIEW 2018 WINNERS > AWARDS Ten (10) awards will be given and ranked in each of the following categories: Landscape Architectur...Read More

10 Questions with @thelandscapeofmemes

Those clever landscape architect memes your friends are sharing? They’re probably from the new instagram phenomenon @thelandscapeofmemes. Land8 had the opportunity to ask @thelandscapeofmemes a series of questions about their work. Here’s your chance to learn from a meme master who thinks seriously about the possibilities of our profession. Make sure to give them a follow @thelandscapeofmemes on Instagram or Twitter. What instigated @thelandscapeofmemes? I’m an avid viewer of memes and one day I randomly decided to search “landscape/landscape architecture memes” and what I saw was… interesting. I’d seen so many funny meme accounts for architecture, graphic design, medicine etc and I would always think, “It would be cool if there was a decent, relevant meme page dedicated to lan...Read More

How Public Open Space Reactivates the City

Public open spaces are vital for understanding cities. They are the main environments for citizens’ interaction and stimulation. While cities create the physical environment for social life, public spaces work as the stage and catalyst of social interaction. Therefore, well-functioning public spaces are crucial for any urban environment due to being physical spaces for civic participation, sense of belonging, and social integration. Likewise, a lack of common space results in the decay of the social structure of the city by limiting possibilities for simple communication and interaction. However, urban public space tends to be more and more exclusive due to top-down planning and standardized practices with limited adaptability. This is further compounded by market forces leading to t...Read More

Eco Altitudes [Video]

Cars take up a ton of real estate in America’s cities. From local roads and on-street parking stalls to elevated highways and multi-story parking garages, cities devote 50 to 60 percent of their space to cars. If we could reclaim this valuable land from vehicles, imagine the many ways cities could be transformed. Autonomous vehicles (AVs) have the potential to become a major catalyst for urban transformation, providing cities with the opportunity to reclaim their urban public space. As cities prepare for the advent of AVs and other new mobility technologies, Amna Ansari, Architect and Urban Designer at SWA Group, believes that design professionals have an essential role to play. During the Land8x8 Lightning Talks in Houston, TX, Ansari explores how we might shape these emerging technologie...Read More

Nature in the City: Tracking Pollinators in Denver’s Newest Park

Residents of Globeville, a neighborhood in north Denver, have limited access to natural areas and open space – factors that impact social equity, along with mental and physical well-being. The neighborhood is zoned urban industrial and is littered with a recycling plant, an armory, and scrap yards. It was home to the Globe Asarco Plant, a high-purity metals (cadmium, arsenic, lead, and zinc) refining facility, awarded Superfund status in 1993. An exciting 80-acre park project is slated to change the status quo. Beyond designing a park, Denver Parks and Recreation and Denver Public Works, along with lead design firm Dig Studio, undertook an in-depth, year-long community engagement process designed to build social capital alongside the wealth of new green space. The Beginning The Globeville ...Read More

How Circular Economy Can Build Sustainability

The circular economy seeks to move beyond traditional manufacture, use, and dispose culture to build resilience into systems, products and services throughout their lifecycle and beyond. In this article, we look at the circular economy and how it can be used in urban design and landscape architecture to improve sustainability. Linear Economy Our current approach to consumption is largely a linear process. We purchase products, use them for their useful lifecycle, and then discard them. Often this waste is not recycled or reused and simply ends up in landfill. In nature, very little is wasted. Often the faeces of one organism goes on to feed another, which in turn creates waste products that add humus to the soil. The nutrients from the humus ultimately fertilize vegetation in a closed loop...Read More

8 Degrees of Connection [Video]

What brought you to your profession of landscape architecture? Who encouraged you along your career path? Who has helped you succeed and attain your professional goals? These are among the questions landscape architect Shaney Clemmons, Founder and Principal of Shademaker Studio, considered as she prepared for her presentation at the Land8x8 Lightning Talks in Austin, TX. When asked to present on the topic of “Next Practices in Landscape Architecture”, Clemmons reflected on those people who played a key role in her professional life and used her presentation as an opportunity to share her belief that fostering, appreciating, and maintaining these connections are key to the future of the profession. Coupling two sociology theories together, six degrees of separation (the theory that any pers...Read More

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