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September 27, 2006
- An article by EVP Nancy Somerville on ASLA’s sustainability initiatives will appear in the next edition of bridges, the online newsletter of the Austrian Embassy’s Office of Science and Technology. Somerville has also contributed an article on the ASLA green roof for the fall edition of The Green Roof Infrastructure Monitor,the newsletter of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities.
- As the 2006 Annual Meeting draws near, Government Affairs staff are preparing to unveil the new ASLA Advocacy Network, an online system to allow landscape architects to advocate directly to Congress, state legislators and other federal, state and local policymakers via email. Staff will feature a demonstration of this exciting new tool at the ASLA Commons in the Expo Hall. Stop by and get connected!
- Good news continues to build for the Michigan Chapter’s effort to upgrade that state’s title act to a practice act. The engineers have agreed not to oppose a proposed compromise bill, which retains their current definition of “landscape architecture” and most other aspects of the current law, except the upgrade from title act to practice act. It is unclear whether there will be enough time for the legislature to consider the bill this year. Even if it not approved this year, the chapter intends to press on in 2007 under these favorable circumstances.
- Associate membership is now over 1,700 and membership overall is fast approaching the 17,000 mark.
- The ASLA green roof fundraising mail campaign has brought in an additional $16,119 in contributions and pledges in its first week. The mailing was sent to the nearly 3,900 principals of firms that have not yet contributed. Follow up emails and calling are scheduled over the next six weeks.
- The ASLA 2006 Student Awards were announced in LAND Online and via a national press release. This year’s program was the most competitive in ASLA history in terms of number of entries and schools represented. The 25 awards will be presented to the winning students and advisors at the ASLA Awards Ceremony on Monday, October 9, at the annual meeting.
- Fall is a busy time for ASLA co-sponsorship and participation in allied organizations’ meetings, including: the National Recreations & Parks Association meeting in Seattle, WA on October. 10–14; Urban Land Institute meeting in Denver, CO on October. 17–20; U.S. Green Building Council (Greenbuild) in Denver, CO on November 15–17; and “Greenovation Home Expo” at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., on November 17. ASLA is also a co-sponsor with The Cultural Landscape Foundation for the Patronage and Landscape Symposium to be held at Cranbrook on November 9-11.
- CNN shot footage of the ASLA green roof and interviewed Dennis Carmichael, FASLA, for a weekend segment on green building and sustainable design that began running in rotation in late August on its regular full feature channel. The segment has subsequently appeared on WUSA-TV (CBS affiliate, Washington, DC) and WTTG-TV (FOX affiliate, Washington, DC), as well as in Florida and New York.
- Landscape architecture and ASLA members continue to be featured widely in the media. Steve Martino, FASLA, Charles Anderson, ASLA, Stephen Stimson, FASLA, Ed Hollander, ASLA, Mia Lehrer, ASLA, Andrea Cochran, ASLA, Pamela Burton, ASLA, and Sunny Scully, FASLA, were interviewed for two different stories on residential design for Custom Home Outdoors magazine. Len Hopper, FASLA, and EVP Somerville were interviewed for an article on crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) for the American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS). Meanwhile, Russell Chung, FASLA, and Jana Dewey McKenzie, ASLA, were interviewed for HSMAI Marketing Review, a highly regarded hospitality trade journal. Jack Carman, FASLA, and Annie Kirk, ASLA, were interviewed by McNight Long Term Care News for an article on therapeutic landscapes. Tom Tavella, ASLA, was interviewed for an article on PVC pipe in Engineering News Record. Land Development Today magazine is featuring an article on licensing for landscape architects and will cite ASLA as a resource. Vivienda y Decoracion, a magazine devoted to design and architecture published in Chile, is interviewing Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, MESA, and Charles Anderson Landscape Architecture. Lowe’s Home Improvement is interviewing Jim Hagstrom, ASLA, James Jackson, ASLA, and William Williamson, ASLA, for an article on winterizing equipment. Kevin Robert Perry, ASLA, and Stuart Appel, ASLA, were interviewed for an article in Stormwater Management magazine. You can find “Landscape Architecture in the News” in the latest edition of LAND Online.
- The 2007 ASLA Professional and Student Awards Call for Entries will be mailed shortly after the annual meeting. They will also be distributed at the annual meeting during the Awards Ceremony and at the ASLA Commons. A CD-ROM of the awards video and a Call for Entries poster will be given out to Awards Luncheon guests. The Honors and Awards Advisory Committee and public relations staff have confirmed very distinguished juries for the 2007 program:
- Professional Awards Jury
-Chris Dimond, FASLA, Jury Chair, HNTB, Kansas City, MO
-Warren Byrd, FASLA, Nelson Byrd Woltz, Charlottesville, VA
-Bill Callaway, FASLA, SWA Group, Sausalito, CA
-Astrid Haryati, ASLA, City of Chicago, Chicago, IL
-Richard Hawks, FASLA, State University of New York, Syracuse, NY
-Raymond Jungles, ASLA, Raymond Jungles Landscape Architect, Miami, FL
-Ketzel Levine, National Public Radio, Portland, OR
-Ken Smith, ASLA, Ken Smith Landscape Architect, New York, NY
-Adele Chatfield-Taylor, American Academy in Rome, Rome, Italy, & New York, NY
-Bill Marken, Garden Design, (for residential category), Los Altos, CA
-Bill Tishler, FASLA, (on behalf of the National Trust, for the Landmark Award), Madison, WI
- Student Awards Jury
-Todd Johnson, FASLA, Jury Chair, Design Workshop, Denver, CO
-Ellin Goetz, FASLA, Goetz + Stropes, Naples, FL
-Dean Hill, ASLA, host, Grounds for Improvement, Fishers, IN
-Len Hopper, FASLA, New York City Public Housing Authority, New York, NY
-Shannon Nichol, ASLA, Gustafson Guthrie Nichol Ltd., Seattle, WA
-Mark Rios, FASLA, Rios Clementi Hale Studios, Los Angeles, CA
-Lolly Tai, FASLA, Temple University, Ambler, PA
- ASLA has launched a new “Opportunities and Events” page on the ASLA website, which will allow users to submit events directly to the ASLA website, and edited and approved by the web editor for posting. This new system will allow users to sort events and opportunities by date, and event title, and search by category, state, and event start date. This new system will automate Opportunities and Events submissions, and will make finding an event much more user-friendly.
- ASLA has launched a searchable version of the McGraw-Hill Construction Network for Products on its website. The new service provides ASLA members with direct access to the network, which includes 10,000 manufacturers. ASLA has provided McGraw-Hill with content for the landscape architecture community within the network. This content links directly to the ASLA website, providing additional traffic from allied professionals.
- The United States Botanic Garden (USBG) has joined ASLA and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center as a partner in the Sustainable Sites Initiative. The USBG will give $125,000 to fund the initiative in the coming year and, pending appropriations from Congress, will provide additional monies in subsequent years.
September 13, 2006
Governance and Administration
- ASLA and the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards (CLARB) met to discuss continuing education requirements for licensure and a CLARB initiative to develop an approval process for courses. ASLA has proposed that CLARB and the other member organizations of the Presidents Council work together to develop guidelines and standards for continuing education programs and to put in place a system whereby each of the organizations could approve course content following those guidelines. ASLA already has a continuing education provider program and works directly with state boards as needed to obtain approval for annual meeting education sessions and LATIS reports.
- Recent Green roof guests included staff of the multidisciplinary firm Ayers/Saint/Gross who were very impressed with the innovative use of grating over sedum to increase pervious surface without compromising amenity space and the Greater Washington Board of Trade Committee on Transportation and the Environment.
- Staff from Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc., (MVVA) were at ASLA headquarters to install additional plants on the green roof. A number of the specified plants were not installed in the spring because of availability. Those were planted last week along with new plants that represent an additional donation from Emory Knoll Farms. Plant growth is being monitored over the first season. Light meters were placed in different areas and a number of individual plants were tagged so that data on plant growth and growing conditions could be collected. The report will form the baseline for ongoing research conducted during each growing season. An illustrated guide to the plants has also been prepared; the guide will be used for tours and will be posted on the web. Other aspects of the project being monitored are temperature, water quality, and stormwater runoff. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is providing funding to assist with the water quality testing.
- Staff are working with the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center on changes in the Sustainable Sites Initiative budget, preparations for an upcoming Sites development committee meeting, and fundraising. A grant from the USDA Forest Service is underwriting a Sites development committee meeting.
- The Michigan Chapter hosted a state lobby day to reach out to legislators for support of their bills to upgrade their title act to a practice act. The chapter has produced a brochure in support of the effort that highlights aspects of landscape architecture that impact the public health, safety and welfare.
- The licensure fact sheet has been updated to reflect the new practice acts (New Hampshire and West Virginia) and to repackage the arguments in favor of licensure for landscape architects. The postcard version has also been updated. Printed versions of both are now available to chapters upon request.
- The 2006 CIP Jury has allocated $8,500 to four proposals out of the $26,380 requested from the total of eight submitted. The Florida, New Jersey, St. Louis, and Oregon chapters were awarded either full or partial funding. The jury requested additional information from four chapters, Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina, and Wisconsin, on their respective proposals, which was received. The jury is currently reviewing the additional information.
- The ASLA 2006 Student Awards were announced in LAND Online and via a national press release. This year’s program was the most competitive in ASLA history in terms of number of entries and schools represented. The 25 awards will be presented to the winning students and advisors at the ASLA Awards Ceremony on Monday, October 9, at the annual meeting.
- To date, 21 media representatives have requested press credentials to cover the annual meeting and more are expected. This is more than any year on record.
- The CNN green roof segment continues to air and the FOX segment on hot careers featuring landscape architecture aired recently.
- Public relations staff has been planning ASLA’s participation in the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Greenbuild, its annual meeting and EXPO, in Denver in mid-November. ASLA received 50 complimentary passes to the EXPO and offered them to members of the Colorado Chapter. The response was so overwhelming that ASLA had to request more passes from USGBC, boding well for landscape architecture representation at Greenbuild.
- To date, 18 firms and 72 job candidates have signed up to participate in JobLink LIVE during the Annual Meeting. Participating firms will display tabletop exhibits to promote their projects and open positions.
- All programs reviewed by LAAB at its summer meeting have been notified of LAAB’s decision regarding their accreditation status. LAAB made the following decisions:
-Granted accreditation for six years (due to expire on June 30, 2012) to:Ball State University – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
University of California at Berkeley – course of study leading to the first professional MLA degree
University of California at Davis – course of study leading to the first professional BSLA degree
University of Connecticut – course of study leading to the first professional BSLA degree
Florida International University – course of study leading to the first professional MLA degree
University of Maryland – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
Michigan State University – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
University of Minnesota – course of study leading to the first professional MLA degree
Rutgers – The State University of New Jersey – course of study leading to the first professional BSLA degree
State University of New York at Syracuse – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
State University of New York at Syracuse – course of study leading to the first professional MLA degree
Texas Tech University – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
-Granted provisional accreditation for two years (due to expire on June 30, 2008) to:
University of Nevada, Las Vegas: course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
-Granted candidacy status to:
Philadelphia University – course of study leading to the first professional BLA degree
City College of New York – course of study leading the first professional MLA degree
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