Friday, November 15

3:30 p.m: Equity and Inclusion in Practice: How Do We Get There?

Sasaki speaker: Michael Grove, ASLA

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are commonly cited today, but what do they really mean? An introduction will provide an overview of the current state of the profession and why DEI matters. Panelists will then share exemplary practices they are using to recruit new voices and build inclusive practices.

3:30pm: Ideas Lab: Four Unique Riverfront Visions for Reinventing the Nation’s Third Coast

Sasaki speaker: Kate Tooke, ASLA

Inspired by urban waterfront transformations around the country, the Chicago River Edge Ideas Lab exhibition explored innovative concepts for placemaking along the Chicago River. Four unique visions demonstrate how riverfronts can reclaim their use as recreational and natural resources, catalyze development, and become hubs of entertainment and civic life.

6:00pm: Emerging Professionals Reception

Sasaki participant: Kira Sargent

Kira is serving on the ASLA’s Associate Advisory Committee, a new committee meant to advise the ASLA on issues people face within their first five years of professional practice. The Associate Advisory Committee and the Student Advisory Committee are co-hosting this event, which will feature a discussion about the open letter landscape architecture students recently wrote to the ASLA  asking for climate action, as well as a social reception.

Saturday, November 16

11:00am: Promoting International Landscape Practice through the Shanghai Landscape Forum

Sasaki speaker: Dou Zhang, ASLA, SITES AP, LEED AP BD+C

In 2017, three leading ASLA firms with well-established practices in China instigated a new professional practice network in Shanghai to advance ASLA’s mission internationally. The Shanghai Landscape Forum leads the debate in landscape planning and design in China and engages, connects, and inspires members and professionals practicing globally.

11:00am: Parks Equity: Fostering Access to Great Public Parks for All

Sasaki speaker: Laura Marett, ASLA, LEED AP

Access to high-quality parks is essential for all communities, especially those in urbanized areas with backyard deficits. This session will explore how the act of measuring and visualizing inequities in both park access and quality can give cities the tools to prioritize investment in parks where they are needed most.

11:00am: Wall Stories & Floor Stories: Narrative, Collaboration and Design

Sasaki speaker: Joshua Brooks, ASLA

From pictographs to studio pinups, graphic storytelling has been around for millennia. However, in today’s world it is far too easy for work to become “locked” in the computer. This session will explore ways in which academics and practitioners can hone the craft of narrative making and collaboration in design.

2:00pm: “Living” Landscapes: The Landscape Architect’s Role in Achieving Living Building Challenge Certification

Sasaki speaker: Kate Tooke, ASLA

With an emphasis on regenerative design and post-occupancy evaluation, the Living Building Challenge (LBC) is rigorously redefining green building standards, and site strategies are critical to achieving LBC certification. Join us to review how LBC imperatives interface with site and landscape design through three projects in Virginia, Alabama, and Georgia.

Sunday, November 17

9:00am: Decolonizing Design: Black Narratives in Landscape Architecture

Sasaki speaker: Breeze Outlaw, ASLA

The current narrative of landscape architecture fails to highlight the significance and impact of diverse identities in the discipline. This session explores the experiences of black landscape architects and the relevant cultural narratives that inform inclusive academic and professional practice.

9:00am: Beyond Number Crunching: Managing Projects, Processes and People

Sasaki speaker: Mark Dawson, FASLA

Delivering innovative design solutions on time and on budget, with happy teams and clients, healthy profit margins, and high quality is essential for business. Using real project scenarios, these firm leaders will share insights on the challenges, dynamic nature, and artful approach of project management in design practices.

9:00am: Fact Check: Assessing Landscape Performance in Research and Practice

Sasaki speaker: Tao Zhang, ASLA, LEED AP, SITES AP

Amid today’s science denial and “alternative facts,” it is imperative for landscape architects to advocate and prove design impacts with evidence. This panel shares experience in evaluating design and assessing landscape performance through collaborative research in practice, focusing on post-occupancy evaluation of environmental, social, and economic performance.

2:00pm: Landscapes in Flux: Design Research Lessons from Three Exemplary Waterfronts

Sasaki speaker: Zachary Chrisco, PE

Landscape architects harness research in everyday practice. But how well do performance objectives established during design stand up to social, economic, and environmental realities? Designers of three dynamic, urban waterfronts candidly share outcomes of research undertaken with the Landscape Architecture Foundation for Buffalo Bayou Park, Chicago Riverwalk, and Crissy Field.

3:30pm: Shifting Trends: Exploring SITES Opportunities in China

Sasaki speaker: Dou Zhang, ASLA, SITES AP, LEED AP BD+C

The shifting focus in China toward more urban redevelopment and improvements to environmental quality over sprawl provides unprecedented opportunities for the Sustainable SITES Initiative (SITES). Through an overall market analysis and case studies, this session offers various perspectives on how to achieve SITES certification in China projects.

3:30pm: Upstream Urbanism: Redefining the Role of the Landscape Architect as City Builders

Sasaki speaker: Michael Grove, ASLA

Landscape architects are expanding our reach, tackling complex issues of resiliency, equity, and social justice. So why aren’t we playing a more significant role in shaping cities? Through the lens of three practices we will explore landscape-led urban design as a means for reclaiming professional agency and as a human imperative.

Monday, November 18

8:30am: Spatial Multiplicity: Weaving Complex and Diverse Narratives in the Public Realm

Sasaki speaker: Diana Fernandez, ASLA

Public spaces of deep meaning often have multiple narratives that exist within the constructs of place. Through lively discussion and case study examples, this panel will explore key design strategies and lessons learned for creating spaces that embody and celebrate the complexity of the people and places they serve.

10:30am: Remember + Imagine: Embedding a Community’s Historic and Cultural Legacy through Design

Sasaki speaker: Jennifer Ng, ASLA

This session rethinks historic and cultural interpretation and encourages us to design beyond typical signage. Presenters discuss how historic and cultural interpretation can be embedded in the design as key components that ground the project within the community’s identity and act as driving agents in storytelling and placemaking.