2019 Annual WASLA Conference

Greater Tacoma Convention Center, March 22, 2019

4:15 - 5:15 PM
Speaking Her Voice: Women in Landscape Architecture

Description:

A December 2018 New York Time editorial by Allison Arieff questioned why so few female architects remain in the profession long term. The statistics quoted for architecture schools and firms is eerily like those for landscape architects. A 2016 ASLA article stated women make up almost 50% of graduates from accredited institutions and LARE candidates, but only 36% of ASLA membership and 19% of ASLA fellows are women. If access to education is not the problem, what is driving women away from the profession long term? Female landscape architects in Washington state lead in many ways: as leaders in the faculty of our major state institutions, heading some of our most dynamic design firms, and women make up 40% of the state’s fellows. However, there is always room for improvement and our state can inspire improvements in the national trend. This panel examines the experience of women at different professional levels to explore further what it takes to gain respect in the industry, balance expectations and find (or redefine) success.

Speaker Bios:

Dorothy Faris, Principal, Mithun

Dorothy Faris is a landscape architecture design leader and principal with multidisciplinary design firm Mithun. Her ability to think across scales—from master planning large site to the specifics of construction details—and collaborative approach make her a valuable team member. With a background in ceramics and art history Dorothy was attracted to landscape architecture as an art form that enhances our built environments. Throughout her 14 years’ experience, her conceptually driven design approach and interest in ecological processes has led to the creation of many successful and unique civic spaces.

Liz Browning, Project Manager, Cascade Design Collaborative

Liz Browning is project manager at Cascade Design Collaborative in Seattle and a lecturer in the Department of Landscape Architecture at the University of Washington, where she teaches introductory design studios. Her projects with several respected PNW firms range in scale and type, with a focus on public urban spaces, public facilities, university campuses, and forward-thinking urban development. She is experienced in all project phases, with significant construction documentation and administration expertise. Liz‘s passions lie in creating elegantly designed, well-crafted, responsive, and generous public places. Liz brings enthusiasm and creativity to her teaching, with a strong emphasis on encouraging students to hone their communication and technical skills in preparation for the professional environment. She strongly believes that Landscape Architecture is a necessarily interdisciplinary field and that landscape architects and designers should strive to develop a common and inclusive language for working with design teams, clients, and the broader community. Originally from Northern California, Liz has resided in Seattle for over 20 years. She received her MLA from the University of Washington in 2005 and holds an undergraduate degree in English Literature, also from the UW. When not designing, you’ll find Liz in her garden, SUPing the waters of Puget Sound, or backpacking high in the Cascade Mountains. She is also the owner of Laughing Girl Flowers, a floral design studio in Seattle.

Sara Jacobs, University of Washington PHD Candidate

Sara Jacobs is a landscape designer and a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Washington. As a lecturer in landscape architecture at the UW she teaches foundational and advanced studios in ecological systems design and courses in visual representation, history, and design research. Her research and teaching uses historical scholarship to investigate the intersections of design and theory to produce in scholarly work that contributes to shaping contemporary design practice. Sara has worked as a landscape designer at SCAPE Landscape Architecture, where she helped lead landscape-scale urban design and waterfront projects, and at OPSYS Landscape, where she used mapping and visual representation as a medium for revealing environmental, political, and infrastructural intersections. Sara has an MLA from Harvard University.

Sandra Fischer, FASLA Principal, Fischer Buoma Partnership

Sandra Fischer, of Fischer Bouma Partnership, was elevated to the ASLA’s Council of Fellows in 2018 for excellence in Leadership/Management. With a ground-breaking and influential practice that has spanned the Pacific Northwest, Great Plains and Northern Rockies (including being the first woman licensed in the state of Montana), Sandra has worked tirelessly to create more attractive, livable, walkable and economically sustainable communities. She has led award-winning global consultancies and regional multidisciplinary firms, and through her active participation in civic and professional organizations, has raised the profile of landscape architecture in places where the profession is less established. A hallmark of Fischer’s success, and a source of her influence, has been her ability to develop the talents of those around her. Through mentorship and the example of her integrity, she nurtures employees, students and emerging professionals, with a particular interest in bringing women into the kind of leadership positions she has pioneered.

Learning Objectives:

This panel examines the experience of women at different professional levels to explore further what it takes to gain respect in the industry, balance expectations and find (or redefine) success.

Hear perspectives of women from different professional levels: students, recent graduates, more established practitioners and those recognized in the ASLA Council of Fellows.
Discuss how leadership is taught and inspired in female landscape architects.
Discuss how women are redefining success by expanding the practice beyond the traditional role of landscape architects.