IFLA Newsletter August 2013

[email protected] web sitewww.iflaonline.org cultural landscape committee www.iflaclc.org

IFLA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

PresidentDesiree [email protected]

Secretary General Ilya MOCHALOV [email protected]

Vice-President European RegionNigel [email protected]

Vice-President Asia/Pacific RegionDato Ismail bin Ngah [email protected]

Vice-President Americas RegionCarlos [email protected]

Editor IFLA NewsShirah [email protected] Potential contributors please contact [email protected]

Deadline for articles (500-1000 words plus illustrations) last day of the preceding month

FROM THE PRESIDENT Desiree Martínez 2

Designing the Future Kenneth Buck 2

The Golden Age Dr. Jon Bryan Burley 6

The Possibilities of Landscape Dr. Uehara Misato 8 Dr. Goto Seiko Helene Puzio

The Department of Landscape Eckart Lange 12

Dr. Martha Fajardo receives Claudia Misteli 13Honorary degree

Shared Memories Renee Davies 16

Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award 2014 18

Book ReviewLandscape Architecture: A Manual of Environmental Planning and Design Mónica Pallares-Trujillo 18

C O N T E N T S

T H E L A N D S C A P E A P P R O A C H

International Federation of Landscape Architects Fédération Internationale des Architectes Paysagistes

IFLAN E W S L E T T E R NO. 106 AUGUST 2013

IFLA Newsletter Issue 106 August 2013

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To implement the new strategy which includes the hiring of an Executive Director, developing new ways to finance projects and enhancing our com-munication will become one of our main tasks for the rest of my term. I am convinced that through this team-work exercise we will contribute to a more flexible and proactive IFLA, which responds to regional and national needs and also represents the profession world-wide.

With a big hug,

Desiree Martínez

Designing the Future

Kenneth Buck, BCSLA, AALA, OALA, CSLA, ASLA, MICF, EACC

What is it about Landscape Architecture that we want, in fact need, to change to ensure its place in the world to thrive and shine?

At a recent gathering of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects - the National “Congress” in Regina, Saskatchewan, on the theme of “Winds of Change” - I made a presentation and facilitated an enthusiastic discussion on this topic. The presen-tation was entitled “A Call to Action For All Land-scape Architects to Transform!”

FROM THE PRESIDENTWe are about to begin the last third of this year. In the northern hemisphere the sum-mer is over and the trees are turning red and yellow. In the southern part of the world the cold season is about to end and the first flowers are on the rise. In the tropics it is also a transition between the rainy and

the dry season. Here in Mexico City we are in the middle of the hurricane season and every day the city government reminds us that we live in a lake basin. I recently had the chance to spend some vacation time with family, but also spent time with the EXCO and the Strategic Planning Group (SPG) working towards IFLA’s goals.

Everyone has received the Framework and the minutes from Auckland, thanks to the excellent work of our General Secretary, the SPG and facili-tator and of course my EXCO colleagues. We are also working on updating our WEB-page to get it back to function. Pawel Gradovsky from Canada and all members of the Regional Communication Committees are very engaged, contributing to enhance this crucial communication tool.

In some weeks the high season of IFLA events will begin again! I will have the pleasure to see our European colleagues in Berlin and congratulate Ana Luengo, from AEP-Spain, at the IFLA-Europe General Assembly, then in October I will attend the Africa Symposium and see there our friends in Ni-geria and finally the Americas will meet in Ecuador. All these events are wonderful opportunities to discuss and include your ideas in the implementa-tion of the Strategy Plan.


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Here is a partial list of items that participants iden-tified as being important to change in our profes-sion;

• Value ourselves• Celebrate ourselves externally – Get out side our own bubbles - make ourselves known• Creatively write about ourselves• Don’t wait for others to do what we do… design yourself• Lose the “Architect” word• Define what a Landscape Architect is• Create new ways to communicate• Stop submitting or accepting “low-ball” bids for projects• Challenge ourselves at all times• Influence policy• Master the art of expressing and listening• Make the impossible, possible• Follow the NASA example – explore the universe• Become leaders• And more...

At least 10 years ago, an engineer friend of mine “offered” that landscape architects tend to suffer from an inferiority complex. Look at this list! What greater imperative is there for a fundamental shift in who we are, why we do what we do and how we intend to embrace and create change right now?

THE INCENTIVEOne day, while working through lunch in my role as the Canadian Practice Leader for a large mul-tidisciplinary consulting firm, I learned that I had become “unexpectedly retired” following a cor-porate restructuring and after 22+ years with the firm. Several months later, I was able to recognize this event as an amazing opportunity to begin a process of transforming myself, initially, by adding “Equine Facilitated Executive/Life Coach” to my credentials as a landscape architect, and later, by taking a fresh look at the profession that has been my passion for over 35 years. During my talk at the CSLA Congress, I issued a challenge to all of us as landscape architects, to take charge, to proactively adapt ourselves to embrace the exponential rate of global change in our roles as educators and practi-

tioners in public and private practice and as healers of the earth. Among my most important messages was to not wait for change to be imposed!

DECADE OF TRANSFORMATIONFuturist David Houle says that we are three years into the “Decade of Transformation” (2010-2020) and that there will be more change in this decade experienced by the world’s population than all of the change humanity has encountered in the last 1,000 years. (A thousand years ago the Vikings were roaming the earth, looking for more!) David also says, “prepare yourself”! He says the Decade of Transformation will be char-acterized by five “C”s;

• Creativity (as the dominant leadership trait) • Collaboration (required for innovation) • Critical thinking (sifting through the plethora of information to extract the salient bits)• Content (requiring dynamic communication) • Context (creating the way in which the content is received)

Does this sound vaguely like (or a lot like) Land-scape Architecture?

QUOTABLE QUOTES“You never change things by fighting the existing re-ality - to change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.” Buckminster Fuller

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” Barrack Obama

“Be the change you want to see in the world – and have some fun doing it!” Deepak Chopra

“It’s not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most adapt-able to change” Charles Darwin


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ADAPTABILITY:We can create adaptability by…• embracing change (as opposed to resisting it – what you resist, persists!)• making ourselves vulnerable (and enjoying the process of being “in play”) • proactively understanding and experiencing how change can be useful• experimenting with alternatives (such as reinven-tion, reawakening, rebirth!)• creating an “impossible future” for ourselves, as individual practitioners, teams and for the collec-tive profession

IMPOSSIBLE FUTURE An “impossible future” is not: • possible today (by definition)• your history (your beliefs/paradigms that no longer serve)• your winning strategy (the source of your success – and limitations)• your predictable future (what you do to improve on the possible, by reacting to the past)

An impossible future is the future you invent by: • unearthing what you passionately care about • declaring the impossible to be possible • creating the future that matters to you enough for you to reinvent your whole self, your organiza-tion, your profession and reinvent “WHY” you do what you do• winning a new life!

VULNERABILITYWhen we approach change, or personal/profes-sional growth, we approach the unknown. The

unknown creates excruciating vulnerability (fear) in all of us about exposure, about being successful or not, being accepted or rejected, or being good enough or worthy enough. According to Dr. Brene Brown, vulnerability creates the power for whole-hearted living.

Whole-hearted living is having:• the courage to be imperfect• the compassion to be kind to yourself• the power to create authenticity, by being seen, being honest and being heard

Vulnerability is: • not weakness, it is the most accurate measure of courage!• stopping the controlling and the predicting and starting to “allow”• creating the willingness to explore, with no guar-antees of success• creating something that has never existed beforeVulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, cre-ativity and change!

CREATING TRANSFORMATIONAccording to Simon Sinek, one of the most impor-tant questions for an individual, team, organiza-tion or an entire profession is “Why do we do what we do? The answer to this simple (not necessarily easy) question creates the difference between inspired organizations and leaders who develop or redefine themselves according to their answer, or uninspiring or typical organizations who have not paid attention to their fundamental purpose(s) in life.

The answer to the question “why?” is leading from the heart. It controls behavior and it defines/con-


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firms your passion. Why? is essential. People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it! It’s not about doing business with people who need what you have, it’s about doing business with people who believe what you believe, and surrounding yourself with people who believe what you be-lieve, and talking about what you believe to attract people who believe what you believe! What you actually do, proves what you believe!What do we believe and do, as Landscape archi-tects, individually and collectively?

DESIGNING THE FUTURE OF YOUR PRACTICE – OUR PROFESSION Professional Executive/Life Coaching is all about creating the future. It is not the role of a coach to identify prescriptive mea-sures for the Client; Coaching is about drawing out the Client’s own wisdom for experimentation and action. Coaching is all about creating the space for vulnerability; allowing things to happen – creating change!

Coaching takes several forms;• individual coaching one-on-one sessions, in per-son, or via telephone • team/group coaching one on one and together – for executive teams, strategic planning teams, marketing/business development teams or project-oriented teams • experiential individual or team coaching co-facili-tated with horses in my case, to embody the expe-rience, discover old patterns that no longer serve, relearn/rediscover authentic instincts/intuition and create new neuropathways to success!

Experiential, Equine Facilitated Coaching Session in Progress, International HorseCentred Collaborative, Armstrong, British Columbia

QUESTIONI started this article with a long list of big top-ics that the CSLA Congress participants want to change. In addition, there is a chronic mismatch between new practitioners entering the profession and the availability of employment opportunities. Firms are deeply undercutting one another’s fees in exchange for short term “wins”. Public knowl-edge of landscape architecture is still unclear. The scope of landscape architectural practice is being taken up by others as their own. Some LA students and professionals are moving on to what they perceive to be more lucrative careers, undermining the much-needed critical mass to carry the torch forward, let alone thriving and shining!

In light of the exponential rate of change expected in this decade, what does the future of our profes-sion look like to you? More importantly, what are you going to do, as a designer, to create it?


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Ken Buck is a practicing Landscape Architect and Executive/Life Coach in British Columbia, Canada. He draws from his 35+ year career in leadership, as Principal/Owner, as Professor of Landscape Archi-tecture and as a National Practice Leader, to coach Landscape architects to recognize and achieve their greatness!

Kenneth Buck, BCSLA, AALA, OALA, CSLA, ASLA, MICF, EACCK.W. Buck and Associates, Landscape Architects Ltd.,1581 Pleasant Valley RoadARMSTRONG, BC, Canada V0E 1B2

Office/Cell: 1.250.307.4191Email: [email protected]: www.HorseCentred.com

The Golden Age of Landscape Architectural Research:One Professor’s Perspective

Dr. Jon Bryan Burley, FASLAMichigan State University

Both in professional practice and in academia, the world view of the landscape architect has much to contribute. As an academic, I would like to discuss this perspective concerning research and related scholarly activities. I believe that landscape archi-

tectural investigations are entering a Golden Age where landscape architects completing master theses and doctorate dissertations are building useful world knowledge in a manner that is difficult for others to accomplish.

I first noticed this phenomena when I worked on my masters from the University of Manitoba and my PhD. from the University of Michigan. At the time, scholars in the natural and agricultural sci-ences were calling for the development of models (equations) to predict soil productivity for surface mine reclamation applications. Yet no one was successful and only hypothetical models were proposed. The potential to construct such equa-tions was potentially possible, but in my opinion because each profession/discipline was deeply imbedded in their own knowledge-base, they did not have the ability to intuitively “connect the dots” to achieve success. I felt that my landscape architectural training served me well to explore topics in soils, hydrology, forestry, agronomy, range science, ecology, and mathematical models and develop a research methodology that has led to the very first models (equations that explained a high percentage of the variance, were correct 9,999 times in 10,000 attempts, and contained predictor variables that were significant but not over-specified). The first models were for Clay County, Minnesota. Later, I would develop models with colleagues for Cass County, North Dakota, the coal mining region of North Dakota, the phosphate mines in Florida, sand and gravel mines in the lower peninsula in Michigan, and an area near the iron mines of Michigan. Some of the studies led to ASLA research awards, many publications, plus my knowledge and connections led to the publi-cation of a book about post-mining reclamation planning and design. Now my PhD is in landscape architecture, but it could have been in any of the fields such as soils, hydrology, forestry, agronomy, range science, and ecology. But I am pleased that it is in landscape architecture, because it is a field that spans and integrates knowledge for planning and design applications. And I wish to say that I am certainly not brilliant, nor special. Most of my classmates as an undergraduate were much smart-er than myself and had similar abilities. So I know

(fig. 1) Dr. Jon Bryan

Burley in France (Used by

permission, copyright ©

2011 Dr. Jon Bryan Burley

all rights reserved).


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this ability is certainly a characteristic of individuals who have the landscape architectural “mind-set.”

When I observe my graduate students at work in their scholarship, I see the same intuitive ability.

Wade Lehmann (Figure 2) who recently completed his thesis and published in the Journal of the Amer-ican Society of Mining and Reclamation (Lehmann et al. 2013) was the first investigator to describe individual fractal patterns of tree species in a forest stand to guide revegetation plans for naturalized settings. Scholars in other areas such as forestry, geography, and ecological modeling could have ac-complished this first. But it was Wade who pieced the parts together to realize the research.

My student Shawn Partin completed a formative study to test the validity of SketchUp models to evaluate landscapes (Partin et al. 2012) and to use them like pictures (Figure 3). This work was presented in Germany at one of the Anhalt digital landscape conferences, a great conference that every practitioner and academic should attend at least once or twice in their career. At the confer-ence were many landscape scholars from around the world, presenting actual science based re-search that could have been accomplished by environmental psychologists and others, but were presented by predominantly landscape architects.

Another of my students, Sihui Wang studied the creation of regions in the state of Michigan through statistical models (Qi et al. 2012), illustrat-ing that former heuristically derived attempts at creating regions in Michigan may be unreliable and inaccurate (Figure 4). Her work is challenging what we know about the environment and how we de-

(fig. 2) An image of Wade Lehmann recording GPS locations of indi-

vidual trees in a tree stand from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

(Used by permission, copyright © 2008 Dr. Jon Bryan Burley all

rights reserved).

(fig. 3) An example of paired images from a highway construction setting. On the left is the photographic image and on the right is the

computer image. Shawn Partin studied the perceptions of computer images to convey landscapes (Copyright ©2011 Shawn Partin, all

rights reserved, used by permission).


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scribe the environment. The article was published in a Chinese journal where Western scholars (from Portugal, France, USA, Canada, and Slovakia) have been sharing their methods and philosophies about research. The key feature of these studies is how the landscape architectural research inte-grates deep bodies of knowledge, uniting them and answering important questions about the environment.

In closing, it is a special time in the emergence of landscape architectural science based knowledge generation. Many landscape related universities are engaged in such activities. Fifty decades from now, future landscape scholars may consider this time period as a special formative moment in land-scape architectural academics.

REFERENCES CITESPartin, S., J. B. Burley, R. Schutzki, and P. Crawford. 2012. Concordance between photographs and com-puter generated 3D models in a Michigan highway transportation setting. Buhmann, E., S. Ervin, and M Pietsch (eds.) In: Peer Reviewed Proceedings of Digital Landscape Architecture 2012 at Anhalt Uni-versity of Applied Sciences. Wichmann: 482-471.

Qi, J. S. Wang, J.B. Burley, and T. Machemer (trans-lated by Sihui Wang). 2012. Defining ecological re-gions in Michigan based on native tree distributions. Landscape Architecture (a Beijing Forestry University journal), 2012(6):138-145.

Wade J. Lehmann, J. B. Burley, C. Fleurant, L. Loures, and A. McDowell. 2013. Replicating spe-cies based fractal patterns for reclaiming northern Michigan waste rock piles. Journal of the American Society of Mining and Reclamation 2(1):114-135.

Dr. Burley, FASLA is an associate professor of land-scape architecture at Michigan State University. He has won numerous teaching, research, and design awards throughout his career. He was recently an invited scholar for a year in France and he has traveled to 41 countries. Numerous professors from China, Portugal, France, and Turkey have come to Michigan State University for 6 months to a year to study and work with Jon.

The Possibilities of Landscape Design and its Effect on The Senior Population as well as The High Stress Younger Generation

Dr. Uehara Misato*, Shinshu University, Japan, Dr. Goto Seiko*, Rutgers University, USA, Helene Puzio, Rutgers University, USA *IFLA JAPAN

(fig. 4) A graphic from Sihui Wang’s study illustrating the organization of regions

in Michigan based upon the distribution of 51 tree species in Michigan. The

study is one of the few actual landscape studies where the regions are classified

through the data and not heuristically.

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THE BEGINNINGMany developed countries, such as the United States, Japan and China, face new social problems in the 21st century; a growing population with dementia in the older generations and mental problems prevalent in the young generation. The role of landscape architecture in the 21st century should address the healing of such problems with the creation of natural environments.

Followings are the introductions of two pilot stud-ies on the therapeutic eff ects of viewing the land-scape.

The fi rst study looked at a miniature landscape garden matched to the sense of sensibility of the senior experiencing demetia 1). The second study looked at a landscape footpath design and its af-fect on the high stress younger generation 2).

1.1 INTRODUCTIONIn order to evaluate the visual eff ects of diff erent styles of gardens, a series of pilot studies were con-ducted in New Jersey between 2007 and 2012 3,4).

Since then, we’ve found that the Japanese garden was the most favored garden style across genera-tions relating to the studies above. The fi rst study constructed a small temporary Japanese-style garden in the Francis E. Parker Memorial Home to determine the responses of individuals with ad-vanced dementia to a Japanese garden and com-pare these responses with the eff ects of a multi-

sensory Snoezelen room (Photo.1), an alternative treatment for dementia.

1.2. METHODS1) SubjectsThe subjects consisted of two test groups, 18 individuals (6 men and 12 women) from the Parker Home were recruited to participate in 2010, and 18 individuals (5 men and 13 women) were recruited in 2011. All participants were Caucasians with advanced dementia and mini-mental state exam (MMSE) scores of less than 12. Their average age was 88-92. A third of the subjects were diagnosed with depression; 15% of the subjects were diag-nosed with Parkinson’s disease; 58% of the sub-jects were diagnosed with hypertension according to their medical records. Six subjects out of 18 par-ticipated in all of the studies. Three of the subjects died during the course of testing and full data sets were not able to be compiled for them.

2)Snoezelen RoomThe Snoezelen room of the Parker Home, where this study was conducted, was a windowless quiet room (17’ x 20’), equipped with a comfortable chair and sofa, a bubble lamp that changed color (blue, yellow, red, green) automatically, fi ber optic lights that also changed color, a disco globe, a projector to display a moving image on a blank wall, an au-dio set for music, musical instruments, tactile toys, and a small aerosol apparatus to deliver aroma therapy.

Two therapeutic space models for people with deteriorating mental states. Left: Snoezelen Room Right: Japanese Style Garden

Fig.1 State of subjects in the Snoezelen Room and Japanese Garden

Snoezelen Room

Japanese Style Garden

R efuse


Snoezelen Room


R efuse


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3) Japanese Garden We constructed a temporary small, indoor Japa-nese style tea garden in the patio room of the Parker Home. The size of the garden was approxi-mately 12’x20’ with two windowed walls.

4) Assessment Subjects were exposed to either the garden or the Snoezelen Room for 15 minutes two times per week. The garden intervention continued for a pe-riod of 4 weeks, while exposure to the Snoezelen Room was continued for 3 weeks.

A video camera was set up in both rooms to record the interaction of the subjects with the garden. The subject was then allowed to observe the garden for 15 min in the presence of the assistant who remained standing behind the chair where the subject was seated.

1.3. RESULTSThe data in Figures 1 illustrate the dramatic dif-ference in response of the subjects to the two environments. In the garden, the majority of the subjects stayed awake for the entire session, and several subjects asked if they could stay after their session had been completed. No subject requested to stay in the Snoezelen room, though a few re-mained awake for the entire session. This response to the Snoezelen room increased following repeat-ed exposures to the room. After one or more visits, many refused to go in or asked to leave early.

2.1. INTRODUCTIONThe second study focused on a landscape footpath design and its affect on the younger high stress generation.

This study compared the therapeutic effect of six different footpaths: four steep forest footpaths of the Akasawa Recreational Forest and two flat for-est footpaths of the Shinsyu Oshiba City Planning Park.

We analyzed the difference of the effect of the for-est relaxation by a shortened version of (Profile of Mood States) POMS.

Snoezelen Room Japanese Style Garden

Photo.1 two therapeutic space models for deterioration mental person


Snoezelen Room


R efuse

(fig. 1) State of subjects in the Snoezelen Room and Japanese

Garden

Fig.2 Six courses (a to f) of researching forest therapy footpath

Left: Akasawa Recreational Forest, Right : Shinsyu Oshiba City Planning Park

(fig. 2) Six courses (a to f) of researching forest therapy footpath, Left: Akasawa Recreational Forest, Right : Shinsyu Oshiba City Planning


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In addition, we analyzed the relationship between the forest relaxation effect and the spatial assess-ment of the footpath.

2.2 RESEARCH METHOD1) Evaluation of therapy courseAfter having walked each footpath, 77 subjects made a spatial assessments of the trail length, time spent traversing it and of the visual impres-sion of the footpath environment.

The visual impression of the trail environment was evaluated by questioning on Q1: the forest‘s diver-sity evaluation, Q2: ease of the path evaluation,

and Q3. landscape view’s diversity evaluation.Additionally, we recorded a photograph of the participant’s favorite landscape on the path as the person’s space evaluation index. The forest walk was executed two times daily, once in the morning (beginning at 10:00am) and once in the afternoon (beginning at 12:30pm).

2) Relationship between the forest footpath and stress reductionThe relationship between the stress reaction value (POMS test) and the course evaluation was ana-lyzed by the principal component analysis.

Photo.2 Typical scenery in each therapy course (actually shot images as favorite landscape)

Typical scenery in each therapy course (shots taken by subjects of favorite landscape

Fig.3 Result of principal component analysis: Plot of factor score 2 vs. factor score 1.

T-A:Tension, D:Depression A-H:Anger V:Vigour F:Fatigue

C:Confusion

The high score means the high stress.

However, V: Vigour score means the low stress.

Sex : woman= -1, man = +1

Past forest walk frequency : no experience=1, frequent＝

４

Q1:the forest 's diversity evaluation: resembled=-3,

various=3

Q2:easiness of the walk evaluation: difficult to walk= -3,

easy to walk=3

T-A:Tension, D:Depression A-H:Anger V:Vigour F:Fatigue C:Confusion

The high score means the high stress.

However, V: Vigour score means the low stress.

Sex : woman= -1, man = +1

Past forest walk frequency : no experience=1, frequent=4

Q1:the forest ‘s diversity evaluation: resembled=-3, various=3

Q2:easiness of the walk evaluation: difficult to walk= -3, easy to

walk=3

Q3. landscape view’s diversity evaluation:resembled=-3, various=3

(Fig. 3) Result of principal component analysis: Plot of factor score 2 vs. factor score 1.


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2.3. RESULTS AND CONSIDERATIONS1) Evaluation of forest footpathA significant negative correlation (p<0.05,r=-0.28) was seen by the photograph numbers of favorite landscapes and errors in assessing walking time.This result indicates that there is a possibility that the footpath with a high diversity of views results in small errors in assessing walking time.

In addition, AXELSSON also indicated that the error margin of acknowledgment becomes small within a stroll footpath of high diversity in the woods

2) Relationship between relaxation and course characteristicsAs for the increase of vigor reaction value (amount of V increase) and the amount of reduction of the stress reaction value (amount of TMD decrease) by the strolling route, there was a positive correlation with the second principal ingredient.

The second principal ingredient and the correlation were high and the variable that was greatly related to the amount of TMD decrease and the amount of V increase were Q1: the forest‘s diversity evalu-ation, Q2: ease of the walk evaluation, and Q3. landscape view’s diversity evaluation.The amount of V increase and the amount of TMD decrease tends to rise with the visual impression of the trail environment (Q1, Q2 and Q3)(Fig.3). On the other hand, the amount of V increase and the amount of TMD decrease tends to de-crease with errors in assessing walking time and distance(Fig.3).

As a result, we have to consider the visual impres-sion of the landscape footpath design, for these impressions are related the therapeutic effect.

CONCLUSIONJapan has one of the most advanced aging soci-ety models in the world. There are many helpful studies addressing this problem and much more research to be done. The culture and nature-views of Zen that found their origin in the various nature views and cultures of Japan have the potential to be utilized as healing spaces.

REFERENCE LITERATURE1) Goto, Seiko & Bun Jin Park; Yuko Tsunetsugu; Karl Herrup; Yutaka Miyazaki. “The Effect of Garden De-signs on Mood States and Heart Rate in Order Adults Residing in an Assisted Living Facility.” Health Environments Research & Design Journal (2012). (In print) 2)Misato UEHARA(2010): The Relation Between Evaluation of Forest Therapy Footpath’s Landscape and Relaxation Effect of Forest Bath in a Mental Side : Japanese Institute of Landscape Architecture Vol.73 No.5 Page.413-416, doi10.5632/jila.73.4133) Goto, S. &Fritch, T. “A Pilot Study of Seniors’ Aes-thetic Preferences for Garden Designs.” J Acad Soc Japanse Garden. (2011). 24, 1-12. 4) Goto, Seiko. “Visual Preference for Garden Design: Appreciation of the Japanese Garden.” Journal of Therapeutic Horticulture (2012). 22(1). (In print)5) AXELSSON-LINDGREN CSORTE G(1987) Public response to differences between visually distinguish-able forest stands in a recreation area Landscape Urban Planning Vol.143) 211-217

The Department of Landscape. The University of Sheffield

Eckart Lange, Head of the Department of Landscape Architecture [email protected]

The Department of landscape is the only landscape school in England with independent departmental

Conferment of an Honorary Degree Doctor in Letters to Antony Derek Howell

Crook and Martha Fajardo Pulido


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IFLA Newsletter Issue 106 August 2013status. We offer research and taught courses across the breadth of landscape architecture, including design, planning and management.

In the most recent Research Assessment Exercise the department confirmed its status as the coun-try’s premier center for landscape architecture research.

Our research aims to be agenda-setting and interdisciplinary, exploring the boundaries where landscape architecture interacts with other schools of thought.

We have for example had a major impact on the development of characterization processes for evaluating and managing rural landscapes in a time of climatic and economic change. In the sphere of urban sustainability we have played a pivotal role in the development and delivery of the planted landscape at the 2012 London Olympic Park.

For more information please visit: http://www.shef.ac.uk/landscape

At the 2013 graduation ceremony Dr. Martha Fajardo received the second ever honorary degree awarded in the history of Sheffield University in the Department of Landscape

By Claudia Misteli. LALI Communication chair, [email protected], 2013

On July 15th 2013, Martha Cecilia Fajardo, Colom-bian landscape architect and IFLA former president received the distinction of Doctor of Letters hono-ris causa, conferred by the University of Sheffield (United Kingdom). Receiving an honorary degree is perhaps for many academics the culmination of a career, but for Dr. Fajardo, it is a boost to continue working with passion and responsibility in the realm of landscape.

In the words of Peter Agar the Orator “Our honor-ary graduate, whose achievements we celebrate this afternoon, is the distinguished Colombian landscape architect, Martha C. Fajardo. Dr. Fajardo is also an alumna of this university, earning her diploma in landscape architecture in 1981 having first qualified as an architect in her home country.

What is Landscape Architecture? According to one authoritative definition “Landscape architecture is an interdisciplinary practice that achieves a bal-ance between the built and the natural environ-ments”. Dr. Fajardo herself has said it more suc-cinctly in the motto for her own firm Grupo Verde –“it’s more than being green”.

The work of landscape architects, such as Dr. Fajardo, is vital in creating places – environments - in which we can live sustainable, productive and above all fulfilling lives. With this in mind, the University of Sheffield and Dr. Fajardo have played and are playing key roles in raising the status, profile and importance of landscape architecture worldwide.

In 1967 the university appointed Arthur Weddle to the first professorship in the first independent Department of Landscape Architecture in the UK. Professor Weddle quickly built the international reputation of the new department as a true cen-ter of excellence that, while working closely with the department of architecture, was distinct in its approach to educating tomorrow’s landscape professionals and researching the issues in land-scape design that they would deal with. It was this international reputation that attracted Dr. Fajardo to come to Sheffield in the late 1970s.

What a contrast to the landscapes and warmth of Columbia, Sheffield must have been. But as Dr. Fajardo herself has said, Professor Weddle was a truly outstanding teacher and mentor to his stu-dents; inspiring them to look beyond the closely drawn technical limits and narrowly drawn territo-rial boundaries that were characteristic of so much professional training in those days. Interdisciplinar-ity is all the rage now; quite clearly landscape ar-

Conferment of an Honorary Degree Doctor in Letters to Antony Derek Howell

Crook and Martha Fajardo Pulido


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chitecture, as taught at Sheffield, was a pioneer in taking a rigorous but multi-dimensional approach to tackling the challenges of successful landscape design.

In 2002 Dr. Fajardo was elected President of the International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA), successfully organizing its administration, strengthening international connections and forg-ing relationships between almost 70 countries in IFLA.

At the end of her term with IFLA, Dr. Fajardo continued to work tirelessly both in Colombia and internationally on behalf of the landscape. A great example of her commitment is an initiative she leads called The Latin American Landscape Initia-tive, (LALI), which seeks the recognition, assess-ment and sustainable management of Latin Ameri-can landscapes.

In her work as an educator, advocate and practitio-ner Dr. Fajardo has been inspired by her passion-ate belief in the capacity of landscape architecture to make a vital contribution to creating a better world. At a time of rapid population growth and exploding rates of urbanization in so many parts of our world, the need for the skills and insights that Dr. Fajardo and her fellow professionals bring to the challenge of creating sustainable landscapes, has never been greater.

The Head of the Department of Landscape Archi-tecture at the University of Sheffield, Professor Eckart Lange, who nominated Martha Fajardo to receive the honorary degree, says: “ On return-ing to Columbia and entering practice, Dr. Fajardo founded the Colombian Society of Landscape Architects, through that she became active in the councils of the International Federation of Land-scape Architects (IFLA).

In 2002 she was elected President of IFLA and served with great distinction until 2006. During her term in office she greatly strengthened the effec-tiveness and international scope of this organiza-

tion so that it now has membership from almost 70 countries. She also pioneered an initiative for the development of landscape architecture in Africa and successfully brought to a conclusion the long-running negotiations that enabled the fast-grow-ing Chinese profession to join IFLA. Her contribu-tion and her international reputation is summed up by this quote from Professor Kongjian Yu from Peking and Harvard Universities: “During her time as IFLA President Martha radically changed the face of the global Landscape Architecture commu-nity…if I were to ask young Chinese students who has been the most influential amongst all the inter-national landscape architects of our time. Martha Fajardo would no doubt be listed as one of them”.

In her acceptance speech Dr. Fajardo stated: “I have a strong affection for the University of Shef-field. The knowledge and education I received at Sheffield University provided me with a holistic perspective of our work, which remained un-touched through my career and up to present days. At Sheffield University I not only learned the necessary skills to become a landscape architect, I also learned to search for and the need to under-stand the deep causes of things.

“My career took me in directions I had never pre-dicted -from local to global- always through the

Professor Eckart Lange, Director of the Landscape Architecture Department with Dr. Martha Fajardo

Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Keith Burnett and Martha Fajardo at the ceremony


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notion of teamwork; with the ability to work within a group towards a common vision allowing direct individual accomplishment, towards structural objectives and teambuilding bringing out the best possible results. Such is the legacy received from the education in this Alma Mater”

Some remarks on her conferment made by presti-gious IFLA members:

Dear Christine,

On July 15th Martha Fajardo received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Sheffield. She was only the second landscape architect to have been so honored, the first being Susan Jellicoe in the mid 1980’s.

Cass and I attended, here is an official photograph of the event, though this gives a rather stilted impres-sion of an event which Martha took by storm, hug-ging the Vice Chancellor on the platform and moving us all with her genuineness and inspiring attitude, and her Latin American warmth.

The event should be included in the next IFLA News so please forward all this information to the editor.With all the best wishes,Hal Moggridge……………….

Dear Martha,

Thank you so much for your very nice notice from Sheffield, and for sharing your joy and exuberance with us.

Congratulation once again on that wonderful honor that has been bestowed on you, an honor that has been well deserved and that can make you – and our profession – really proud! With your enthusiasm and your vigor you have really taken IFLA into a new dimension of meaning as an international NGO.

With best regards, also from Christiane,With love,Arno Sighart Schmid IFLA Former President…………Dear dear Martha,

I am thrilled to see this. Thank you so much for let-ting me know.

So very, very well deserved.

Thank you Dr Fajardo for your gifts to the world’s landscapes

Much loveDiane MenziesIFLA Former President

Professor Eckart Lange, Director of the Landscape Architecture Department with Dr. Martha Fajardo

Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Keith Burnett and Martha Fajardo at the ceremony


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My dear Martha, What wonderful tidings of the year!

My heartiest congratulations to you for being con-ferred the highest accolade in our profession.I am very proud of your achievements. Keep up the spirit in IFLA and show others the way to improve our profession.

Warmest RegardsRichard TanIFLA Former President………..Dear Martha

Congratulations! This is great news and well de-served!

Stay in touch and let’s go on with our landscape initiatives!

Francesco BandarinAssistant Director-General for CultureUNESCO

………..Dear, dear Martha, Congratulations! How can I find the appropriate words to express my appreciation for what you have done, and my admiration for all of your achievements? Shall I only say, bravo Martha, keep going... I am sure you will understand. With love, Milica Bajic BrkovicISOCARP President ………..Well done Martha. Richly deserved!

Kathryn Moore ILC Chair

………….Dear Martha, Bob Mortensen was kind enough to share with me the happy news regarding your receipt of an honor-ary degree from the University of Sheffield. Many, many congratulations! I am so happy to see you receive this recognition. It is well deserved! All the best,Nancy Nancy C. Somerville, Hon. ASLA Executive Vice President/CEO American Society of Landscape Architects

Shared Memories

Renee Davies IFLA50 Convenor

Thank you to all our delegates both from within New Zealand and from the 40 different countries represented at the IFLA50 World Congress. We hope you enjoyed the Congress and had safe trips home.

We had some great feedback on the Congress with the majority opinion being positive with over 77% of those who responded to the survey believing the Congress program was good to excellent in meet-ing your needs. There was also some very useful constructive feedback on how to improve for fu-ture congresses and identification of some things that didn’t work so well for you. We will be taking that information to IFLA to assist future congress hosts with their planning.

“The best in my life-time, the best international conference that I have attended (51 Conferences during 1973-2013) -- thematic and topical, humane and harmonious, linking indigenous tradition and modernity, cultural landscape experiences and exposition... so many good stories”.

“I thought that it all exceeded my expectations and the program was excellent. The presentations were


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very informative with a good mix of speakers and the trips were very well organized with informative hosts”.

“Was great to have met a range of others across the professional spectrum and those of similar interest which afforded multiple quality conversa-tions over the whole duration of the congress. Also at the IFLA student Charrette where it was great to meet others in the same boat from so many different places/cultures. We have formed several groups and aim to stay in contact throughout our progress in study and potentially into our careers. Food was excellent!”

The following provides you with details of some further information that you might like to access on the IFLA50 Congress and as a reminder of your time spent at the Congress and in Auckland, New Zealand.

Some of our keynote speakers have provided cop-ies of their powerpoint presentations, you can view these at the NZILA and NZILA Education Founda-tion websites.

VIDEOA short summary video giving the flavor of the Congress will be available soon on the NZILA web-site.

SHARED MEMORIES PHOTO ALBUMA photo album from the IFLA50 World Congress is available on the NZILA Website at www.nzila.co.nz and an e-book version at the following link http://issuu.com/rbdavies/docs/ifla50_world_con-gress_photo_album.

If you would like to view all the photography taken during the IFLA50 Congress you can view it at the following facebook page of our official photogra-pher (or just google Meg Campbell-Back). https://www.facebook.com/pages/Meg-Campbell-Back-Photography/120966957964246

You can download a low resolution copy of the photos from the facebook page or if you would like a high resolution copy, please email [email protected] with the number of photos you require and we will email you a copy.

PROCEEDINGSAn updated proceedings including some of the keynote speaker papers and published papers on the topic areas of the congress is available on the NZILA, NZILA Education Foundation and IFLA websites. It is also available in a 2 part e-book on the following ISSUU weblinks.

http://issuu.com/rbdavies/docs/ifla50_proceedings_part_a_web

http://issuu.com/rbdavies/docs/ifla50_proceedings_part_b_

STUDENT COMPETITIONA copy of the student competition results and images of the winning projects are available on the IFLA, NZILA and NZILA Education Foundation websites and an e-book publication at the follow-ing link in ISSUU http://issuu.com/rbdavies/docs/student_comp

If you have any queries regarding any of the infor-mation above or on the websites, please contact Renee Davies at [email protected].

On behalf of the IFLA50 Organizing Committee we hope that you will peruse the information above and reflect on the topics explored throughout the World Congress. We thank you again for your at-tendance and support and look forward to seeing you at future IFLA World Congresses.


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IFLA Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award 2014, Nominations Due: November 30, 2013 The International Federation of Landscape Ar-chitects (IFLA), which represents the worldwide profession of landscape architecture, is soliciting nominations for its Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award. The IFLA Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award is the highest honor that the International Federation of Land-scape Architects can bestow upon a landscape architect. The Award recognizes a living landscape architect whose lifetime achievements and contri-butions have had a unique and lasting impact on the welfare of society and the environment and on the promotion of the profession of landscape architecture. The award is bestowed annually on an academic, public or private practitioner whose work and achievements are respected internation-ally. Candidates may be nominated by IFLA Member Associations, delegates, individual members and allied organizations, as well as independent sourc-es. The award recipient will be identified through a nomination and jury selection process. The Award recipient will be notified by the IFLA President and invited to attend the IFLA World Congress, where the winner will be announced, the award will be presented and the winner will make a presentation of his/her work at a suitable function in conjunction with the Congress. The 2014 IFLA World Congress will be in Buenos Aires, Argentina from June 4-6, 2014. The IFLA Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award was initiated in 2004 on a quadrennial basis. Its inaugural recipi-ent was Peter Walker (USA) in 2005. In 2009 Prof. Bernard Lassus (France) was granted the Award. In 2010 the award was changed to an annual one. The 2011 recipient was Cornelia Hahn Oberlander (Canada), the 2012 recipient was Mihály Mőcsényi (Hungary) and the 2013 recipient was Gonçalo Ribeiro Telles (Portugal).

Nominations for the 2014 IFLA Sir Geoffrey Jel-licoe Award must be submitted by November 30, 2013. Refer to http://sirgeoffreyjellicoeaward.word-press.com for the complete Call for Nominations, timetable and submission requirements. Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe (1900 – 1996), IFLA President of Honor, served IFLA as founding President from 1948-1954. He was a trained architect, town plan-ner, landscape architect and garden designer, but his prime interest was in landscape and garden design. Jellicoe was a founding member (1929) and then President of the British Institute of Landscape Architects (the ILA - now the LI) and was knighted for services to landscape architecture in 1979. In 1994, he was given the Royal Horticultural Soci-ety’s highest award, the Victoria Medal of Honor. For further information please contact:Christine Bavassa, IFLA Executive and Communication [email protected]

B O O K R E V I E W Landscape Architecture: A Manual of Environmental Planning and Design, byBarry W. Starke/ John Ormsbee Simonds, reviewed by Mónica Pallares-Trujillo1

For landscape architects, John Ormsbee Simonds’s book is our bedside book. It has not been just a manual for me; it is the book of landscape architec-ture theory. It has been a reference in my profes-sion since I was studying and nowadays is also a reference for teaching.

The new edition, (the fifth), coauthored by Barry W. Starke, is really attractive because it has all the essence and knowledge of John Ormsbee Simonds, enriched to incorporate sustainability – which is

� Landscapearchitect.MemberoftheMexi-canSocietyofLandscapeArchitects,IFLAdel-egate,andEditoroftheNewsletter:LaHoja.


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the basis of landscape design - and include differ-ent examples of recent built projects. Throughout the pages of this book, the texts, quotes, sketches and images of projects create a combination of visual-theory.

The contents of the book have been updated to include the actual vision of the designer and plan-ner, and portrays in essence the way to approach landscape: from the first elements, understand-ing nature and the relation between humans and nature; to the elements that form and define the landscape, climate, water, land, and vegetation, as well as what is vital for landscape architects - the visual landscape, as a resource and goal.

The next part of the book explains the complexity of landscape and the different landscapes in which we intervene. It is the combination of context and human intervention that determines the character of a place and its landscape. There the book focus-es on planning and management, the difference between regional and urban design and the impor-tance of site planning.

The last section refers to the elements incorpo-rated in a project that are the basis for defining it: site, circulation, structures and planting.

As an epilogue, the last chapter, Perspective, is a reflection of John Ormsbee Simonds on his work and experience, his findings throughout time, and the knowledge achieved through his practice and from his projects - gaining an understanding of the work of a landscape architect.

In this era of media communication, it is impor-tant to understand that landscape architects and designers do not need recipes to develop a project. We solve the problems we encounter through cre-ativity. This book is our reference on how to ap-proach a project and that will guide us to achieve the best solution. It is a reference that serves as an introduction to landscape design and a tool to understanding it.

The most valuable elements of this book are the sketches – by hand (yes by hand) - accompany-ing the texts to illustrate the different concepts in landscape and design, since sketching is the main tool of a designer. On some pages of the book, the sketches are less prominent in size and location than in first editions, and that I think should be cor-rected. The sketches are already part of my visual memory and will be for others who study the book.It is also a book that I have been quoting, and you will also begin to do so, after you read it, learn from it, and start experiencing it. And about expe-rience, I refer to a quote of the book: One plans not places, spaces, or things; one plans experiences.

Landscape Architecture: A Manual of Environmental Planning and DesignBarry W. Starke/ John Ormsbee SimondsMcGraw-Hill Professional; 5th Edition (February 6, 2013)EnglishISBN-10: 0071797653ISBN-13: 978-0071797658432 pages, Hardcover, 1.5 x 8.7 x 11.3 in

Documents

IFLA Newsletter August 2013