Equity and Inclusion

WED-B07: Connecting with Country: Traditional Custodians, the First Peoples, UNDRIP and Landscape Architecture

Wednesday, September 16, 2026

10:45 AM - 12:00 PM PT

1.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW

Speaker(s)

José de Jesús Leal Loera, FASLA (he/him/his)

Principal and Native Nation Building Studio Director
MIG, Inc.
Sacramento, California
CT

Chris Tidswell

Director
Arcadia
LS

Luciano Svagelli

First Nations Design Project Officer
Arcadia

First Nations peoples around the world have long understood the importance of living in balance with the natural world, and have developed traditional practices and knowledge to support this way of life. Climate leadership requires sovereignty, reciprocity, and justice.

Learning Outcomes:

Explain the Australian approach to engaging Aboriginal communities and project teams across government and industry, grounded in First Peoples’ enduring, sustainable stewardship of Country.
Interpret and integrate UNDRIP principles, including Free, Prior, and Informed Consent, into landscape architecture engagement, design, and governance partnerships.
Evaluate international approaches to strengthen sovereignty-centered design frameworks across diverse climates and ecosystems.
Implement relational, long-term partnership practices that support cultural revitalization, ecological regeneration, and Indigenous self-determination in landscape architecture.