Skip to main content
ASLA 2026 Conference on Landscape Architecture Main banner

Biodiversity

FRI-C01: Cultivating Care: Ecological Stewardship as Design Practice

Friday, September 18, 2026
1:15 PM - 2:30 PM PT
1.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW

Gardening grounds practitioners in care, seasonality, and ecological thinking. By re-centering stewardship, designers move beyond what’s on paper toward a better understanding of landscape performance over time. Join us to explore how getting your hands dirty can foster the deeper human connection needed to address the biodiversity crisis.

Learning Outcomes:

  • Shift design thinking from static to dynamic by understanding how long-term land care perspectives impact day-one design decisions.
  • Apply ecological design and stewardship principles to address the biodiversity crisis at a variety of scales.
  • Articulate how gardening principles are critical to the profession of landscape architecture.
  • Draw inspiration from real projects that prioritize ecology and demonstrate that ecological design can achieve beautiful results.