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Children & Youth Garden Symposium: Register by 7/23!

June 21, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

The American Horticultural Society’s 2013 National Children & Youth Garden Symposium takes place at the Denver Botanic Gardens July 11-13, 2013, with pre-symposium garden tours on July 10 and 11.

In addition to a host of seminars, attendees will have the chance to participate in tours of the Denver Urban Gardens, The Gardens on Spring Creek (Fort Collins, CO) and Cheyenne Botanic Gardens (Cheyenne, WY). The event’s prime sponsor, The American Horticultural Society, has organized more than 50 workshops in six categories including Curriculum, Garden Design and Maintenance, Horticultural Science, Horticutural Therapy, Literature, and Policy.

Keynote speakers
The first of three keynote speakers is environmental psychologist Louise Chawla, Professor of Environmental Design at the University of Colorado.
As Associate Director of the Children, Youth and Environments Center for Community Engagement. Marcia Eames-Sheavly is a senior lecturer as well as children and youth program leader for Cornell Garden-Based Learning in Ithaca, NY.
David Sobel, Senior Faculty in the Education Department at Antioch University in Keene, NH. He is the author of seven books and more than 60 articles focused on children and nature for educators, parents, environmentalists and school administrators.

Pre-symposium garden tours July 10 and 11
Denver Urban Gardens supports one of the largest school garden networks in the United States. In this tour you will see three school gardens and learn how they foster community, health, and education. A youth-led farmer’s market at Fairview School Community Garden, a schoolyard farm at Denver Green School Community Garden supplying the cafeteria salad bar managed by Sprout City Farms, and integrated nutrition and science classes at Bradley International School’s Heather Regan Memorial Garden will be some of the dynamic aspects of youth gardening we will encounter.

The Gardens on Spring Creek and Cheyenne Botanic Gardens are public gardens that serve as models for children’s gardening due to their dedicated interest in making gardens a safe, enjoyable, and educational environment for children and youth. Staff at each location will give personalized tours while highlighting the history and development of these children’s gardens, as well as their hands-on methods of educational programming.

A sampler of symposium workshops

Benefits of School Gardens
Cross-Curricular Cooking
Slow Food in the Garden
Little Budget, Big Impact! Hands-on Lessons, Few Supplies
Sensory Gardens that Maximize Play
Learning Gardens: Making Outdoor Education Irresistible, Relevant and Resilient
Your Garden Toolkit: The Right Tools for a Children’s Garden
Lessons for Today’s Children’s Garden Educators
Discover Fun and Interesting Fruits and Veggies for the Garden
Teachable Landscapes: Using Gardens for Informal Science Learning

The symposium is also offering three Horticultural Therapy sessions:

Operating a Greenhouse with Special Needs Students
Horticultural Therapy and Junior Master Gardeners
Horticultural Therapy: Gardening with Pediatric Patients in a Hospital Environment

In 1993 the American Horticultural Society saw a need to reconnect children with nature, and created the first Children & Youth Garden Symposium. If you wish to register the July 2013 conference, visit the registration page. Learn more details by visiting the overview page which offers a day-by-day schedule of workshops and activities. If you have specific queries, contact the American Horticultural Society, 703.768.5700 or webmaster@ahs.org.

Gezi Park, Nearby Nature, and Democracy

June 13, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

Taksim Gezi Park protests,People at Taksim Gezi Park on 3rd Jun 2013. Photo courtesy of WikiMedia Commons

Can you imagine a city without any parks? The recent mass (literally – they are happening all over the country) protests in Turkey, sparked by the government’s plans to raze the only remaining park in Istanbul, is a powerful indicator of people’s need for green space (click here for a good overview).

Yesterday I posted a fascinating New York Times Blog article, “Urban Trees as Triggers, From Istanbul to Oregon,” on our Facebook and Linked In groups for discussion. Filiz Satir, our TLN Blog Events Editor, wrote this response:

So, I have been following the events in Istanbul and Turkey with great interest. (My family is from Turkey.) What started out as a peaceful protest two weeks ago in opposition to construction of a shopping mall and the razing of park in the heart of Istanbul Turkey – quickly transformed into a countrywide political protest against the policies of governing AK Party and Prime Minister R.T. Erdogan. However, the original protests in the famous Gezi Park were about the public staking a claim on and fighting for one of the last remaining open spaces in this hub of Istanbul – truly a labyrinth of a metropolis.

I am nervous for what might happen in the next 8 to 10 hours as the PM issued an ultimatum earlier today – to shut down protesters in the park. This mini-documentary is compelling for showing Turkish civil society becoming politically engaged through their activities in and around Gezi Park, Taksim Square http://youtu.be/9hqeC4L7of8 via @youtube

A Turkish riot policeman uses tear gas as people protest against the destruction of trees in a park brought about by a pedestrian project, in Taksim Square in central İstanbul on May 28, 2013. (Photo: Reuters, Osman Orsal)

What do you think of all of this? Please leave a comment here or on our Linked In group.

Filiz Satir, in addition to being our terrific Events Editor, is the author of the beautiful blog Nearby Nature: Lessons From the Natural World. She is a enior communications professional, technical writer, and storyteller with a track record for delivering institutional communications programs for a variety of public and private organizations. Thank you, Filiz!

ASLA 2013 conference – Early bird deadline ends 6/14

June 11, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) annual meeting and EXPO will take place from November 15 -18 in Boston, Massachusetts. This year’s theme is “Gaining Ground.”

Of particular interest to Therapeutic Landscapes Network members will be the following sessions, though many more may be as well.

The general session will be a talk by notable author and scholar Stephen Kellert, “Biophilic Design: People and Nature in the Modern World.”
Saturday, 11/16, 8-9 am
Our connection to the natural world is part of our biological inheritance. Dr. Stephen R. Kellert, a pioneer in biophilia, will set forth an account of nature’s powerful influence on the quality of our lives. Weaving scientific findings together with personal experiences and perspectives, Dr. Kellert explores how our humanity is deeply contingent on the quality of our connections to the natural world. He is the Tweedy Ordway Professor Emeritus of Social Ecology and Senior Research Scholar at the Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. An award-winning author, educator, and environmental scientist, Dr. Kellert has written more than 150 books and articles and has also completed a 60-minute documentary video, “Biophilic Design: the Architecture of Life.” I highly recommend his new book Birthright.

Landscapes of Therapy at Boston Area Teaching Hospitals
Field Session (tour), Friday, 11/15, all day
Boston-area teaching hospitals are world leaders in patient-centered care, research, and treatment. Visit five recent therapy gardens designed for these institutions to fit in tight urban situations: two interior gardens, two roof-deck gardens, and one waterfront site designed both for therapy and rising sea levels. Yes, this is the same day as the 3 education sessions listed below. Happens every year. We wish ASLA could do something about this but apparently, they can’t.

Translating Research into Restoration: Exterior Environments for Wounded Warriors
Friday, 11/15, 8:30-10 am
Presenters: Landscape architects Brian Bainnson, Connie Roy Fisher, Jerry Smith
This session will look at healing gardens and sustainable sites designed to help heal veterans with PTSD and provide respite for their families and caregivers. Peer-reviewed research, design guidelines, and specific design strategies will focus on three of the country’s most prestigious military medical centers.

Therapeutic, Restorative, or Enabling: Are All Healing Gardens Designed the Same?
Friday, 11/15, 10:30-12 pm
Presenters: Landscape architects Jack Carman and Elizabeth Messer Diehll
As the prevalence of healing gardens grows so do the terms used to describe them, making it difficult to make valid distinctions. Using existing examples, this session presents a framework that describes the purpose, design focus, and potential users of each type of healing garden.

Playing It Too Safe?
Friday, 11/15, 1:30-3 pm
With Philip Howard of Common Good, Julian Richer and Harry Harbottle of Richter Spielgeräte, and Jane Clark Chermayeff of Architectural Playground Equipment, Inc.
Are playgrounds today giving children what they need? This panel for landscape architects, project managers, and advisers will balance risk and safety in planning play spaces and consider how play environments have changed in the 21st century, from both the European and American practitioners’ perspectives.

Healthcare and Therapeutic Design Professional Practice Network meeting
Sunday, 11/17 , 9:15-10:45 am

Children’s Outdoor Environments Professional Practice Network meeting
Sunday, 11/17 , 3:15-4:00 pm (I think this time may be incorrect, as the PPN meetings are usually 1.5 hours)

For more information and to register, visit ASLA’s conference page.

Tomorrow! Center for Health Design Webinar Series

May 15, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

ICONS and Innovators Webinar Series:

The Center for Health Design is offering three online learning opportunities this week through its ICONS and Innovators Master Webinar Series. The series offers an exclusive line up of the industry’s leading healthcare thought leaders, providing quality programming through the convenience of your desktop as well as fresh perspectives to inform work strategies.

The seminars offered tomorrow include:

A Culture of Inquiry Drives the 50-Year Odyssey of an Iconic Father-Daughter Team
James R. Diaz, FAIA, FACHA and Lari Diaz, AIA, LEED AP, EDAC
9:00 am PDT/ 12:00 pm EDT
Among the icons of healthcare planning and design, the odyssey of Jim and Lari Diaz of KMD Architects coincides with 50 years of “radical transformation.” Their careers have been nurtured by a culture of inquiry that fostered innovation and creative approaches to meet ever-evolving industry needs resulting from social changes, cultural revolutions and advances in medicine and technology. In this session, Jim and Lari look back over the past 50 years and describe the chemistry between them and their accomplishments.

The Effects Of Positive Distractions In Pediatric Environments
Anjali Joseph, Ph.D, EDAC
11:00 am PDT/ 2:00 pm EDT
Positive distractions have been found to reduce stress and improve healthcare outcomes. However, research on this topic is generally lacking in certain pediatric settings. This webinar will detail recent studies that examined the effects of positive distraction interventions on pediatric patients and their families but used different methods in different settings. The research findings from two studies will be shared and discussed.

2014 Guidelines for Residential Care Facilities
Jane Rohde, ACHA, AAHID, LEED AP
1:00 pm PDT/ 4:00 pm EDT
For the 2014 cycle of the Facilities Guidelines Institute’s health care design guidelines, a brand new volume is being developed for residential and senior living facilities; entitled the Guidelines for Residential Care Facilities: Design & Construction of Health, Care, and Support Facilities. This guideline includes nursing homes, hospice, assisted living, independent living, adult day care, and wellness/diagnostic facilities. The vetted approach to the guidelines is to provide design information, as well as parameters for Authorities Having Jurisdiction to evaluate and incorporate culture change and resident-centered approaches to the residential-based care.

When you register for one or more webinar(s), you will receive an email confirmation with a link to submit your payment. Upon completing this step, you will be sent an access code for the webinar. Tuition per webinar is $90 for individualsand $180 for organizations. To register, visit the Center for Health Design’s webinar page.

The next series of three will be on June 13, with more to follow after that.

HEALTHCARE DESIGN 2013 early bird registration ends 5/10!

May 9, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

Nova Southeastern University Medicinal & Healing Garden, Orlando, Florida.
Photo from www.jessedurko.com/novahealinggarden.html

Register now and save big!

The annual HEALTHCARE DESIGN Conference in Orlando, Florida this fall is months away, but the opportunity to save significantly on the registration fee is coming to a close. Friday, May 10 is the last day to receive the “super saver” conference rate for the event that takes place November 16-19, 2013.

The premier conference is devoted to the design of responsibly built environments and how such settings directly impact the safety, operation, clinical outcomes, and financial success of healthcare facilities. Attendees come from many disciplines and different levels of professional experience including architecture, interior design, facilities management, academia, clinical care, product developers, service providers, and researchers, to name just a few.

Register for the conference, check out the packed agenda, and learn about the exhibitors.

Clare Cooper Marcus and I will be there (with our new book!) for the TAMU First Look Colloquium speaking about “Therapeutic Landscapes: Tools for Successful Design and Outcomes.” I’ll post more about what other specific educations sessions our TLN members might be interested in.

For more information on the Nova Southeastern University Medicinal & Healing Garden in Orlando see this article from the Sun Sentinel. The photo is from http://www.jessedurko.com/novahealinggarden.html.

A great book for Autism Awareness Day!

April 2, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

April 2nd is Autism Awareness Day, and what better way to mark it than to showcase Natasha Etherington’s great new book, Gardening for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Special Educational Needs.

There is scant literature and research in this field, so Etherington’s book is a welcome and timely addition.

The TLN encourages everyone interested in this subject to also join our Austim and Special Needs group on Linked In.

Here’s a blurb about the book from Jessica Kingsley Publishers:

A garden or nature setting presents the perfect opportunity for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and special needs to learn, play and strengthen body and mind. This book empowers teachers and parents with little gardening know-how to get outside and use nature to motivate young learners.

Using a mindfulness approach, Natasha Etherington presents a simple gardening program that offers learning experiences beyond those a special needs student can gain within the classroom. The book outlines the many positive physical, cognitive, sensory, emotional and social benefits of getting out into the garden and provides specially adapted gardening activities for a variety of needs, including those with developmental disabilities and behavioural difficulties, as well as wheelchair users. With a focus on the therapeutic potential of nature, the book shows that gardening can help reduce feelings of anxiety, provide an outlet for physical aggression, build self-esteem through the nurturing of plants and much more.

With this practical program, teachers and parents can easily adopt gardening activities into their schedules and enjoy the benefits of introducing children with special needs to nature and the rhythms of the seasons.

And here, also from JKP, is an interview with the author.

Special Needs Book Review also did a great write-up about the book and an interview with the author, which you can find HERE.

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday – Happy Spring!

March 20, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.” ― Rainer Maria Rilke

American Horticultural Therapy Assn. proposals due 3/31

March 15, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

This year’s American Horticultural Therapy Association conference celebrates AHTA’s 40-year anniversary. Numerous international presenters as well as past AHTA luminaries will present their research, practices, and the future of horticultural therapy on September 20-21, with pre-conference tours on 9/2o, in Minneapolis, MN.

Presentation proposals are being accepted until March 31 in the following areas:

• Collaborations with allied professionals;

• Current research in horticultural therapy including other allied and adjunct professions;

• Implementation and sustainability of horticultural therapy programs, particularly those in non-traditional settings;

• Successful practices and programming strategies (including goals, objective and methods);

• Therapeutic garden (nature) design elements;

• Creating opportunities for horticulture therapy interns; and

• Creating opportunities to promote the horticulture therapy profession.

For details about registration and programming and to learn more about the Request for Proposal process, visit the AHTA Conference page.

Center for Health Design ICONS & Innovators Webinar Series

March 9, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

Therapeutic Landscapes Network Director Naomi Sachs, along with her fabulous colleagues Alberto Salvatore and Jerry Smith, will be part of the ICONS and Innovators Webinar Series next week on the action-packed day of Thursday, March 14. Theirs is one of three webinars that provide an interactive experience with an exclusive line-up of healthcare thought leaders offering fresh perspectives to inform work strategies. All three webinars are listed below:

“Healing Spaces: The Science of Place and Wellbeing: Implications for Designing Healthy Spaces for Healthcare Settings”
Dr. Esther Sternberg
Can stress make you sick? Can belief help healing? Does the place and space around you affect your health? These are the questions that Dr. Sternberg explores.
9:00 am PDT/12:00 pm EDT.
For a TLN interview with Esther Sternberg, click here.

“The Case for Access to Nature”
Naomi Sachs, ASLA, EDAC
Alberto Salvatore, AIA, NCARB, EDAC
Jerry Smith, FASLA, EDAC, LEED AP
Discover the proposed revisions to the Guidelines for Design and Construction of Health Care Facilities that will allow regulatory agencies to more strongly support the inclusion of meaningful outdoor spaces in future projects.
11:00 am PDT/2:00 pm EDT.

“The Impact of Color – Research Reviewed and Redefined”
Rosalyn Cama, FASID, EDAC
Eve Edelstein, MArch, Ph.D, AssocAIA, FAAA
Sheila Bosch, Ph.D, LEED AP, EDAC.
Become familiar with research about color and lighting with perspectives from the neuroscience of vision, the psychology of perception, and include sociocultural and functional effects that have impact on design and user outcomes.
1:00 pm PDT/ 4:00 pm EDT

TUITION PER WEBINAR:
Individual: $90.00, Organization: $180.00

WEBINAR SERIES DISCOUNTS:
purchase 5 webinars – get 10% off
purchase 10 webinars – get 15% off
purchase 15 webinars – get 20% off

For information and to register for one or all webinars here. Hope you can join us!

ASLA Professional Practice Networks Online Learning

March 3, 2013 | by Naomi Sachs

Budding redbud. Photo from www.henrydomke.com

The first of a bi-annual series of Online Learning webinars hosted by the American Society of Landscape Architects’ Professional Practice Networks (PPNs) starts on Monday, 4/4/13. These distance learning opportunities are scheduled during the same week, creating a “virtual conference.” Future series will focus on a common theme, while this inaugural event allowed each PPN to determine their own topic ideas. Webinars will be recorded for future viewing opportunities, but this live event offers the chance to interact with presenters with Q&A time during each presentation.

Presentations are free to everyone, but space is limited. Recordings will be posted on the ASLA webinar page in April, so check back then to see the presentations that are full.

Professional development hours (PDHs) will be available to registered ASLA members; include your member number on the registration form. Number of PDHs vary for each presentation, so check the descriptions below for details.

PPN Online Learning Series: Spring Kick-off Event
March 4-14, 2013

The following are webinars still open for registration. Others that might be of interest to our Network (such as “Welcome to Planet Earth: Designing Nature into Early Childhood”; “Urban Agriculture – Beyond Community Gardens”; and “How Communities are Embracing Sustainable Site Development”) are already full, but you can check the webinar page (link above) in April to listen.

Bridging the Landscape of Autism

Hosted by the Healthcare and Therapeutic Design PPN
Friday, March 8 at 11:00 am (eastern)
1.5 PDH credits (LA CES/HSW)

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are increasingly present today, and this session will clarify the many related opportunities and obstacles this presents in place-making. It will suggest best-management practices to accommodate and integrate individual needs in private and public spaces during analysis and conceptual design.

Speakers:
Julie Sando, Founder, Autistically Inclined & Natural Play Therapy
Brian Johnston, Founder, Square Root Design Studio
Tara Vincenta, Principle and Founder, Artemis Landscape Architects, Inc.
Vince Lattanzio, President, Carducci Landscape Architects

Partnering for Healthy Communities

Hosted by the Parks and Recreation PPN
Date and Time: Monday, March 4 at 3:00 pm (Eastern)
1.0 PDH credits (LA CES/HSW)

In an economy where resources are limited, joint use agreements are becoming a platform for creating healthy collaborations. Establishing joint use agreements between schools, parks and other local organizations allow facilities to be utilized by more members of the community and provide community members with increased opportunities for physical activity. These partnerships provide mutual benefits to all parties involved and improve community livability; however these partnerships do require work in resolving differences.

Speakers:
Craig D. Bronzan, Director City of Brentwood Parks and Recreation
Patty Boyd, RD MPH with the Tri-County Health Department in Greenwood Village, CO

Soak it up: Placemaking through Sustainable Water Strategies in the Desert Southwest

Hosted by the Water Conservation PPN
Date and Time: Friday, March 8 at 1:00 pm (eastern)
1.0 PDH credits (LA CES/HSW)

Focusing upon urban environments in the desert southwest, this presentation will discuss water’s influence upon land and people through time, modern development’s disconnection from natural water systems and how sustainable water harvesting can reinforce the importance of this vital resource our ecosystems and future are dependent upon. Various water sources will be identified and passive and mechanical harvesting methods will be demonstrated both for irrigation and water feature elements.

Speaker:
Todd Briggs

Multicultural Design: Creating Landscapes that Welcome and Serve Everyone Equally

Hosted by the Women In Landscape Architecture PPN
Date and Time: Tuesday, March 5 at 1:00 pm (eastern)
1.0 PDH credits (LA CES/HSW)

Research shows that visitors’ cultural and economic background impact how they experience landscapes. Yet, most landscape architects in America design for a single ‘universal’ experience that reflects white middle class culture. What would change if paths, picnic tables, lawns and groves were designed from a diversity of cultural and class perspectives. Could we create parks as diverse and rich as America itself?

Speaker:
Steve Rasmussen Cancian