I had such a good time at the ASLA conference last week. Saw many beautiful and moving landscapes, learned a ton, and met lots of great people. Two of those great people were from the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA), an organization that I’ve long admired. In a nutshell, they undertake and share research on all kinds of environmental design (see their full mission statement below). Their next conference will be in May in Chicago, and the call for papers is still open. But not for much longer, so get in gear and submit! And even if you don’t submit a paper, mark the conference as one to attend. Thanks to Executive Director Kate O’Donnell for this write-up:
The Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) is currently accepting proposals for paper and display presentations for its 42nd Annual Conference—but hurry, the deadline to submit is Friday, October 1. Click here for the official Call for Papers. Don’t miss your opportunity to join the world’s leading place-focused researchers and practitioners for new knowledge and tools, information on funding sources, and partnerships with design practitioners.
When EDRA meets in Chicago next May, the ideas of tomorrow will be identified, discussed and disseminated. EDRA members focus professionally on how forms of physical environments affect our lives and work to answer questions such as:
- What is the psychological experience of working in a green building?
- How do natural pastoral settings impact the lives of people living with dementia?
- What classroom design features enhance elementary school age children’s academic performance?
- What makes a home welcoming? Supportive? Culturally appropriate?
- How can urban designers create places where individuals and groups flourish?
- Why do we travel through forests or parks the way that we do? Why does how we navigate through a space matter?
- How should place experiences be investigated and how should knowledge gained be reflected in physical forms?
At EDRA, researchers and practitioners work together to create places where people thrive. For more information, visit www.edra.org.
EDRA Mission Statement: The Environmental Design Research Association is an international, interdisciplinary organization founded in 1968 by design professionals, social scientists, students, educators, and facility managers. The purpose of edra is the advancement and dissemination of environmental design research, thereby improving understanding of the interrelationships between people, their built and natural surroundings, and helping to create environments responsive to human needs.