image: Tanya Olson
We hope you all enjoyed the ASLA Annual Meeting in Denver last November. The main WILA events included the WILA Professional Practice Network (PPN) meeting, where we had speed-mentoring, and the WILA Walk.
The WILA PPN meeting took place on Saturday, November 22 in the Colorado Convention Center Expo Hall. We had an amazing turnout, stretching the capacity of the PPN meeting room with over 30 attendees ranging from students in landscape architecture to practitioners entering retirement. Although “ice breaker” questions were provided, the group had no problem jumping right into sharing their experiences in landscape architecture. Discussions covered all aspects of landscape architecture practice, from entering practice for the first time to starting a landscape architecture firm, on to ownership transition and retirement.
image: Event Photography of North America Corporation (EPNAC)
The WILA Walk on Monday, November 24 was graced with an unseasonably mild Colorado morning for November. Susan Morris-McCabe, ASLA, and Connie Perry, ASLA, led nearly 50 people through Denver’s Civic Center Park and the Golden Triangle, stopping to educate walkers about the design history of several places along the route and highlight the impact of women landscape architects throughout the city’s history.
image: Event Photography of North America Corporation (EPNAC)
Walk leaders discussed changes in the Golden Triangle, a mixed-use district adjacent to downtown, over the last 30 years with first hand perspectives on the impact of changing land uses over time on public spaces.
image: Event Photography of North America Corporation (EPNAC)
The walk concluded with a brisk return to the Colorado Convention Center along the Cherry Creek Bike Path, a highly active pedestrian corridor running through the heart of the city.
Planning is already well underway for the 2015 WILA Walk, which will take place during this year’s ASLA Annual Meeting in Chicago—we hope you’ll be able to join us!
by Tanya Olson, ASLA, WILA PPN Officer, and Christa Wollenzien, ASLA, WILA PPN Co-Chair
What is a PPN?
Good question! The Professional Practice Networks (PPNs) are groups overseen by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) to enable our members to interact, share information, and build connections with practitioners in specific focus areas of landscape architecture, ranging from Ecology and Restoration to Children’s Outdoor Environments.
The PPNs submit blog posts for The Field, organize Online Learning presentations over the course of the year, have LinkedIn groups for discussions and questions, and meet in-person during the ASLA Annual Meeting.
To learn more about ASLA’s PPNs, please visit asla.org/PPN