Sarah combines a passion for play, the outdoors and movement with more than 12 years in the play industry and hundreds of presentations given on topics from inclusive design and musical play to trends in play at Parks and Recreation Conferences, District Meetings, Landscape Architect Firms, and Representative Trainings. As an advocate for play as a critical part of development, she serves on the Steering Committee of the US Play Coalition, on the Parks & Recreation Editorial Advisory Board, as part of the IPEMA Marketing Committee, is a member of multiple play research project teams, the Product Development Council, and presents at a variety of conferences. She studied Communications and Political Science at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire and has been an integral part of many research studies on play, movement and community impact. She spends her spare time hiking, running, biking, and climbing and with her (many) rescue dogs.

Emily is a Senior Associate and licensed landscape architect at Dana Brown and Associates in New Orleans, Louisiana, with over five years of professional experience. She currently serves as co-chair of the Advocacy Subcommittee of the National ASLA Climate & Biodiversity Action Committee, where she helps develop resources for members and expand the nationwide Climate & Biodiversity Action Network. Emily also serves as Climate Action Chair for the Louisiana Chapter of ASLA, advancing climate and biodiversity initiatives by highlighting how firms across the state are implementing the plan and connecting practitioners with national resources. Driven by a deep commitment to preserving Louisiana’s cultural landscapes and heritage, Emily designs spaces that are both resilient and community centered. 

Aida Curtis has over 35 of experience as a landscape architect, arborist, certified landscape inspector and leader of her firm Curtis + Rogers Design Studio. Leading the Hispanic/Woman-owned landscape architecture firm in South Florida has allowed her to create sustainable spaces that are economically and socially inclusive. Aida’s portfolio includes award-winning transportation, recreational, institutional and civic projects. She serves on the American Society of Landscape Architects National Climate Action Committee and lectures on landscape architecture’s ability to address climate change. Her commitment to environmental stewardship, sustainable development and resilient landscapes has benefitted hundreds of municipal, transportation and other civic projects.

Chelsea is an Associate, AICP-certified planner, and landscape designer at Livable Cities Studio, where she focuses on community-driven, climate-resilient planning and design. She is active in external organizations, serving as the Deputy Director of Marketing & Communications for the WxLA organization and serving as President on the executive board for the ASLA Colorado/Wyoming Chapter. She brings strong communication skills and a collaborative approach to advancing resilient outcomes for communities. Chelsea earned dual master degrees in Landscape Architecture and Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Colorado Denver in 2021.

Amy Syverson-Shaffer is passionate about connecting people to nature and to each other. Her past work as a landscape architect and in business development frames her collaborative approach to taking on big challenges. Today, she is lending her design acumen and contextual understanding to leading sustainability for the modern craft manufacturer, Landscape Forms. Since 2023, she’s served on the ASLA Biodiversity and Climate Action Committee, working to bridge between key efforts by Landscape Architects and their industry partner community. On any given day, you'll most likely find her working in the garden.

Claire brings curiosity and a love of material experimentation to her practice of landscape architecture. With a background in geology, her work is grounded in the layered histories of site. Claire is an Associate Principal at Reed Hilderbrand where her project work has included the Alamo Plaza in San Antonio, Buffalo Bayou’s Turkey Bend in Houston, as well as two agricultural enterprises in the Hudson Valley: Forts Ferry Farm and Hilltop Hanover Farm. Prior to joining RH, Claire was Director of Landscape Architecture at Snøhetta, where she led the firm's Times Square Reconstruction. She teaches studios at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. 

Anne Weber is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Cornell University. Her research focuses on rural landscapes, particularly landscapes of extraction, production and conservation, as urgent sites of design in the context of climate change. Prior to Cornell, she worked at SCAPE Landscape Architecture on a range of projects, including Petrochemical America, Midtown Center Plaza, Town Branch Commons and the Town Branch Water Walk. Her work has received funding from the Water Resource Institute, Center for Teaching Innovation, and the USDA, with partners including the Orange County Soil and Water Conservation Service, ecologists and local farmers. 

Adam Choper joined Westchester County Department of Parks, Recreation, and Conservation as the Farm Director of Hilltop Hanover Farm & Environmental Center in 2023. Adam previously served as Associate Director of Outdoor Gardens and Sustainable Horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden and worked at Battery Park City Parks and Quail Fields Farm and founded and operated Rooted Plant Works—a design, installation, and maintenance company for rooftop and backyard organic ornamental and vegetable gardens in New York City.

With a background in public health and biology, Gaelle approaches landscapes as a set of living and social systems. She believes that wonder and play are central to designing active, social, and healthy places that inspire stewardship. Gaelle embraces wide ranging landscape influences to create spaces, finding inspiration from her childhood in Mexico, France and Alabama. Gaelle has both managed and designed projects ranging from single family residential to schools and mixed-use trails.

Sarah is a planner who focuses on creating meaningful planning processes and public engagement that result in effective plans that will be used for years to come. She is passionate about fostering vibrant, strong communities through creative, engaged, and meaningful planning. Through each project she uncovers and celebrates the unique assets of communities, crafting tailored policy and project recommendations that build on their authentic identity.

Kelsey Zlevor is a spatial strategist, design researcher, and founder of Mental Landscapes, an emotion-meets-design lab committed to creating and reimagining spaces that comfort, support, and accompany people through mental health experiences over the course of their lives. Kelsey partners with community workers, outdoor space stewards, and cultural institutions to center depression as a design lens to foster well-being in public spaces. Her culture-shifting work weaves an understanding of depression with a recognition of the oppressive forces that exacerbate its symptoms. Kelsey was named the Fall 2023 Artist-In-Residence at Allerton Park and Retreat Center, and a SXSW 2024 speaker.

For over 20 years Jennifer has worked at the interface of ecology, landscape architecture, & conservation planning, leading projects ranging from regional greenways to state and national parks, institutional and educational campuses, and citywide ecological networks merging landscape ecology, climate resilience, and equity strategies with regenerative design. Her practice engages principles of systems-ecology, resilience, biodiversity, and environmental justice, facilitating dialogue and socio-ecological narratives that engage nature in design. Jennifer has published pieces in Landscape Architecture Magazine, PLACES Journal, theEarthIssue#4, The Nature of Cities, and contributed to the book, The Landscape Approach: From Local Communities to Territorial Systems.

Grant Thompson, ASLA, PhD, PLA, LEED AP, is a landscape architect, horticulturist, and urban soil ecologist with over 15 years of experience. His practice career includes planning and built work in parks and open space, urban design, and college and university markets. His research includes peer-reviewed publications about tree biodiversity, soil microbiomes, and biodiversity-ecosystem function in the built environment. He co-organized the 4th International Urban Tree Diversity Conference in 2022, is the chair-elect of the Board of Directors for Trees Forever (IA, IL, WI), and Iowa Urban Tree Council advisor, and a member of the ASLA Biodiversity and Climate Change Committee.

Christian was the lead designer for the Louisiana Children’s Museum, working with museum staff and local horticulturists and biologists to design the experiential and ecological landscape. Christian is passionate about designing at the intersection of nature, culture and human health in the public realm. He has worked on parks, education and ecological design projects across the country, from the Mariposa Grove Restoration at Yosemite National Park, to Blakely Elementary School on Bainbridge Island, and the Issaquah Anchor Parks Master Plans. He is currently designing several inclusive and nature-based playgrounds in park and educational landscapes in the Pacific Northwest. 

Kyle Verseman currently serves as Regional Sales Manager for Landscape Forms where he leads a team of business development representatives across the Southeast Region. In this role, Kyle works closely with landscape architects, designers, and planners to turn conceptual needs into built realities. Having spent two decades as a landscape architect and project manager for SmithGroup, Kyle is well versed in building meaningful relationships through listening, understanding client aspirations, and providing technical expertise to ensure design intent is met while optimizing project outcomes. A Past President of the Michigan Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, he currently serves as President of the Michigan Chapter ASLA Foundation, a non-profit committed to providing educational and financial resources to improve diversity within the profession of landscape architecture.

Rena is a nationally recognized expert in small firm practice and the author of The Architect’s Guide to Small Firm Management (Wiley, 2010). With 20 years of experience as the owner of a small design firm, and over 15 years as a consultant and educator, Rena brings a special understanding of design firms managed by entrepreneurial designers. Rena advises all AVEC (formerly named CVG) clients on best practices in finance, operations, organizational design, and ownership transition.

Tanya Olson is passionate about design in and for rural communities and people. Her firm, Tallgrass Landscape Architecture, practices across one of the most sparsely populated regions in the Nation. Their mission is to help create flourishing communities with high quality everyday lives through collaborative place-inspired design. Tanya is the SD Section Chair of the Nebraska / Dakotas Chapter of ASLA, on the Executive Board of the Custer Area Economic Development Corporation and Foundation, and the Dakota Resources Advisory Board. She received her BLA and MLA from the University of MN. 

Gareth Mahon is a licensed Landscape Architect and the Managing Partner at RKLA Studio. He brings over two decades of expertise to the firm’s institutional, multi-family, and private residential projects. Gareth is committed to collaboration and to crafting spaces with a distinct identity and sense of place.

Gareth holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronic Engineering and a Masters of Urban Design. He serves on the Executive Board of the Queens Botanical Garden and the Advisory Board of play:groundNYC. Gareth's design approach is influenced by his rural Irish upbringing and fueled by weekly hikes in the mountains of NY State.

James is adept at resolving complex issues in design. His background as a project manager has made him adept at interdisciplinary coordination and building system integration. With an architectural resume of 23 years, he has extensive experience working in a variety of scales from small renovations under 500 sf to new complexes of more than 150,000 sf. These projects include commercial, retail, food service, fuel stations, and a myriad of government projects. His focus on detail translates as a specialty in renovation work, carefully understanding how to balance building resources and user needs. 

Timothy is the principal-in-charge of SGA’s design studio and is a landscape architect and urban designer with expertise in the design of urban environments, public spaces, and riverfronts. Over his professional career, Timothy has specialized in dealing with highly disturbed and contaminated landscapes.

Dr. Cheng is the Director of Stuckeman School and Professor of Landscape Architecture at Penn State University. Previously, Dr. Cheng directed the Hydro-GI Lab and applies a Climate Justicescape framework to identify spatial and systemic injustice associated with climate change impacts in vulnerable communities and to evaluate social-ecological outcomes of green infrastructure design. Dr. Cheng’s work on Climate Justice Design informs planning and design with community-centered natural-based solutions for climate actions and urban resilience. Dr. Cheng serves on the ASLA Environmental Justice PPN as past Co-Chair, Member of Climate Actions Committee and Climate Action Plan Advisory Group, and CELA President. 

José is a truth-teller and landscape architect who believes laughter is powerful preventative medicine. His personal and professional journeys are deeply spiritual, grounded in the understanding that he remains a lifelong student with a deep passion for learning. As Co-founder and Director of MIG’s Native Nation Building Studio, he nurtures the power of co-creation through inclusive, community-driven design and planning that honors cultural identity and placeknowing. Through landscape architecture, José advocates truth and healing as a better path forward, while simultaneously creating space for individual and collective transformation to help us do and be better.

Deb is a landscape architect and partner at Mithun in Seattle, an integrated design firm with additional offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles. She designs high performance landscapes and works on climate resilience with Environmental Justice communities to support their self-determination. Passionate about co-design, she applies what she learned exploring “Design in Kinship” during the Landscape Architecture Foundation’s 2021-22 Innovation and Leadership Fellowship. She will share research done with Catherine De Almeida, ASLA, associate professor of landscape architecture at the University of Washington College of the Built Environment, regarding the range of interpretations of trust, power, and kinships among designers, academics, community leaders, public agencies, and nonprofits and how that can be considered to advance relational work. Current projects include the Commencement Bay Resilience and Restoration Plan in Tacoma, WA; co-design with the South Park neighborhood in Seattle for a water quality facility and shoreline park on the Duwamish River; and resilience and equity-based model codes for jurisdictions for new light rail station areas in the Seattle region. 

Catherine De Almeida is an Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Washington. Since 2014, she has developed her design research, landscape lifecycles, in which she applies a material lifecycles lens to the inventory, analysis, and design of waste landscapes. Through her community-engaged activities, she emphasizes waste relations by illuminating the performance, visibility, citizenships, emotions, perceptions, attitudes, and injustices of waste materials and landscapes. Her work has been supported by numerous grants, recognized in national and international publications and media outlets, and was awarded the 2022 CELA Faculty Award of Excellence in Research and/or Creative Activities.

Laura Marett, ASLA, RLA, LEED AP, is Director of Landscape Planning at SCAPE. Her practice includes landscape design and systems planning with an emphasis on resiliency. Laura’s work encompasses a range of scales and project types, from the design of public parks, streetscapes and waterfronts to large-scale landscape planning and campus master planning. Laura has particular interest in the design of vibrant urban public spaces through an engaged public process and resilience planning with communities. Laura holds a Master’s in Landscape Architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and a Bachelor’s in literature from Harvard College.

Amy Syverson-Shaffer is passionate about connecting people to nature and to each other. Her past work as a landscape architect and in business development frames her collaborative approach to taking on big challenges. Today, she is lending her design acumen and contextual understanding to leading sustainability for the modern craft manufacturer, Landscape Forms. Since 2023, she’s served on the ASLA Biodiversity and Climate Action Committee, working to bridge between key efforts by Landscape Architects and their industry partner community. On any given day, you'll most likely find her working in the garden.

Angela Woodward, ASLA, is a seasoned professional with over 30 years practicing landscape architecture in California with an emphasis in construction. Her experience covers a wide range and scope of projects. Her designs create sustainable, resilient landscapes and incorporate green infrastructure into municipal, transportation, affordable housing, master planned communities and corporate campus projects. She has taught multiple LARE Workshop sessions at the ASLA Annual Meetings and serves on the ASLA LARE Prep Committee. In addition, she teaches LARE Review Courses at UCLA.

Jeff Holzer is a licensed Landscape Architect in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is a Certified Playground Safety Inspector for Kimley-Horn and Associates. Jeff has 7 years of experience with a practice in active and passive parks, playgrounds, streetscapes, school/universities, and athletic fields. As Kimley-Horn's only CPSI, Jeff has advised on over 70 playgrounds across 19 states. Jeff volunteers on the LARE Prep committee for ASLA, and the REC TALK committee for the National Recreation and Park Association. In 2020, Jeff won the ANOVA sponsored napkin sketch design competition with a sketch and essay entitled Inclusive Playgrounds for All.

Emily graduated in 2018 from Ohio State University and moved to Louisville, Kentucky shortly after to begin her professional career. In the time since she graduated, she has gained experience in residential landscape design, design-build, parks and recreation, greenways and trail planning, commercial design, and urban landscape architecture. She currently works at Gresham Smith in downtown Louisville as a Landscape Architect. Emily took two LARE sections in the previous format and two in the current format, earning her licensure in the spring of 2024.