WASLA’s “Imagine Tomorrow” Conference
2016 WASLA Conference – “Imagine Tomorrow”
Where will the future take us, and what role will the landscape architect play? The 2016 WASLA conference theme of “Imagine Tomorrow” challenges attendees to question the path we are on and what comes next. While humankind trends dangerously toward natural resource extinction, recent breakthroughs in science and technology has propelled never before seen advances in efficient and sustainable existence. Are we headed toward doom or deliverance? What does our future have in store? What do you Imagine for Tomorrow?
Friday, April 1, 2016
Lynnwood Convention Center (All Day) | Lynnwood, WA
The main Imagine Tomorrow conference will be held in Lynnwood Convention Center the next day. It provides a platform for landscape architects and allied professionals to discuss our vision for the future through social dialogue, thought-provoking keynote, and educational sessions. This year’s conference highlights topics surrounding social and environmental equity, balancing People, Earth, Action, and Place in the landscape architecture profession.
2016 Keynote Presentations
Bridge
In music, the bridge provides a transitional pause within the whole of a composition in which to reflect upon earlier portions and prepare for the climax to come. The 2016 Keynote Address, presented in two movements, serves as a bridge within the whole of our profession – a transitional opportunity to reflect upon our collective past, to contemplate the “path we are on” as a global society, and to prepare for the climax to come for the landscape architecture profession in the 21st Century. The conference keynote will be presented by Steve Austin of Washington State University and David Rubin, Principal of LAND COLLECTIVE, in a dialogue positing on the current and future condition of the world and our role as landscape architects in it.
Welcome to the Anthropocene: Our Reality and The Implications for Landscape Architecture
Steve Austin, JD, ASLA | Washington State University
The Anthropocene – the human era – refers to the profound, but perhaps not unexpected, realization that humans are now the single most dominant force on the planet. In this era, we face both the consequences of, as well as the limits to, our actions. Past and present considered, we confront the stark, demanding, and unavoidable reality we face as both global citizens and landscape architects.
On Light and Gravity: The Space Between
David Rubin, ASLA, FAAR | LAND COLLECTIVE
Taking a long view of 21st century society, we explore the potential of landscape architecture as a profession and “the space between”. Looking through the lens of art, quantum physics, and social science filtered through design, we will focus on this most impactful profession – one that can “save the world.”