Daily Archives: October 25, 2018

Thursday, November 15, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm – Examining Nature as Medicine: Designing Landscapes that Improve Quality of Life and the Human Psyche

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The Ecological Landscape Alliance Mid-Atlantic Conference on November 15 at Winterthur from 8 – 5 explores the intersection of ecological landscape design and its effect on human beings. Sometimes referred to as Social Landscape Design or Ecological Psychology, emerging research is taking a closer look at the interaction of people and landscapes. Join ELA for leading-edge research, compelling case studies, and practical strategies to consider in your future designs.

In both urban and suburban locales, rising health concerns have prompted research on how the human body changes when introduced to planned landscapes. Compelling conclusions point to the benefits of evaluating the intersections between specific elements in ecological landscapes and human health, specifically in the context of urban, public spaces. As an ecosystem of people, nature, and infrastructure, the built landscape can become a prescription to improve human health. This landscape trend in urban social-ecology is a design imperative to create gardens informed by nature in order to improve the environment, benefit human health, and develop cities that are resilient, healthy, sustainable, and livable.

Sessions include Time in Nature = A Healthier You with Dr. Donald Rakow, Beyond “Nature is Good”: Research on the Benefits of Contact with Nature on Human Health, The Vibrant Cities Lab and Urban Forest Toolkit with Larry Wiseman, Observe/Inform/Improve: Nurturing Living Landscapes through Social Performance Research with Lauren Mandel and Erin Ramsden, and Landscapes as Living Infrastructure with Gena Wirth. Complete biographies and descriptions are found at https://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/ela-mid-atlantic-conference-winterthur/. $119 for ELA members, $139 for nonmembers.

Saturday, November 10 – Sunday, November 11 – What’s Out There Weekend: San Antonio

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San Antonio’s rich landscape legacy includes cultural institutions, places of worship, historic districts, public parks, gardens, and a famed river walk – among many others. Participate in a weekend of free, expert-led tours exploring this vibrant and diverse city, during the celebration of its tricentennial year. The What’s Out There Weekend is sponsored by The Cultural Landscape Foundation.

An opening reception will take place on Friday evening, November 9, at San Pedro Springs Park (details TBA). Additionally, TCLF will be hosting tours to the following cultural landscapes throughout the weekend:

– The Alamo
– San Antonio River Walk
– The Blue Hole
– Brackenridge Park (pictured below)
– Miraflores
– Confluence Park
– Hemisfair Park
– La Villita
– Main Plaza
– Military Plaza
– The Spanish Governor’s Palace
– Pearl District
– Phil Hardberger Park
– San Antonio Botanical Garden
– San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
– Trinity University
– Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower
– Villa Finale Museum and Gardens
– Steves Homestead
– King William Historic District
– San Pedro Springs Park
– San Pedro Creek Culture Park
– San Antonio National Cemetery
– Chris Park
– McNay Art Museum

Tour registration information may be found at https://tclf.org/whats-out-there-weekend-san-antonio?destination=events . An online city guide highlighting the landscapes of San Antonio is forthcoming.

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Thursday, November 1, 6:00 pm – Rising: Dispatches from the New American Shore

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Harvey. Maria. Irma. Sandy. Katrina. We live in a time of unprecedented hurricanes and catastrophic weather events, a time when it is increasingly clear that climate change is neither imagined nor distant and that rising seas are transforming the coastline of the United States in irrevocable ways. In her new book, Rising, Elizabeth Rush guides readers through some of the places where this change has been most dramatic, from the Gulf Coast to Miami, from New York City to the Bay Area. For many of the plants, animals, and humans in these places, the options are stark: retreat or perish in place.

Elizabeth Rush’s journalism has appeared in the Washington Post, Harper’s, Guernica, Granta, Orion, and the New Republic, among others. She is the recipient of fellowships and grants including the Howard Foundation Fellowship, awarded by Brown University; the Andrew Mellon Foundation Fellowship for Pedagogical Innovation in the Humanities; the Metcalf Institute Fellowship; and the Science in Society Journalism Award from the National Association of Science Writers. She received her MFA in nonfiction from Southern New Hampshire University and her BA from Reed College. She lives in Rhode Island, where she teaches creative nonfiction at Brown University.

The Preservation Society of Newport County will host the author on Thursday, November 1 at 6 pm at Rosecliff, 548 Bellevue Avenue in Newport. Advance ticket purchase is required. Preservation Society Members $10 / General Public $15. You may purchase tickets at https://www.newportmansions.org/learn/adult-programs

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Saturday, November 3, 1:30 pm – 4:30 pm – Introduction to Bonsai

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Bonsai is the ancient Japanese method of growing and caring for a tree whose growth is restricted by the size of the shallow pot in which it is planted and by the pruning of its branches and roots.

In this Arnold Arboretum class on November 3 from 1:30 – 4:30, Glen Lord, who consults for the Arnold Arboretum’s bonsai (Japanese) and penjing (Chinese) collection of dwarf potted plants, will speak first about the history of bonsai. He will then demonstrate the methods employed in creating and caring for a bonsai.

Participants will plant a tropical specimen and learn about basic pruning, styling, and aftercare. The methods learned in this class can then be applied to other plants, such as temperate trees. The class fee includes a tropical plant, tools, soil, and a pot. $80. Register on line at www.my.arboretum.harvard.edu

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