Boston Flora

Tag: Leed

  • Wednesday, January 20, 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm – “Beyond LID” Green Infrastructure

    Low Impact Development (LID) has become an increasingly widespread sustainable approach to site planning and stormwater management design. In this Ecological Landscape Alliance webinar on Wednesday, January 20 from 2 – 3, Jonathan Ford, PE and Brian Kuchar, PE, RLA, will review the fundamental LID principles, then demonstrate innovative “beyond LID” advancements including neighborhood scale environmental design, “lovable” infrastructure, bioretention and permeable pavement case studies in various contexts, bioretention planting approaches, and solutions to address perceived LID stormwater maintenance and operation challenges.

    Brian Kuchar has over 18 years of experience in the combined fields of site engineering and landscape architecture including: site inventory assessment and planning, park and trail design, erosion control, stormwater management, green infrastructure, ecological and stream bank restoration, land management planning, public outreach, and construction administration. Brian has been employed in both the public and private sectors and has experience with a broad range of projects including multi use paths, park and riverwalk design, land use management, stormwater retrofit, green infrastructure and ecological restoration. He collaborated with the EPA on the development of a handbook for urban green infrastructure and stormwater retrofits as part of the EPA’s Green Infrastructure Municipal Handbook Series. Brian is a registered landscape architect as well as a registered professional engineer and a LEED accredited professional, and previously served as an adjunct professor in the Landscape Architecture Department at the University of Rhode Island.

    Jon Ford, PE, is a Senior Project Manager at the Horsley Witten Group. His planning and design approach is based on the principles of New Urbanism and the belief that compact, walkable neighborhood design creates vibrant, livable places in balance with nature. Mr. Ford is a Knight Fellow in Community Building at the University of Miami’s School of Architecture, co-founder and past President of the New England Chapter of the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), and on the faculty of the Form Based Codes Institute. His projects have won numerous awards, including a CNU New England Award of Excellence, Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence Silver Medal, and Boston Society of Landscape Architects Honor Award. He serves on the Board of Directors of the New England Chapter of the Congress for the New Urbanism, Ecological Landscape Alliance, and Blackstone Parks Conservancy. Free for ELA members, $10 for nonmembers – See more at: http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/beyond-lid-green-infrastructure/#sthash.ai2ui447.dpuf 

  • Thursday, October 1, 9:30 am – 4:30 pm – Sustainable Site Design Basics

    Delve into the fundamentals of sustainable landscape design, focusing on integrating existing and new buildings sustainably into a landscape, in this New England Wild Flower Society class taught by Tom Benjamin on Thursday, October 1 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, beginning at 9:30 am. You will investigate sustainable design strategies addressing the ecological, water, energy, and food system links between buildings and their supporting sites. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system and forthcoming SITES (Sustainable Sites Initiative) system will be used. Fee is $108 for NEWFS and Ecological Landscape Alliance members, $127 for nonmembers. Register on line at http://www.newfs.org/learn/our-programs/sustainable-site-design-basics.

  • Friday, December 5, 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – Webinar: Landscape Design – Therapeutic Wellness Gardens

    Ecological landscape professionals have long understood the connection between healthy landscapes and human health. Landscape Architect Tom Benjamin takes this connection one step further by creating therapeutic wellness gardens in the midst of healing facilities such as the Kent Hospital in Rhode Island. In this Ecological Landscaping Alliance webinar, Tom Benjamin will share his insights and the techniques that he has used to integrate human “well-being” and environmental health into wellness designs for heavily developed sites. Tom’s December 5th presentation will cover the planning, implementation, and maintenance of therapeutic wellness gardens as components of campus scale efforts to transform conventional landscapes to green infrastructure. As part of the overall design, he will cover passive stormwater management, soil rejuvenation, habitat enhancement, aesthetic and maintenance considerations, and the nexus between human wellness and the health of the environment. Innovative methods of reusing onsite materials to reduce our carbon footprint and control Operations & Maintenance costs will be addressed as well. The role of sustainable landscapes to inspire larger facility-wide sustainability initiatives will also be discussed.
    Thomas (Tom) Benjamin is an independent registered Landscape Architect and LEED Accredited Professional (AP BD+C) practicing design and sustainability consulting and is Principal of Wellnesscapes. Tom has more than 20 years experience in environmental design and sustainability work often focused on green design, including energy, waste, water and food systems. In addition to residential restoration, Tom’s site planning work emphasizes low cost, low maintenance landscape solutions for healthcare, academic and senior institutions, public facilities, commercial and residential developments, large-scale solar farms and community farms/gardens. His work has often encompassed enhancement of natural stormwater filtration systems. His design experience includes upland, wetland, and coastal zone restoration using low tech bioengineering solutions. Tom teaches sustainable landscape design at the University of Massachusetts. He is the recipient of multiple awards, including three for his sustainable landscape design work at Kent Hospital located in Warwick, RI. Tom is also a Board Member of the Ecological Landscape Alliance (ELA). – See more at: http://www.ecolandscaping.org/event/webinar-therapeutic-wellness-gardens/#sthash.n9GHHoJn.dpuf.

  • Wednesday, August 20, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm – The Beautiful and Functional Rain Garden at St. George’s School

    Join The Ecological Landscaping Alliance on Wednesday, August 20 from 6 – 8 to learn about the beautiful and functional bio-retention rain garden that was engineered and designed to capture all the rain water from the new L.E.E.D. Gold-certified, Nathaniel P. Hill Library at St. George’s School that was designed, planted, and is maintained by Lori Silvia.  An additional landscape tour around the library will be included. The School is located at 372 Purgatory Road, Middletown, RI.  The fee for the tour is $20 for ELA members, $30 for nonmembers.  Register by calling 617-436-5838, or email ela.info@comcast.net. Thank you perrydean.squarespace.com for the “in process” image.

  • The Garden Club of the Back Bay Donates to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital

    Once again the Garden Club of the Back Bay, Inc. has donated money to a local institution. The Club has given $1,000 to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in honor of the survivors of the Boston Marathon bombings. “After visiting Spaulding, we were impressed by the easy access of patients, visitors and staff to many garden spaces around the building,” said Jolinda Taylor, Co-President of the Garden Club. “The views of Boston Harbor from the patient rooms are spectacular and uplifting,” added Jackie Blombach, Co-President of the Club.

    “Spaulding is committed to caring for the whole patient, body and spirit” according to Steven Patrick, Vice President for Development, who accompanied the Garden Club officers on their mid-summer visit, “and allowing patients access to peaceful garden spaces is essential.” Patrick added that “the outdoor spaces are intended to encourage patients to get outside, seek fresh air and engage with the community. We plan to incorporate gardening as a therapeutic activity, with wheelchair accessible raised beds.” The gardens include native, drought-tolerant, and salt-resistant trees and shrubs, ornamental grasses, and evergreens, on the hospital’s site at the Charlestown Navy Yard. The new Spaulding facility has achieved LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold status certification, a very high standard of energy conservation and responsiveness to the natural environment.

    The Garden Club cares for neighborhood trees. The Club celebrated its fiftieth anniversary this year by planting 50 magnolia trees in Back Bay and nearby neighborhoods. Club members volunteer in community projects at the Women’s Lunch Place, Hale House, The Learning Project Elementary School, The College Club, and the Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

    http://www.spauldingrehab.org/assets/images/Pond-Waterfall-Fish.jpg

  • Wednesday, June 5, 10:30 am – 12:30 pm – Natural Swimming Ponds: Behind the Scenes

    The Ecological Landscaping Association will hold a seminar in Sandwich, on Cape Cod, on Wednesday, June 5 from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm with Trevor Smith, Landscape Designer and LEED Green Associate, on Natural Swimming Ponds: Behind the Scenes, Designing, Building and Maintaining. Environmentally friendly, chemical-free, natural swimming ponds have low ongoing maintenance costs and are healthy alternatives to conventional pools.  The design options are varied and can range from formal to natural.  With careful planning and installation, a natural swimming pond provides a beautiful and relaxing place for swimming, an ecological landscape feature, and a wildlife sanctuary all in one.  $20 ELA member, $25 Nonmember.  Registrations are limited.  Register on line at https://www.eventville.com/catalog/eventregistration1.asp?eventid=1010426.

    http://cdn.www.babble.com/wp-content/blog_uploads/14/files/natural-swimming-pools/natural-pools-5.jpg

  • Thursday and Friday, October 18 – 19, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm – Sustainable Landscape Design

    What makes a landscape design sustainable?  The New England Wild Flower Society will hold a two-part seminar for people interested in learning how to design landscapes that follow an ecological paradigm, and that enhance a site’s beauty and utility.  Landscape Architect and LEED accredited professional Tom Benjamin will define and discuss principles of sustainable landscape design, techniques to improve the ecological and human functions of existing landscapes, and how to approach sites with a variety of challenges.  Discussion will include sustainable measures to improve your own projects, as well as a short trip to a nearby site that was designed for sustainability.  Bring a bag lunch.  The classes will take place Thursday and Friday, October 18 and 19, from 9 – 4 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham.  $216 for NEWFS and ELA members, $254 for non-members. Co-sponsored by the Ecological Landscaping Association. Register on line at www.newfs.org.

  • Wednesday, April 4, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Living Walls: Verticulture ™ Life Off the Wall

    Though the idea of living walls and green facades is not new, the modern day applications and the infinite design and business possibilities are.  Explore the benefits of living wall technology, the opportunities it presents, and learn how to incorporate the artfulness of living walls into your landscape or home.   Learn about the environmental value of living walls and see how they can serve as an innovative way to overcome landscape challenges in confined spaces with dynamic results, and learn to take Urban Farming to new heights.  This Ecological Landscaping Association seminar is co-sponsored by the New England Wild Flower Society, and will take place Wednesday, A;pril 4, from 6:30 – 8:30 at Garden in the Woods in Framingham.  Your instructor Trevor Smith is a landscape designer and LEED Green Associate with Land Escapes.  Fee is $24 for ELA and NEWFS members, $29 for nonmembers.  Register on line at www.newfs.org.

  • Wednesday, March 23, 7:00 pm – Sustainable Preservation – The Power of Preservation/Reuse as a Green Strategy

    Buildings account for nearly 40% of all U.S. energy use and carbon emissions. With one of the country’s leading preservation architects as your guide, the lecture entitled Sustainable Preservation – The Power of Preservation/Reuse as a Green Strategy will explore the power of adaptive reuse to reduce those numbers and move us toward sustainability.

    The talk by Jean Carroon on Wednesday, March 23, beginning at 7 pm at Trinity Church in Copley Square, will demonstrate how an icon such as H.H. Richardson’s Trinity Church in Boston can go green—and why a 1970s strip-mall supermarket not only deserves similar attention but can also emerge as a building that delights users while it protects the environment. Sustainable Preservation makes a compelling argument that preservation and sustainability don’t just protect the environment, but deliver a full range of societal benefits, from job creation to stronger social connection.

    Jean Carroon, FAIA, LEED® AP, is a principal in Goody Clancy’s highly regarded preservation practice, based in Boston. She has earned national recognition for her expertise in applying sustainable-design technology to historic buildings, including more than a dozen National Historic Landmarks. She has directed the adaptive reuse and preservation of signature buildings in a broad range of sectors, including educational, civic and cultural projects for clients such as Harvard University and the National Park Service. She is currently working on the renovation of more than 50 historic structures on the St. Elizabeth’s West Campus in Washington, which will become the home of the Department of Homeland Security.

    Tickets: $15 ($10 BSA and Trinity Church Members and students), available at sustainablepreservation.eventbrite.com, The Shop at Trinity (206 Clarendon Street) or by phone 617.536.0944 x217. Questions: Kathy Acerbo-Bachmann, 617.536.0944 x217 or kacerbobachmann@trinitychurchboston.org. Co-sponsored by Trinity Church and the Boston Society of Architects, with a book signing to follow the lecture.  This event was rescheduled from an earlier January date due to snow.

  • Thursday, April 7 – Friday, April 8 – ABC’s of Farm Based Education

    If you have ever considered owning or operating a farm for education, or if you are looking for new ideas, this is the workshop for you.  On Thursday and Friday, April 7 and 8, the FBEA, Shelburne Farms, and the Trustees of Reservations Center for Agriculture and the Environment at Appleton Farms will present the ABC’s of Farm Based Education, at Appleton Farms in Ipswich, Massachusetts.  Appleton Farms’ dairy, CSA fields, pastures, forests and newly renovated LEED certified Old House Visitor Center will be your campus for exploring topics including marketing your farm program to schools and the community, creating a safe farm environment for the public, and meeting teachers’ needs.  You’ll also discover exciting, hands-on ways to develop agricultural education programs for groups with easy-to-use activities from Shelburne Farms’ PROJECT SEASONS, a collection of teaching ideas developed by teachers and agriculture educators.  Tuition is $200, including all materials and meals.  Scholarships are available.  For more information contact Holly Hannaway at hhannaway@ttor.org, or call her at 978-356-5728, ext. 15.  You may also read more about this two day workshop at www.farmbasededucation.org/events/abcs-of-farmbased-education-1. Photo of Appleton Farms below by David Stone entitled “Red Barn” was the First Prize Winner of the 2010 Essex Heritage Photo Contest.