Events

1776520800

1776546000

Rising Urbanists: Tipping Points

Since 2017, ASLA-CCNY has been organizing and hosting Rising Urbanists, a full day conference in which we examine a topic within the field of landscape architecture and urban planning through the lens of climate resilience and social and environmental justice. Our goal is to create an interdisciplinary space where people with diverse backgrounds in practice and academia can engage in lively, productive discussions on the annual topic.

Our theme this year, “Tipping Points,” asks the question: how do we recognize when we are hurtling toward collapse—and how do we collectively intervene, adapt, and reimagine the landscapes that shape our lives? Bringing together practitioners working across various landscape disciplines, we will cover topics ranging from climate resiliency and soil and decay to urban planning and restoration in late-stage capitalism. By reframing Tipping Points not only as warnings but as invitations to act, this conference focuses on how collective imagination can be our strongest tool in redirecting the Anthropocene.

5 LA CES HSW PDH credits approved

REGISTRATION REQUIRED HERE 

Schedule + Speakers:

9:45: Coffee and Registration

10:15 – 10:30: Opening Remarks

• Marta Gutman: Dean, Spitzer School of Architecture
• Jennifer Birkeland: Incoming Director, Master of Landscape Architecture Program at Spitzer School of Architecture
• Lauren Sarro: ASLA-CCNY Student Chapter President, MLA ’26

10:30 – 11:30: Keynote – Carbon Assessment: Leading the Way to a Net-Zero Future

• Claire Fellman: Senior Associate and Director of Research at Reed Hilderbrand

11:45 – 1:00: Panel – Urban Soils

Panelists:

• Dr. Paul Mankiewicz: Ph.D., Biologist/Plant Scientist- Executive Director of the Gaia Institute, co-founder of Leaf Island, and innovator of GaiaSoil
• Luke Harris: Landscape Architect, Professor at CCNY, founding member of Office of Living Things
• Dr. Zhongqi Cheng: Chair and Professor of Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and Director of The Urban Soils Lab at Brooklyn College
• Zach Schreiber: Assistant Director at NYC Mayor’s Office of Environmental Remediation and Program Manager of NYC Clean Soil Bank

Moderator: Scout Kerensky-Coodley: ASLA-CCNY Outreach Lead, MLA ’26

1:00 – 2:15 – Lunch

2:15 – 3:15: Presentation – Designing a Postcapitalistic Practice

• Ellen Garrett: Director and Co-Founding Member, FWD Studio

3:30 – 4:30: Panel – Reimagining Urban Infrastructure in the Anthropocene

Panelists:

• Amy Motzny: Landscape Architect and Director of Integrated Water Management at NYC DEP, Cloudburst Initiative
• Michael Haggerty: Principal at Starr Whitehouse, Envisioning Climate Resilient Neighborhoods
• Ruth Nervig: Partner at SiteWorks, Wagner Park: A Reimagined Resilient Waterfront Destination

Moderator: TBD

4:30: Closing Remarks

• Nat Tanko: ASLA-CCNY Student Chapter Vice President, MLA ’27

5:00 – 7:00: Happy Hour

• Location TBD

Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture 141 Convent Avenue New York, NY 10031

17430