FALL 2025 NEWSLETTER

ENGAGE | CONNECT | SUPPORT

RIDGE AND VALLEY FIELD TRIP

Travis Flohr, Ph.D., Associate Professor and APG Board Member

Group picture at a Big Flat historic charcoal oven site.

On May 9-11, 2025, a group of second-year landscape architecture students embarked on an exciting field trip to explore the unique landscape features of Central Pennsylvania's Ridge and Valley Region.

Led by faculty members Travis Flohr and Andy Cole, assisted by Teaching Assistant Diana Albuja, the class visited 10 distinct sites, including Larson Farm, Plummer's Hollow, Hartley Wood, Fisherman's Paradise, Musser Gap Greenway, Bear Meadows, Detweiler Run, Shingletown Gap, Jack's Mountain, Greenwood Furnace, and Big Flat.

During their journey, the students gained hands-on experience observing and analyzing the region's complex geology, hydrology, and ecosystems. The trip provided an opportunity for them to apply theoretical concepts learned in class to real-world scenarios.

The Landscape Architecture APG generously funded the field trip expenses, allowing the students to focus on their learning experience without financial burden. The class would like to extend its sincerest gratitude to the APG for its support.

Special thanks are also extended to Emeritus Associate Professor Tom Yahner, who once again shared his vast knowledge with the students. His expertise and dedication were instrumental in making the trip a success.

The students' excitement and attentiveness during the trip demonstrated their enthusiasm for learning about the region's unique landscape features. As they continue their studies, they will carry the knowledge and insights gained from this experience with them, applying them to future projects and endeavors.

FALL 2025 | LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE APG GIVING TUESDAY CAMPAIGN

Ashley Feitel, APG Board Member

Thanks to our alumni's generous Giving Tuesday donations in 2023, we were able to raise enough for the return of the Landscape Architecture Student Society’s (LASS) End of Year Event! This generosity has continued to be distributed to LASS for the past few years as the students continue the efforts to re-establish the annual tradition. 

As we look toward Giving Tuesday 2025, the APG would like to continue giving back to the students as much as we can.  As the APG, we assist the students in similar monetary ways throughout the year, from helping purchase welcome supplies for new students to funding the Ridge and Valley field trip and sponsoring social events like the year-end event! Your donations support all these efforts. Please keep an eye out in November for our Giving Tuesday link to make a donation to assist in maintaining these opportunities for current landscape architecture students!

ALUMNI PROJECT SPOTLIGHT—PUBLIC WORKS 

Aaron Feldman, 2003

In 2016, Princeton University embarked on the largest campus expansion in the university’s history, building 3 million square-feet of new office, dorm, and classroom space, and adding about 1,000 undergraduates and graduate students to its population. Considering this new development, along with the expansion of athletic facilities and solar fields, the Princeton has added 250 acres of managed land to the campus portfolio.

As capital project manager for landscape, my primary role is to support the design and construction of all exterior campus spaces between the new offices, dorms, classroom buildings, and sports venues. In addition to directly managing standalone landscape improvement projects, I provide design review, plant selection, and site construction observation on all large vertical projects to ensure newly built projects are woven seamlessly into the fabric of the existing, historic campus. Through the campus wayfinding program and construction detour planning, I also help coordinate and communicate access to, and around, construction sites to ensure continued safe and accessible campus mobility for the entire university community.

ALUMNI PROJECT SPOTLIGHT—PRIVATE WORKS

Dawn (Bohacz) Vols, 2005

The Hotel at University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland: Dewberry was tasked with the first installation of the revitalization project known as the University of Maryland’s Discovery District. The hotel was to serve as the anchor to this new district and community gateway. As part of the design and planning team and in close coordination with the university, my team provided all planning, civil engineering, landscape architecture, permitting and survey services for the 17-acre site known as East Campus. Specifically, my responsibilities included entitlement and the design of the various ground-level public spaces, several intensive and extensive green roofs, and several at-grade bioretention facilities, which needed to be thoughtfully incorporated into the public space and also address strict stormwater management requirements.

E+D BIOPHILIA SYMPOSIUM: REIMAGINING OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE

Travis Flohr, Ph.D., Associate Professor and APG Board Member

On March 2–3, 2025, the Stuckeman School’s 2025 Research Symposium, titled Biophilia: Designing for Animals, welcomed two of the most influential voices in ecological design and biodiversity conservation: Nina-Marie Lister and Doug Tallamy. Their keynote presentations challenged attendees to rethink how we design, build, and coexist with the natural world. They both offered visionary ideas and practical strategies to create a more resilient and biodiverse future. Their message was supported by more than a dozen speakers from various disciplines and an international workshop: "Tres Comunidades, Un Río: Life within Peru’s urban Amazonian floodplains.”

Doug Tallamy: Nature’s Best Hope

Doug Tallamy, T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology & Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, delivered the first keynote, emphasizing the urgent need to integrate conservation into everyday landscapes. Drawing inspiration from E.O. Wilson’s Half-Earth concept, Tallamy highlighted the necessity of setting aside space for nature amid urban and agricultural expansion.

Tallamy outlined how everyday landowners can contribute to ecological restoration. With 85.6% of land east of the Mississippi in private ownership, he urged individuals to rethink their landscaping choices. His research underscores the importance of native plants, which serve as keystone species in supporting food webs. Oaks, for example, sustain more caterpillars than any other tree genus, providing critical sustenance for birds.

One of Tallamy’s most striking points was the need to cut the nation’s 44 million acres of lawn in half. Lawns, he argues, are "ecological dead-scapes" that fail to support biodiversity. Instead, he proposed converting these areas into native plant gardens, contributing to carbon sequestration, water management, and thriving ecosystems.

Tallamy’s Homegrown National Park initiative calls for a collective effort to restore 20 million acres of native habitat on private land. He emphasized that conservation should not be left to specialists alone, stating, “…every homeowner, city planner, and designer has a role in rebuilding biodiversity and fostering sustainable landscapes."

Nina-Marie Lister: Wild in the City – More Than Human Design for a Biophilic Future

Nina-Marie Lister, professor in the School of Urban & Regional Planning at Toronto Metropolitan University, explored the intersection of urban development, biodiversity, and human well-being. She challenged traditional notions of city planning by advocating for "designing for co-existence," an approach that embraces nature as an integral part of urban life rather than an afterthought.

Lister’s “wilding by design” concept calls for layered, biodiverse landscapes that sustain ecological function while supporting human health and well-being. She highlighted the need for cities to move beyond conventional parks and instead create interconnected green and blue infrastructures that allow wildlife to move freely. Examples like Toronto’s *Meadoway and Edmonton’s Wildlife Passage Engineering Guidelines showcase how urban spaces can be transformed to accommodate biodiversity.

Lister also underscored the importance of reconsidering plant choices. While strongly advocating for native species, she cautioned against rigid, exclusionary perspectives. Climate change is shifting species compositions, and a more adaptive, mosaic-like approach may be necessary, she said. Key to this strategy, said Lister, is designing with local ecological knowledge, layering plants to create microhabitats, and ensuring that urban policies support biodiversity.

A Call to Action

The symposium’s key message was clear: Conservation must extend beyond parks and reserves while building up all communities. Whether by reducing lawn cover, planting keystone species, or reimagining urban spaces, everyone can contribute to restoring ecological balance. By integrating native species and designing with biodiversity in mind, we can create landscapes that sustain both people and wildlife, ensuring a flourishing future for all our relations.

APG Members

Terrie Brightman (2004)—President
Ashley Feitel (2014)—Vice President
Anjelyque Easley-Deluca (2020)—Secretary
Chris Maurer (2014)—Treasurer
Calvin Lo (2026)—Board Member, LASS President
Lisa Thomas (1981)—Immediate Past President, A&A Liaison
Travis Flohr (BLA 2002, MS in LArch 2011)—Board Member, Faculty Liaison
Stacy Fisher (1979)—Board Member
Kelly Gutshall (1984)—Board Member
Mindy Cooper (2003)—Board Member
Matt Fichter (2015)—Board Member
Ryan Binkowski (2003)—Board Member
Chingwen Cheng—Director of Stuckeman School
Roxi Thoren—Department Head
Pam Krewson Wertz—Stuckeman School Director of Marketing
Ashley Hardison—Assistant Director of Alumni Relations

Interested in becoming a board member? We have elections every other year. Please reach out to Terrie Brightman (emailterrie@gmail.com) for more information.

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