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Category: Alumni Spotlight

Landscape Architecture alumni establish a fund for equity, diversity, and inclusion efforts

UW // LA Fund for EDI, equity, diversity, inclusion

During their time as students in Landscape Architecture, Rhiannon Neuville, Peter Samuels, and Jake Minden set out to establish a support fund in their department to help advance equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) efforts. Launched in December 2020, the UW//LA Fund for Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion aims to financially support a wide range of programs in UW’s Department of Landscape Architecture oriented toward justice in design education and, more broadly, EDI-oriented work within the field. Administered by the UW//LA Justice,…

Alumni Spotlight: Kara Weaver, BLA ’05

Kara Weaver headshot

For this edition of Alumni Spotlight we had the opportunity to speak with Kara Weaver, a landscape architect at Gustafson Guthrie Nichol (GGN) and a 2005 graduate of the BLA program. UW/LA: Could you describe your current position and what a typical day looks like for you? K: Right now I am the Project Manager for the Civic Park at Hemisfair in San Antonio, Texas. It’s sort of San Antonio’s counterpart to the Seattle Center, which was built for the…

Alumni Spotlight: Brad Kurokawa, BLA ‘82

Brad Kurokawa headshot

This month we are spotlighting landscape architect Brad Kurokawa (BLA, 1982). He currently lives and works in Hawai’i as a Principal at Ki Concepts LLC, a small landscape architecture firm. UWLA: Could you describe your current position? BK: I’m a principal at Ki Concepts LLC, a small landscape architecture firm with my brother Joel. Our main office is in Honolulu and I work out of a satellite office on Big Island where I live. Our focus is here in Hawai’i…

Alumni Spotlight: Barbara Deutsch, MLA ’97

Barbara Deutsch headshot

This month we are spotlighting Barbara Deutsch, a 1997 graduate of the MLA program. She currently lives in Washington D.C. working as the CEO of the Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF). UWLA: What does a typical day look like in your position? BD: No two days are the same but there are cyclical work flows during the year to lead the organization to align decision-making by a board of directors with programs and operations.  My position requires me to run a…

Alumni Spotlight: Steve Moddemeyer, BLA ‘89

Steve Moddemeyer headshot

This month we are spotlighting Steve Moddemeyer (BLA 1989). Steve works in Seattle and is a principal with CollinsWoerman, an architecture and planning firm. His work focuses on creative planning and policy strategies that promote urban resilience and sustainability. UWLA: Could you outline your professional journey between graduation and today? S: My first job was working as an urban designer at a small start-up firm. I worked there for two years until the partners parted ways over the Christmas holidays….

Alumni Spotlight: Shu-Kuei (Tako) Hsu, MLA ’14

Shu-Kuei (Tako) Hsu headshot

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT is a new department initiative to connect our prospective and current students with the diverse career trajectories and professional work of our graduates. We are extremely proud of the accomplishments of our alumni, and enjoy the opportunity to learn about the directions they have taken their career, whether short or long. The interviews are organized and conducted by our students. Over the next academic year, we will provide a new alumni spotlight on a monthly basis. Check back…

UW LArch alumnus Harley Pan’s Floating Wetlands documentary

For the past two years, MLA student Matthew MacDonald (2016) has been studying the viability and effectiveness of floating wetlands to improve local water quality. The research has been conducted in partnership with UW Larch / UW CBE and Green Futures Lab, with support from King County, Washington Conservation Corps, and Society of Wetland Scientists. The video was directed and produced by Harley Pan (MLA 2012).

Congratulations to UW Alum Steve Durrant for being elevated to the ASLA Council of Fellows!

Photo: Erin Lodi The American Society of Landscape Architects has chosen to elevate Steve Durrant (MLA ’83) to the ASLA Council of Fellows for 2015. Durrant, along with 36 other ASLA members, will be recognized at the 2015 ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO this November in Chicago. View Details Steve Durrant’s Alumni Profile