Watch Landscape Architects at COP28

Jared Green

Dec 1

Many events featuring landscape architects at COP28 in Dubai will be livestreamed and accessible via the UN Climate Change website or YouTube.

ASLA is sending two delegates to COP28 in Dubai and eight virtual delegates will join online. This is the second year ASLA has been an NGO observer to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP) process.

ASLA delegates include:

Torey Carter-Conneen, CEO, American Society of Landscape Architects
Pamela Conrad, ASLA, LEED AP, Founder, Climate Positive Design; Senior Fellow, Architecture 2030; Faculty Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Design; Vice Chair, Climate and Biodiversity Group Working Group, International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA)

Additional landscape architect and landscape architecture educator delegates attending:

Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA, Founder, Landprocess; Chair, Climate and Biodiversity Group Working Group, IFLA; Faculty Design Critic, Harvard Graduate School of Design; Visiting Fellow, University of Pennsylvania.
Kongjian Yu, FASLA, Founder, Turenscape, and Professor and Dean, College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Peking University
Catherine Seavitt, Professor and Chair, Landscape Architecture, Martin and Margy Meyerson Chair of Urbanism, Co-Executive Director, The McHarg Center, Creative Director of LA+ Journal

Events featuring landscape architect delegates at COP28:

Enhancing Urban Water Resilience through Nature Based Solutions in Public Places
Tuesday, December 5
6.30 AM EST - 8:00 AM EST / 3:30 PM -5:00 PM GST
UN-Habitat
Water Pavilion, Blue Zone

Co-Moderators:

Pamela Conrad, ASLA, and Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA

Driving Higher Education for Global Action
Tuesday, December 5
5.30 AM EST - 6.30 AM EST / 2:30 PM - 3:30 PM GST
Thailand Pavilion, Blue Zone

"Students are demanding it. Our world needs it. How is higher education responding to the changing landscape of curriculum that addresses climate change? What are new methods and techniques for pedagogy and how should it evolve? Which approaches can be translated into all parts of the world?"

Speakers:

Pamela Conrad, ASLA
Beth Martin, Washington University in St. Louis
Harleen Marwah, University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Pisut Painmanakul, Chula Engineering
Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA

Nature-Base Solutions and Climate Finance Mechanisms
Wednesday, December 6
7.00 AM – 9.00 AM EST / 4:00PM - 5:00 PM GST
Thailand Pavilion, Blue Zone

"Global South cities are continuously growing, and all strive to enhance adaptation and nature-based solutions. One obstacle is the lack of financial incentives for implementation. Experts from all sectors will highlight how public and private-sector leadership can mobilize action on nature and re-direct financial flows towards nature and climate."

Eugenie Birch, University of Pennsylvania
Torey Carter-Conneen CEO, ASLA
Mauricio Rodas Ecuadorian lawyer, social policy consultant and politician
Kotchakorn Vorraakhom, International ASLA
Anna Wellenstein Sustainable Development Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific, World Bank

Scaling Up Nature-Based Solutions in Urban Environments
Wednesday, December 6, 4.15 AM – 5.15 AM EST / 1:15 PM – 2:15 PM GST
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Pavilion
Hosted with the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA)
Livestream

"Cities are an overlooked but critical opportunity to deploy nature-based solutions. Urban infrastructure built with nature supports biodiversity, builds resilience and accelerates carbon mitigation."

Torey Carter-Conneen, CEO, American Society of Landscape Architects
Pamela Conrad, ASLA
Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA
Claudia Robles, Presidential Advisor & Former First Lady, Costa Rica
Lisa Richmond, Senior Fellow, Architecture 2030

Nature-based Solutions and the Built Environment: Designing for Resilience, Drawdown and Biodiversity
Friday, December 8, 7.45 AM – 9.15 AM EST / 4.45 PM – 6.15 PM GST
Official COP28 Blue Zone Side Event, SE Room 9

"Nature-based infrastructure solutions support resilience, equity, public health, and biodiversity, and accelerate carbon mitigation. Designing with nature can help global communities reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and protect and conserve 30 percent of ecosystems by 2030."

Speakers:

Torey Carter-Conneen, CEO, American Society of Landscape Architects
Pamela Conrad, ASLA
Dr. Siddharth Narayan, Assistant Professor, Integrated Coastal Programs, Eastern Carolina University
Dr. Sandeep Sengupta, Global Coordinator for Climate Change, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Kotchakorn Voraakhom, International ASLA
Moderator: Lisa Richmond, Senior Fellow, Architecture 2030

Innovative Governance for Flood and Drought Risk Management
Sunday, December 10
1:00 AM EST - 2:00 AM EST / 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM GST

"Rising sea levels, more extreme storms, and increased drought risk are impacting people now. Societies have long struggled to prepare for and respond to floods and droughts - two hydrological extremes that can happen to the same country at the same time. Better management of water resources can help reduce climate change risks and adapt to its impacts.

While climate change is compounding many challenges, it also presents an unprecedented opportunity. We have a chance to leverage these investments towards green, resilient, and inclusive development that reduces rather than further exacerbates our societies' vulnerability to climate risks."