Kate Orff is the founder of SCAPE, a design-driven landscape architecture and urban design studio based in New York. (MacArthur Foundation)

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When Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast 16 years after Hurricane Katrina, all eyes were on New Orleanss new levee system. The levees that had failed so disastrously in 2005 had been rebuiltand this time they held. You could almost hear a collective sigh of relief, but MacArthur awardwinning landscape designer Kate Orff believes that gray infrastructure (levees, flood gates, and sea walls) can only take us so far. The infrastructure we really need, she says, is green. Orff, recently profiled in The New Yorker, insists that ecology is the infrastructure of the future. Her work with SCAPE Studio restores and harnessesrather than resistsnatural systems to ensure the livability of our rapidly changing world.

Laura Flanders

Laura Flanders: Kate, you and your firm, SCAPE, work on design projects in many parts of the United States, including in Louisiana and New York. When you saw Hurricane Ida barreling towards both those places and others too, what went through your mind?

Kate Orff: I had a flashback to the evening that Superstorm Sandy hit. You cant imagine watching the meteorology and it looks like a comet headed straight for your region. And in the case of Superstorm Sandy, it went directly up the New York bight. And the case of Ida, it came through Louisiana and up and over the central United States. Just the tale of these two storms describes how the risk that we face is truly diverse. Theres not one kind of climate risk in our built environment. Theres not just sea level rise to contend with or extreme heat. We are looking, in the case of Ida, at a rainstorm that dropped incredible amounts of rain on our built environment, which weve largely paved over. So, we had a very, very different set of challenges here after Idaflash flooding, some very tragic deaths in my borough of Queens, people living in basement apartments that are located in a former lake. So, weve covered up much of our nature-based infrastructure, and we filled it in, and now we are living with the risks that we have built.

LF: Youve just put your finger on a variety of challenges that are changing all the time, unpredictable, complex systems intersecting, not just with our habitat, but our habits of development, and housing, and where we put people. Talk for a minute about how that relates to the point that I hear coming from you that any one solution, particularly, a built concretetype solution wont be all we need to deal with climate change. And instead we need this kind of collaborative approach where we work with nature for something that you call regenerative design.

KO: I feel like 1927 was a seminal time for America. We had major floods in the Mississippi River area, and there was a big movement to build levees and put up gray infrastructure up and down the Mississippi River system. And that set into motion this approach, which was build a wall and then if it floods, build it higher, spend more money, and then more and more money to try to reduce risk through hard infrastructure, to try to lock natural systems in place. But, of course, that is not the way that natural systems respond. And that obviously is wholly insufficient for a climate-changed environment where were experiencing more intense rain in many regions, where we are facing more extreme heat, where sea levels are rising. The old rules, frankly, do not apply.

LF: Am I hearing you right, that it would be a mistake for people to say, OK, look, what weve been doing works. It worked with respect to Ida. Lets just pour more concrete? Current Issue

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KO: We have to do the opposite. We need to remove, depave, and undo many of the mistakes that weve made in the built environment, particularly here in the New York region. We have to soften our shorelines. We need to remove roadways. We have to integrate different forms of non-motorized transport into our built environment. Otherwise, flash flooding will get worse, and our biodiversity will continue to plummet. We will have more incidents of extreme heat, because that is also very related. What Ive been trying to do, and what the SCAPE office has been trying to do in many, many different contexts, is to try to integrate and revive ecosystemsnot just to bring nature back in a kind of a nostalgic way. Its really about propelling us forward into the next century with a vision around how people, nature, and society can co-exist and how we can reduce our climate risk.

LF: Could we even go back if we wanted to? Is rewilding, as some people call it, even an option at this point?

KO: I love the term rewilding because it inspires people. Theyre like, I get that. That sounds great. However, just rewilding for the purposes of bringing species back isnt enough. Ive tried to be very, very vocal about recasting and framing ecosystems as next century infrastructure. So its not just about rewilding, its about thinking critically about design, about engineering, and about this new hybrid world, where were weaving ecosystems back into the urban landscape where they have been decimatedlike in the New York Harbor. Almost 25 percent of our harbor was oyster reefs. That number is now around zero to 1 percent, but those reefs cleaned the water and slowed the waters.The Q&A

LF: You mentioned Storm Sandy, and the lives that were lost then, including in Staten Island, that drew your attention to an area that youve been working in ever since. And your work there has reached a kind of tipping point, it seems to me. Talk to us about what these Living Breakwaters are, and what is happening right now. Will it go ahead after what weve just seen?

KO: Were leading a project called Living Breakwaters, which is a chain of breakwaters that are seededwith oysters, with the Billion Oyster Project. They clean the water, they slow down the water, they take that dangerous wave action out of the equation. They help replenish beaches and reduce erosion. But theyre also designed to foster critical structural habitats. Theres a big social component to the project, too. Its a community organizing project. Its designed to bring educators to the shoreline and to promote citizen science in the form of reef monitoring and oyster gardening. Its a different model from Lets build a wall and throw a billion dollars in this one tiny thing that may or may not help and that may or may not account for that very dynamic environment that we find ourselves in. We have to use more tools in the toolbox. Right now, we are thinking about the future with the tools of the last century. And so I think this way is really the way to proceed.

LF: Is there other legislation that youve also got your eye on, and what would be your best-case scenario outcome of this moment?

KO: We have a dwindling window to act. We desperately need a robust infrastructure bill to pass, and we cannot spend the money on this infrastructure bill on widening roads and on carbon-intensive forms of infrastructure. We have to do the opposite. And so, Im incredibly hopeful that in the bill, there is language in there around nature-based infrastructure. Im truly hopeful that these projects can be moved front and center. Also, Laura, you asked me about what else Im interested in, I do feel like the Civilian Conservation Corps concept has tremendous potential.

LF: So the Civilian Conservation Corps was what we had in the 30s. This time its a climate corps, is that right?

KO: Yes, the Civilian Climate Corps. And Im so excited about the potential of the Climate Corp to be tied to this infrastructure bill. That would be a dream job for me, which would link these two things up because we do need to invest in an infrastructure, but we also need to invest in science-based learning. I think about what the Living Breakwaters project represents, which is integrating, the seeding of the reef by school children, eighth graders, middle schoolers, and high schoolers, and think about the tremendous potential of integrating the next generation who wants to participate.

LF: We need federal government action, but are there things that people can do to change their habitats, their habits, the soft architecture of our lives?

KO: We havent broken through in terms of (A), just making sure that everyone is aware of the risks that they face in their immediate environment. And then (B), I dont think that weve invested enough in preparedness and education. We also will probably face very, very difficult choices in the next decades. I do feel like thats where this kind of softer human infrastructure will come into play. We may need to move people out of harms way. We may need to kind of develop a national framework for equitable managed retreat. And we will need to expand the ways that were beginning to address some of these challenges and not just say, throw billions of dollars at a single wall.

LF: You say you dont ever give up hope. You never despair. What keeps you going?

KO: Oh, I despair. I despair. I just also feel like its an emotion that you have to sit with but then move through. It cannot be the final word. At this moment, when we have this opportunity in front of us to invest in ecology as infrastructure, to invest in the future, to invest in a climate adaptation roadmap for the nation and all kind of bioregions, we simply have to act.

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Why Ecology Is the Infrastructure of the Future - The Nation

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Differences of working at a practice in another part of the world - Archinect

The City of Warren Parks and Recreation Commission has directed a consultant developing a conceptual site plan that includes mountain biking opportunities at Washington Park.

What that does not mean, however, is that development at the 65-acre site overlooking the City of Warren will start tomorrow.

To the contrary, it will likely be years before a project, if any at all, is undertaken at the side.

The commission held a special meeting on Tuesday to specifically discuss Washington Park. A public hearing was held earlier this year but Tuesday marked the commissions first opportunity to discuss the future of the park in any depth.

What the commission ultimately approved in a split vote was to direct the consultant Mackin Engineering to prepare the site plan including all three options presented or, as Commission member Kris Whittaker put it, the whole pie.

That action is limited to guidance provided to the consultant.

We can take pieces out of that pie down the road, Whittaker said, should a project be funded. At some point in time (there) may be grant funds. In the meantime, we also have options of removing items. (This is) not something that is cast in stone.

Matt Lokay, a senior landscape architect with Mackin Engineering, outlined three options for the park.

Were limited on development potential by the steep slopes, he said. Its a great view, one of the best Ive seen in a park.

The first option he outlined would be limited to improving the roadway and establishing formal parking, potentially creating a small trail with sensory-friendly nature play elements on the top of the ridge, potential for a waterless restroom and Americans with Disabilities Act improvements for parking and a path to the overlook.

Option two would include the items in option one but enhance and expand the trails, creating 2.5 miles of walking trails.

This idea keeps the park passive but accommodates a broader group of users, he explained.

The third option would make the trail shared use and, as a result, open the majority of the 2.5 miles to mountain bikes.

Each commission member was then given an opportunity to speak.

Mark Zavinski said he has always seen this as a passive park and questioned the value of expanding a park while struggling to maintain the parks as they are.

Judi Wilson, who is heavily involved with the local Daughters of the American Revolution chapter, highlighted the DARs role in the parks history. The park should be a passive park, she said. I think its been a wonderful park all these years and it should continue to be a wonderful park.

Kirk Johnson said he would attempt to give voice to the voiceless and explained Washington park is an ideal destination for the clients he works with as a direct support professional. There are more than enough places for mountain biking elsewhere, he added.

Whittaker raised concerns about liability relating to the oil wells on the site.

Its beautiful up there, Jackie Angove said. Anything we can do to maintain it, keep it safe, Im all for it.

The commissions chair, Mike Suppa, said hes been going to the park since he was a child and always thought Washington Park could be a magical place.

He said one of his long laments is the parks under utilization and argued that the park is not an untrammeled wilderness. Any attempt to portray it so lacks its basis in facts.

I would like to see something done to reinvigorate the park and make it more than a 15 minute destination. Im willing to consider any initiative that makes (the) park a vibrant place to be. (We) can continue to let it be a place few people know about, care about or utilize. We have that choice.

Varying views from the public were also expressed that raised concerns about parking, security and other issues.

Department of Public Works Director Mike Holtz said the city contracted with Mackin to develop the conceptual plan so if funding came available in future the city would be able to write a (grant) application that was a decent application.

I would think, he added, you would want to try to get as much as possible from this scope of work. He said the conceptual plan would be an active document. Whatever we pick now thats not whats going to come to Washington Park. It may never happen.

This is really a paint the picture (of) what we would like to see.

Johnson suggested he was hearing what I would call confirmation bias from representatives from the city where by the power of suggestion there would be development done. One of the options is largely missing a no action option. I think that members of the public need to know that we dont have to develop the park.

Freenock noted that the commission agreed to accept a grant to fund the conceptual design and that a no action option would be a waste of money.

I just dont see how we can move forward with any overt developments, Johnson said, when the adjacent property owners dont want grandiose development.

There are viewpoints across the board, Suppa countered. There is certainly a viewpoint that you characterize correctly but you continue to characterize it as a 90 or 100 percent viewpoint and thats not fair.

Johnson and Zavinski voted in opposition to Whittakers motion, which passed 3-2.

Johnson said he doesnt think option three should be a part of it. (It) can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The commission also approved a motion to instruct the citys staff to explore a potential gate for Washington Park for consideration at a future meeting.

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After living in Princeton for 17 years, author Lauren B. Davis has finally authored her first novel set in the town, as well as in neighboring Trenton. Even So, published by Dundurn Press on Oct. 12, explores the value of loving difficult people and sheds light on the marginalization that Davis has herself witnessed in her time in Princeton.

The book follows two women a privileged matron residing in Princeton and a Catholic nun running a food pantry in Trenton as they navigate the challenges of their relationship and the broader issues of inequality in their communities.

When Davis and her husband first moved to Princeton, they expected a diverse community. Although they found that to be true in some ways, in other ways Davis felt the town was not nearly as integrated, both racially and economically, as she had thought.

I was struck by this dissonance between the bright sparkling university, with all its great minds and talents, and some of the undercurrents on the streets of Princeton, Davis said. Its Ralph Lauren on one side and people who have trouble getting housing on the other.

Even So reflects these societal divisions and prompts readers, in particular Princeton residents, to ask themselves who they consider to be the other in Princeton and where they see themselves, Davis said.

Her previous eight novels have all examined similar questions: Who gets marginalized and why? Who do we choose to be the other and why do we choose for them to be the other? What happens to both of us as a result?

Davis has also long been interested in the idea of love as a tool for transformation rather than simply a reward for good behavior.

In the novel, Princeton matron Angela Morrison is discontent and is questioning the choices she has made; she is searching for a far more passionate life than the one she has.

At the pantry where Angela volunteers, Sister Eileen introduces her to Carsten, a landscape architect who has come to build a vegetable garden for the soup kitchen, and the two begin an affair. Angela ends up causing enormous tragedy and seeks out support from Sister Eileen, who is then confronted with the challenge of caring for someone who has caused immense harm to others.

In the words of Davis: Its easy to love people who have been harmed, but far less easy to love people who do harm.

Davis was inspired, in part, by a friend of hers who is a Catholic nun who often talks about wrestling with difficult angels.

Although Even So tackles serious issues and may prompt some Princeton residents to ask tough questions of themselves, Davis hopes local readers will also have fun recognizing locations in the book. Davis herself loves reading novels set in places where she has spent time.

Davis will discuss her newest book on Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. in an online event hosted by Labyrinth Books and the Princeton Public Library. She will be joined by author and Princeton University Professor Sheila Kohler, and Sister Rita Woehlcke, director of the Sisters of Saint Joseph Associates in Mission of Philadelphia.

Register for the event on the Labyrinth Books website.

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Princeton and Trenton are settings for latest novel by author Lauren B. Davis that explores marginalization, othering - Planet Princeton

Billionaire Peter Thiel, PayPal co-founder and chairman of Palantir Technologies, during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan, on Nov. 18, 2019.

Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Peter Thiel's proposed luxury lodge on New Zealand's South Island has been criticized by a local environmental group who believe it is "inappropriate" for the natural landscape.

The PayPal and Palantir co-founder, who profited from an early investment in Facebook, wants to build the lodge and a private residential building on a 193-hectare (477-acre) estate that he owns on the shores of Lake Wanaka, near Queenstown.

Thiel bought the estate in 2015 for a reported $13.5 million through an Auckland-headquartered company he owns called Second Star Limited.

Details of the development, designed by Tokyo Olympic Stadium architect Kengo Kuma and Associates, emerged in a planning application in August.

They show several buildings that are designed to blend into the landscape. There's a private home built into a hillside as well as a larger luxury lodge with enough space for 24 people. There's also a separate meditation pod, several water features and a yet-to-be-designed back-of-house building.

But in a six-page letter to Queenstown Lakes District Council this month, the Upper Clutha Environmental Society said it opposed the application in its entirety.

"The Society believes the applicant has not meaningfully avoided, remedied or mitigated adverse effects," the letter reads, before going on to say that "the proposed development is inappropriate."

The environmental group argues that the buildings will be an eyesore on the natural landscape and that the development is "extremely unlikely" to meet the "reasonably difficult to see test" set by the local council.

A representative for Thiel did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for comment.

Kengo Kuma and Associates said its objective was to "design an organic architecture that fuses into the landscape" and respects the indigenous nature. Elsewhere, Jo Fyfe, senior planner at John Edmonds and Associates, who carried out an assessment of the environmental effects of the complex, said the placement of the buildings into the landscape was "thoughtful."

The so-called "owner's cabin" has a spa, pool, theater lounge, office and three bedrooms, while the guest cabin has its own spa and pool, as well as a library, and 10 guest bedrooms with uninterrupted north-facing views toward Lake Wanaka and the Southern Alps.

To highlight the visual impact of the development, the campaign group opposed to the development noted that "the row of buildings proposed extend across a wide visual catchment of the subject site; the buildings stretch for 330m."

"The associated car parking, access roads and paths will further detract from views of outstanding natural landscape; no less than 7.4ha [hectares] of the site is proposed to be dug up in earthworks of 36,800 m3," it continues.

Aspects of the development will be visible from Lake Wanaka and a number of public tracks in the area, the group said. "People driving, riding, walking, paddling or boating in these highly frequented public locations will be assailed by a large number of buildings spread laterally across the subject site," it argued.

The lavish lodge would feature 10 bedrooms.

The society, however, said it was impressed by the "ecological and biodiversity enhancements" described in the planning application.

It also admitted that the development could result in potential economic gains for the area if the proposed tourist unit buildings are used in the manner described in the application.

But the positive effects "will not meaningfully mitigate" the adverse effects of the proposed development, it added.

Located in relative isolation from the largest population centers of the world, New Zealand has become a popular destination with high net worth individuals in recent years. Billionaire Google co-founder Larry Page was granted residency at the start of the year.

Home to around 5 million people, the country has become linked with "preppers" those who try to prepare for catastrophic events that may pose a threat to humanity.

Reports had suggested that Thiel was planning to build some sort of apocalypse-proof bunker on his estate. While some of the buildings appear to be built into hillsides, it's unclear if any of them are intended to serve as a bunker.

The prepper craze was first put under the spotlight in Jan. 2017, when an article in The New Yorker titled "Doomsday prep for the super-rich" revealed how New Zealand is essentially like a mecca for wealthy preppers. It's remote, geopolitically stable, and sparsely populated. Importantly, it could also become completely self-sufficient in terms of water, food, and energy if it ever needed to.

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Peter Thiel's luxury New Zealand lodge opposed by environmental group - CNBC

As 2021 slowly comes to a close, begin the upcoming year by applying to a fellowship. Below are three fellowship opportunities at a firm, non-profit organization, and academic institution. Each provides a unique position that offers the applicant hands-on experience in sustainability, climate change, and landscape architecture-focused roles. Beyond their prestige, fellowship opportunities also act as essential pathways for growing professionals to explore specific areas of interest within the field of architecture, construction, and academia.

*Is your firm, school, or organization offering fellowship opportunities but don't see them listed below? Reach out to us at connect@archinect.com or post a job on Archinect's Job board to have your fellowship featured.

NYSERDA's Climate Justice Fellowship Firm:Paul A. Castrucci Architects

Details: "The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) will train workers for good-paying jobs. Specifically, this Climate Justice Fellowship focuses on investing in historically disadvantaged communities and priority populations, including low-income individuals, veterans, individuals with disabilities, formerly incarcerated residents, Incumbent or unemployed power plant workers, homeless individuals, single parents or residence of disadvantage community." Apply here.

Emerald Necklace Natural Infrastructure Landscape Design & Project Management Summer 2021 FellowshipOrganization:Amigos de los Ros

Details: "The Natural Infrastructure Landscape Design & Project Management Fellow will use their Design Skills to conduct precise site measurements to create existing condition-based drawings, conduct, and track design development, including review of CAD topo surveys, creating concept plans, and using existing tools of photography, hand-sketched drawings, reviewing site aerials, and using Adobe Creative Suite and CAD Drawing Skills to support multi-benefit project development/CD Set Creation. Design work includes site planning analysis, schematic & design development leading to Construction Drawings as required for stakeholder consensus, permitting, and jurisdiction approvals." Apply here.

Design Education Fellow - BogotOrganization:NuVu Studio

Details: "NuVu is seeking a Design Education Fellow who is passionate about design, technology and education to join our team as an instructor at our partner school, Colegio Nueva Granada (CNG), in Bogot, Colombia. In this role, you will join a unique, highly skilled cohort of Fellows who lead programs at NuVus growing network of partner schools around the world. Applicants must have a passion for working with young people, and a portfolio that reflects a variety of hands-on making skills, techniques, materials, and scales." Apply here.

*Academic Fellowship*2021 Steedman Fellowship: DisrruptionInstitution:Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis

Details: "Climate change, COVID-19, the fight for social justice. In disruptive times, how can architecture help to chart new paths and implement far-reaching solutions? Thats the question posed by 'Disruption,' the2021 James Harrison Steedman Fellowship in Architecture.The biennial research competition invites early-career architects from around the world to explore how architecture can help to address todays most pressing global challenges.Established in 1926, the James Harrison Steedman Fellowship in Architecture is one of the oldest and most prestigious awards in the United States. The $75,000 award is granted biannually to an emerging architect to support 6-12 months of international travel for architectural research." Apply here.

Interested in academic fellowship coverage on Archinect? Be sure to check out Archinect's special Fellow Fellows series. Fellow Fellowsaims to understand what these positions offer for both the fellows themselves and the discipline at large by presenting their work and experiences through an in-depth interview. Fellow Fellows is about bringing attention and inquiry to academia's otherwise maddening pace while also offering a broad view of the exceptional and breakthrough work done by people navigating the early parts of their careers.

*If you don't already, follow Archinect'sFacebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, or the dedicated Archinect Jobs Facebook andTwitter.

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Archinect's Fellowship Watch Part II: Check out employment and academic fellowship opportunities listed on Archinect Jobs - Archinect

Click through the links below, and you'll be able to learn more about each book, as well as buy it from the online book and stationery store Counter-Print. Please note that we at Creative Boom aren't making any affiliate money from this. We think Counter-Print is a great store, selling unique and interesting products, and we're keen to support them however we can.

Design has gone from often being an afterthought to a critical part of doing business in today's economy. Some of the world's biggest brands, including Apple, Airbnb, Google and Tesla, have made human-centred design a hallmark of their brands. Design is having a moment right now, from fashion to architecture to office plans and from digital processes to artisanal craftsmanship.

Edited by Stephanie Mehta, this book from Fast Company offers a comprehensive and lively look at the way design has permeated all areas of life and work. It's essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the ways that design is fundamentally changing and enhancing business and daily life.

If there was a time to focus on the design of our hospitals, it's now. So this book by Christine Nickl-Weller and Hans Nickl could not be more timely. Having been engaged in the field of hospital construction for 40 years, they view the hospital on a variety of levels. This holistic view is enriched by contributions from renowned authors from disciplines as diverse as psychology, health management, landscape architecture and art history.

This intriguing study of London's unique Barbican Estate was published in 2019 to make the 50th anniversary of the first residents moving in. It takes both a micro and macro approach, looking at the design of the individual flats as well as the development's status as a Brutalist icon.

Author and designer Stefi Orazi interviews residents past and present, giving an insight into how life on the estate has changed over the decades. The book also includes fascinating texts by leading architects and design critics, including John Allan of Avanti Architects and Charles Holland of Charles Holland Architects.

Over the last century, nothing short of a design revolution has transformed our houses and the spaces within them. In this ground-breaking book, architectural and design writer Dominic Bradbury charts the course of this voyage, from the late 19th century through to the houses of today. Over 19 themed chapters, he explains the way our houses have been reinvented while taking in the giants of Art Deco, influential Modernists including Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, and post-war innovators such as Eero Saarinen and Philip Johnson.

The design of airport wayfinding is somewhat of a paradox. On the other hand, airports represent hypermodern functional environments in which processes are internationally standardised and maximally efficient. On the one hand, the history and the design heritage of the particular country can often be identified through its airport, and local characteristics are intensified and reinforced, sometimes stereotypically.

The authors, both specialists in the field, decipher the process of creating airport wayfinding, trace its emergence and evolution over the decades, and assess the wayfinding systems of approximately 70 airports.

Good homes are places that sustain you, inspire you and tell your story thanks to their architecture, use of materials and contents. These are the attributes that global business briefing Monocle has always celebrated when covering residences in its design and architecture pages.

Now it brings everything together in one book that explores individual homes, housing projects old and new, communities of self-builders, and even whole neighbourhoods. Monocle has also recruited key thinkers, writers and designers to share their perspectives in a series of fascinating essays.

Timber is fast emerging as a sustainable material of choice, and thanks to recent technological advances, it's a safe and sturdy alternative to concrete. Out of the Woods explores the innovative and inspiring ways architects are using this universal building material, from grand Alpine escapes to tropical getaways, plywood penthouses to mass timber high-rises.

The Brutalist aesthetic is enjoying a renaissance, and here's the most wide-ranging investigation ever undertaken into one of architecture's most powerful movements. It features more than 850 Brutalist buildings existing and demolished, classic and contemporary organised geographically into nine continental regions. It all adds up to one inescapable truth: that Brutalism was, and continues to be, a truly international architectural phenomenon.

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Eight recommended books for those who love architecture - Creative Boom

Palo Alto famously loves its trees as its namesake redwood, its official seal and its recently adopted Urban Forest Master Plan loudly and proudly testify.

But despite that passion, city laws that protect local trees are somewhat weak and outdated, a conclusion that residents and city staff reached more than three years ago, when they began an effort to update the city code. Planning staff struggle with the ambiguities in the city's code, particularly its failure to address situations where trees impact accessory dwelling units or neighboring properties. Neighborhood leaders argue that the laws are too permissive when it comes to allowing developers and property owners to remove trees as part of construction projects. City commissioners observe that other cities protect a wider array of trees than Palo Alto.

Bryna Chang, a member of the city's Planning and Transportation Commission, said she was surprised to learn recently that Palo Alto's tree protection laws are weaker than in neighboring cities.

"I was absolutely shocked that despite the great pride we take in our trees and the great pride we take in being a green and environmentally conscious community, we protect our trees far less than all of these neighboring cities," Chang told the City Council on Monday, as the council considered its first update of the tree protection ordinance in 20 years.

She was one of about two dozen residents, including environmental advocates, nonprofit leaders and neighborhood activists, who supported stronger protections. Some touted the environmental and health benefits of trees, particularly when it comes to sequestering carbon, supporting biodiversity and keeping neighborhoods cool. Almost all urged the council to expand the city's tree protection laws to be more aligned with surrounding jurisdictions.

"As a resident of Palo Alto, it has been disturbing and heartbreaking to see residential lots in my neighborhood stripped of all vegetation, including beautiful large trees, prior to new home construction," Julianne Frizzell, a landscape architect who lives in Palo Alto. "Aesthetically and ecologically, removal of trees has a negative impact on neighbors, neighborhoods and the community."

While cities such as East Palo Alto, Redwood City, Sunnyvale list all species as "protected" once they reach a certain size, Palo Alto tree protection laws protect just three native species: the coast redwood, the coast live oak and the valley oak. According to the city's Urban Forest Master Plan, there are about 534 coast live oaks, 243 coast redwoods and 215 valley oaks in the public right of way, making these three among the most common city-owned native species in the city (that said, they are far outnumbered by imported species in the street-tree population such as the southern magnolia, which number more than 4,000 in Palo Alto; the city also has 2,832 London planes and 2,669 liquidambars).

Among the code changes that the city has been contemplating was expanding the roster of protected trees to more of the 22 native species that are listed in the master plan -- a list that includes the bigleaf maple, the California incense cedar and the California bay. The revised approach proposed by the ad hoc committee, which includes former Mayor Karen Holman, Parks and Recreation Commission Vice Chair Jeff Greenfield, planning Commissioner Doria Summa and community activist Winter Dellenbach, calls for designating as "protected" the two oak species that are currently listed as such and adding to the list the bigleaf maple, the California incense cedar, the blue oak and the California black oak, as well as the coast redwood.

Significantly, the revision would also lower the size threshold for protected trees. Public works staff has initially proposed protecting all trees that have trunk diameters of 36 inches or greater, while keeping a lower threshold for three native tree species that currently enjoy protected status: 18 inches for the coast redwood and 11.5 inches for the other species. A change proposed by an ad hoc committee called for a diameter threshold of 11.5 inches for native tree species and 18 inches for all other trees. Holman, who now serves on the board of directors at the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, urged the council on Monday to move ahead with the various revisions.

"With one action tonight, the council can positively influence more aspects of life in Palo Alto than virtually any other single action you can take," Holman said.

Various environmentalist nonprofits, including Canopy, the Sierra Club and the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society also lobbied the city to strengthen its tree protection laws. Canopy noted in a letter that neighborhoods with street trees can be up to 6 to 10 degrees cooler than those without. Trees, Canopy argued, provide "a substantial return on investment and, even in times of drought and budget tightening, are worth their water and maintenance."

"The reasons for protecting and planting trees are clear," states the letter from Holly Pearson, a board member at Canopy, and Catherine Martineau, the nonprofit's executive director. "Among many other benefits, trees sequester carbon, combat the urban heat island effect, cool buildings, prevent soil erosion and stormwater run-off, provide wildlife habitat, and promote walking and biking on city streets."

While the council stopped short of formally adopting the code changes on Monday as many had urged, it sent a clear signal that major revisions are coming soon. Over a series of votes, the council directed staff to move ahead with an ordinance update that would reflect a host of revisions that align with recommendation from the ad hoc committee ofand its Policy and Services Committee, which reviewed the proposed changes in August. And in moves that further aim to raise the profile of local trees, the council also voted to elevate the urban forester position within the department and to designate the Parks and Recreation Commission as a forum for tree-related discussions.

In addition to broadening the list of protected species, the revision effort would introduce several other new policies. One aims to address what staff called a "loophole" in the code -- the more stringent requirements for removing trees as part of a development proposal than for cases not involving new construction. This creates an incentive for developers to remove trees in advance of an application, said Peter Gollinger, the city's acting urban forester. To address that, the add hoc group and the Policy and Services Committee proposed a 36-month moratorium on development for any property that removes a protected tree.

Another revision creates an appeal process for instances in which a protected tree is proposed for removal in the absence of a development application. With the change, the person removing the tree would have to notify all neighbors and property owners within 600 feet of the property in writing about the tree removal. Everyone within 600 feet will have the option of appealing the removal.

The revised ordinance will undergo reviews in the coming months by the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Architectural Review Board before returning to the council for approval in March or April. Mayor Tom DuBois and council member Lydia Kou both supported a faster timeline but ultimately acceded to the process laid out by staff, which includes additional outreach to the broader community.

"Proposed changes like significantly expanding the categories of protected tree species could potentially impact many or even most properties in the city," Public Works Director Brad Eggleston told the council. "While we know in our outreach process we never manage to reach everyone who might be interested, we do want as much as possible to avoid people being surprised when they learn that an existing tree on their property has become protected and that impacts what they're allowed to do."

Some council members supported a more deliberate approach. Council member Greg Tanaka wanted to know more about the costs of adopting and enforcing the new laws, as well as of raising the urban forester position in the City Hall hierarchy (he was the only council member who voted against elevating the position). Council member Alison Cormack also supported more outreach and analysis before deciding on expansion of the list of protected species. She and Tanaka both opposed DuBois' motion to modify the definition of "protected trees" to include any tree at least 15 inches in diameter (despite their opposition, the provision passed by a 5-2 vote).

"I am absolutely open to adding species to the list and potentially reducing the size of the diameter, but I am not comfortable this evening making those decisions," Cormack said. "I don't feel we've been presented with enough information to be confident in making those decisions."

Others favored faster action on what they characterized as a critical issue. While Cormack asked her colleagues what problem the city is trying to solve with the code changes, Vice Mayor Pat Burt noted that it's "not a single problem and it's not a single benefit."

"That's one of the great things about this," Burt said. "We simultaneously address noise and heat and air and water pollution and aesthetics and climate impacts and the natural habitat even slowing of traffic."

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City moves to expand tree-protection rules | News | Palo Alto Online | - Palo Alto Online

Monday, October 18, 2021

Media Contact: Jeff Hopper | Marketing Media Specialist | 405-744-2745 | jeff.hopper@okstate.edu

The College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology (CEAT) at Oklahoma State University has announced the 2021 Hall of Fame inductees and Lohmann Medal recipients.

CEAT Hall of Fame nominees must be a distinguished engineer, architect or technologist who has made an outstanding contribution to their profession or OSU and has served their community, state and nation with distinction. They should represent some of the most distinguished alumni and industry leaders associated with CEAT. The following candidates meet and exceed all criteria for the hall of fame recognition.

The Melvin R. Lohmann Medal was established in 1991 to honor alumni of CEAT for contributions to the profession or education of engineers, architects or technologists that merits the highest recognition. These honorees are also inducted into the CEAT Hall of Fame.

Dr. Christine Altendorf grew up in Oklahoma City, started at OSU in the fall of 1981, and later graduated with her Bachelor of Science in agricultural engineering in 1985, and her Master of Science in the same subject in 1987. After her masters degree, Altendorf started a full-time staff position with the School of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (BAE) as a research engineer and decided to work on her doctoral degree on the side.

After receiving her doctorate, Altendorf realized she had a passion for applied engineering and started her federal government career in the Hydrology and Hydraulics Branch of the Tulsa District Corps of Engineers in April 1994. She became a professional engineer in Civil Engineering that same year.

Altendorf currently serves as the chief of engineering and construction for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in Washington, D.C. In this role, she oversees a workforce of more than 9,000 engineers and technicians, and a portfolio of civil and military projects totaling over $60 billion. She interacts extensively with top leaders within the Department of Defense and other government agencies, as well as those working in the private sector of engineering and construction. She makes regular appearances on Capitol Hill and communicates frequently with various professional and advocacy groups. She has worked for the Army for over 27 years, 21 of which were with the Corps.

Altendorf became a member of the prestigious Senior Executive Service (SES) in 2009. The SES is all about executive leadership; these individuals serve just below presidential appointees and represent a key link between political appointees and civil service employees. Only about 0.35 percent of the federal workforce achieves SES status. At about the same time she assumed her current position, Altendorf was recognized with the Distinguished Executive Presidential Rank Award. This is the highest annual award for career SES members and recognizes sustained extraordinary accomplishment. No more than one percent of the career SES corps can receive the Distinguished Executive Presidential Rank Award each year.

Altendorf has had assignments across the globe including: Kansas City; San Francisco; Dallas; Washington, D.C.; Hawaii; Iraq and Afghanistan. Her career has some truly remarkable signature accomplishments that merit additional mention. The Folsom Dam project, which she inherited when she was new to the Sacramento District, had significant constructability and cost issues with pressure from Congress and headquarters to solve the problem. She worked with the Bureau of Reclamation, USACE, and Congress to turn the project around and get the $1 billion Folsom Joint Federal Project authorized and constructed.

She led Task Force Restore Iraqi Oil (TF-RIO) in 2004, working to get oil flowing from northern Iraq to the south to allow for economic stability and nation building for the country. In 2011, she led the Joint Program Integration Office in Kabul, Afghanistan, focused on building electrical grid systems, roadways, dams, and infrastructure for the Afghan Army and police.

Because of her program management and communication skills, she was asked to be the first Director of the Armys Sexual Harassment and Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) Program, which was outside of her normal realm of assignments. Responding to Congress, the White House, and both the Secretaries of Defense and the Army, she developed a significant number of initiatives and successfully launched this critical program.

While Altendorf was Director of the Army Installation Management Command Pacific (another non-USACE assignment), she was involved with the Korea Transformation program involving $10 billion of infrastructure that was constructed and accepted at Camp Humphreys for the relocation of 25,000 soldiers and family members to the new installation.

Altendorf explains the importance of getting an engineering degree, being an engineer allows you so many opportunities and that is the true value of the degree. You can choose to stay in design or construction engineering, or research where you turn ideas into practical solutions. You can move to management and focus on inspiring and leading people, projects and programs. But the basis of all of this is that through our engineering degrees, we were taught to think, assume, imagine and ultimately solve hard problems and create an innovative future.

Dr. Leland Blank graduated from OSU with his Master of Science in 1968 and his doctoral degree in 1970. Since leaving the School of Industrial Engineering and Management (IEM) at OSU, Blank has built a stellar career spanning multiple universities around the globe.

Some of Blanks biggest accomplishments include being a leader in international higher education development, and co-author of two current and leading engineering textbooks in engineering economy. Both textbooks are published by McGraw Hill, with the first textbook on its eighth edition, and the second textbook on its third edition. He has served as the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE) President, as well as interim provost, chief academic officer and dean of engineering at the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, the principal investigator (PI) or co-PI of multiple educational and research projects. Blank was a distinguished military graduate from ROTC and a recipient of the Army commendation medal.

Blank has also received IISEs pinnacle award, the Frank and Lillian Gilbreth award in 2018. The Gilbreth award is the highest and most esteemed honor in the field of industrial engineering, which recognizes those who have distinguished themselves through contributions to the welfare of mankind in the field. He was awarded the IISE Wellington Award for long-term contributions to the field of engineering economy, as well.

Blank has provided leadership at several levels at Texas A&M University: department head; assistant dean; and assistant provost for continuous improvement. Within the Texas A&M University system, his leadership includes several directorships and the key role of assistant deputy chancellor for planning. His industrial experience includes employment with Southwestern Bell Telephone, Public Service Board of San Antonio, and General Telephone Company (now Verizon).

Blank is also the author of over 100 publications textbooks, journal articles, conference proceedings and keynote papers. His professional focus has been engineering economics, statistics, decision support, strategic planning and managing complex systems. Though the number of his publications is noteworthy, it is not the volume of Blanks work that makes him an exceptional contributor to Industrial and Systems Engineering, but rather his impact. Blank has always been forward thinking and his publications reflect his ability to challenge the status quo and move the finish line.

Blank continues to serve professionally through his membership on the Board of Trustees of St. Marys University in San Antonio, where he received his bachelors degree. Additionally, he is a board member and treasurer of The Cowboy Academy of the IEM Department at OSU.

Regarding advice to current and future CEAT students, Blank advises, become involved in some sort of mentoring program through your academic department or an organization in which you are a member or officer. Listening to and asking questions of several professionals currently in practice, who received an education and degree similar to your own, can be very useful as you decide on dimensions regarding your own career path.

Carrie Johnson graduated from OSU in 1987 with a bachelor's degree in architectural engineering, as well as her Master of Architectural Engineering degree in 1988. She now serves as a principal of Wallace Engineering Structural Consultants, Inc., (now Wallace Design Collective) a national structural engineering, civil engineering and landscape architecture firm headquartered in Tulsa with offices in Oklahoma City, Kansas City, Denver and Atlanta. She is a licensed engineer in 43 states. Johnson currently serves as the chair of the Board of Directors for Wallace Design Collective.

Johnson is a past president of the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations (NCSEA), a non-profit organization formed to constantly improve the standard level of practice of the structural engineering profession. She has also served on a number of NCSEA committees. In 2016, Johnson was given the NCSEA Service Award. This award is presented to an individual who has worked for the betterment of the organization to a degree that is beyond the norm of volunteerism. It is given to someone who has made a clear and indisputable contribution to the organization and to the profession.

Johnson is an active member of the Oklahoma Structural Engineers Association (OSEA), served as president of OSEA in 2001 and 2009, and was the OSEA delegate to NCSEA for six years. She has also served numerous times as a juror for the OSU School of Architectures senior design projects; as an advisor for the School of Civil Engineerings senior level steel course; and has been a mentor for high school students interested in engineering programs housed in CEAT.

Johnson served as president of the Board of Directors of the Applied Technology Council (ATC) in 2019, a nonprofit corporation whose mission is to develop and promote state-of-the-art, user-friendly engineering resources and applications for use in mitigating the effects of natural and other hazards to the built environment. ATC's publications on disaster recovery and assessment are used throughout the world. She also serves as chair of ATC's strategic planning committee and is still on the board of directors today.

Johnsons project work is concentrated in the retail industry where she has been instrumental in the development of multi-sited building prototypes. She has automated many in-house operational and administrative functions and, more importantly, has developed proprietary software programs to automate repetitive structural engineering tasks for clients building programs. She has led the companys efforts to create the best experience possible for their clients and employees, called One Wallace. This has been a multi-year effort to provide training tools for employees, consistency between offices, and drawing and engineering standards.

My most vivid memories are of long nights in the architecture building, Johnson said as she reflected on her time at OSU. I am privileged to work with many of the people I met at OSU and a lot of our clients are people who we all met during our time in college.

Dr. Matt Perry is an OSU alumnus with three degrees in Electrical Engineering. He last graduated from OSU with his doctorate in 1991, where he focused on signal processing, system theory and mathematics.

Perry has over 35 years of industry and academic experience, spanning three different areas: first in defense, then semiconductors and finally hyperscale hardware and software systems. He is currently the general manager of silicon and hardware systems for Microsofts Azure Hardware Division, where he is developing next generation data center silicon/hardware solutions with emphasis on artificial intelligence, computation and intelligent edge.

Perry has had an impact on many dimensions of the field. He was an accomplished researcher, and published papers in signal processing, both working as an engineer and as an educator. Those skills served him well as he became an engineering product leader at Motorola, developing and shipping video conferencing chipsets. In this role, he developed hardware neural networks, an experience which would serve him well later in his career.

With his communication expertise from his time as a professor, his talent as a researcher, and his design capabilities as an engineer, Perry already had a powerful combination of skills. When he moved to Advanced Micro Devices in 1995, he supplemented all those capabilities with a move into corporate strategy. Perry managed AMD's strategy with respect to Intel along with their technical and intellectual property strategies.

After AMD, Perry moved into a business entrepreneur role, serving as the CEO of three different startup companies (Transmeta, RPO, and Montalvo). Transmeta had been a darling of Silicon Valley with their ambition of revolutionizing microprocessor architecture, but the competition proved too challenging, causing them to fall on hard times. Perry was brought in to chart a new course, which he did by shifting Transmeta to an IP licensing company. That move proved successful and Transmeta was able to license large portions of their portfolio for nine figures of revenue. At RPO, he led successful technology development and financing rounds. He then led Montavlo to be one of the only companies successfully developing x86 microprocessors outside of Intel and AMD, and successfully sold the company to Sun Microsystems.

After the Sun Microsystems acquisition, Perry moved into the role of corporate executive, overseeing strategic partnerships, IP licensing, and strategic plans for multiple server designs. In 2014, he moved to Microsoft, where he took on an even broader role than at Sun, overseeing hardware partnerships and hardware-software codesign for the Windows business. He was extremely successful in this executive role, and the Windows 10 hardware ecosystem is now incredibly healthy, with a compelling product mix of third party and first party devices, as well as a strong product roadmap.

Perry commends his professors and the CEAT staff for providing him with the support he needed to graduate with his undergraduate, masters, and doctoral degrees at OSU.

One of my proudest moments at OSU is when I completed my doctoral defense, Perry said. I will never forget standing in front of my major professor, Dr. Rao Yarlagadda, as he extended his hand to shake and said, Congratulations Dr. Perry, you have passed,' after years of work and research. I would not have been able to do it without the help of the Cowboy family.

Perry reflects on his time at OSU, and his biggest advice to young CEAT students is, one of the most important lessons I learned from OSU is to branch out and try things outside of your comfort zone. Without doing this, it is more challenging to grow and become the person you want to be. You may find a new passion or hobby, but going outside of your comfort zone and learning new things will open doors that you never knew were available.

Stan Stephenson graduated from OSU in 2003 with a Master of Science in Engineering and Technology Management (ETM). He is a registered professional engineer and certified reliability engineer. Stephenson has been with Halliburton since 1979 and is now a chief technical advisor for the company.

Stephenson immediately leveraged his ETM education at OSU to win the 2003 CEO for a Day Competition with a written entry on how to make Halliburton a better, stronger, more profitable company. Following this, he developed a reliability program modeled after the U.S. Armys Ultra-Reliability Program. He managed this program for several years before taking a role to optimize both the capital efficiency and operating efficiency of the Production Enhancement surface equipment.

Stephenson has 64 patented inventions, which vary drastically from one application to another. One invention uses artificial neural networks and genetic algorithms to maximize regional oil production. This production prediction and optimization system was highlighted in the Advanced Well Construction Technology Flagship in the 2000 Halliburton Annual report. This technology was awarded the Harts Oil and Gas World magazines Best New Technology for the Mid-Continent Area.

Stephenson was also one of a small team that brought Halliburtons automated stimulation fleet into a reality in the 1980s. A few years later, the fleet became the first in the industry to be controlled remotely through satellite connection.

Stephenson did not limit himself to mechanical, electromechanical, software/firmware or reliability systems. In the area of chemical mixing, he identified and modeled the time, temperature and mechanical shear dependency of guar hydration. This was critical to the functioning of Halliburtons gelling systems.

Stephensons expertise has been recognized by both his peers and management within Halliburton. He was voted by his peers as a senior member of the technical staff and was selected by management as one of the charter members of the Strategic Competitive Intelligence Network. He currently reviews about 8,000 patents a year for opportunities for or threats to Halliburtons technologies.

Stephensons latest activities involve the creation of methods to accurately predict equipment life and operating costs. He created equivalency-based models that contain lifecycle performances of all primary components of the equipment, enabling a very complicated reliability analysis system currently in use in Halliburton. His methods allow Halliburton to maximize the use of their complex high horsepower systems while minimizing failure costs. His depth of knowledge of this technology and other technologies made him the go-to individual in the company and in the industry. He has been an invited speaker/consultant on many technologies he developed.

Stephenson gives CEAT students advice when going through their collegiate years, good judgement comes from bad experiences. You have the authority to do anything for which you are willing to accept the consequences. Understand the half-life of your engineering discipline and plan for your continuing education accordingly. Most importantly, follow your passion so you wont work a day in your life.

The College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology would like to congratulate all of its 2021 Hall of Fame inductees and Lohmann Medal recipients.

Story By: Kaitlyn Mires | kamires@okstate.edu

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OSU's College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology announces 2021 Hall of Fame inductees and Lohmann Medal recipients - Oklahoma State...

Manhattan is one of those places thats easily identifiable by its iconic and, until recently, relatively unchanging skyline. However, the collection of soaring concrete and glass peaks recently grew by one mixed-use tower: One Vanderbilt, which stands at 1,401 feet talljust 53 shy of the Empire State Building. And One Vanderbilts top three floors make up the highly anticipated SL Green Realty Corp.produced Summit One Vanderbilt, a multisensory experience that will certainly leave a few jaws on the floor. Though the skyscraper boasts a few dining conceptsincluding the Danny Meyerled Aprsthe Snhetta-designed Summits pice de rsistance is the observation deck. Here, 93 stories up, the observation is the final stop on visitors exploration throughout the highly immersive experience in Midtown. This observatory, however, is like no other. This one dares visitors to look in all directions rather than just outward.

The innovative creative at Kenzo Digital looked to such groundbreaking luminaries as Yayoi Kusama when designing the very high up installations, one of which, called Transcendence, he clad in a collection of mirrors that morph the surrounding city into a surreal funhouse-like landscape. Though it sounds like it would be an overwhelming experience, the artist designed it to encourage a sense of calm. Anne-Rachel Schiffmann, director of interiors and senior architect at Snhetta, explains: There are spaces at Summit where you are fully immersed in the city in all its energetic glory, and then you turn a corner and find a little moment of respite, a place where you can catch your breath and have a thought to yourself.

The observatory is meant to connect visitors to the urban landscape around them. Schiffmann notes: In the observatory, you toggle between subtle and exciting spaces in a way that can be quite meditative. There are wooden benches, stone tables, and an outdoor garden with a bar, all details that use design to enrich the experience of looking over the city. Of course, that sense of serenity was more or less the point of the observatory.

That said, the magic doesnt only happen above ground: In fact, it begins on the entry level. We created a poetic journey that starts underground, gently moving you up, and culminates above the clouds, Schiffmann suggests. The entry level, which is connected to one of New Yorks most beloved landmarks, Grand Central, includes a wood-paneled theater wherepeople can geta sneak preview of what awaits them above.

Another almost euphoric experience comes in the form of glass elevators (with matching glass floors) that zoom up the exterior of the tallest vantage point at Summit, offering everyone with an affinity for flight a sensation like no other, as they travel upwards for more than 1,000 feet.

Manhattan may not exactly be suffering from a shortage of enormously tall buildings that contribute to making this particular borough amongst the greatest cities in the world, but Summit One Vanderbilt isnt like other skyscrapers. Its unique in a way that only genuinely cutting-edge innovation and artistic collaboration can explain, and its about to make some serious noisenot just in New York, but across the globewhen it officially opens its heavy glass doors on October 21. For me, all these qualities come together to create a new vantage point for New Yorkers, Schiffmann admits.

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A New Observatory Suspended Nearly 1,300 Feet in the Air Is Redefining New York City's Skyline - Architectural Digest