Ron Henderson Featured in One of the ASLA's 'Best Books of 2020'

UPDATE: On December 6, the American Society of Landscape Architects named "New Horizons" as one of its best books of the year. The book, according to the organization, is "a compelling survey of eight contemporary Chinese landscape architecture practices." You can read more about the ASLA's top books here.

College of Architecture Professor and Director of the Master of Landscape Architecture and Urbanism program Ron Henderson contributed a chapter to the book "New Horizons: Eight Perspectives on Chinese Landscape Architecture Today." The book showcases the work of eight young landscape architecture practices whose optimistic explorations of material authenticity, everyday spaces, and local culture are shifting the discourse on landscape architecture in China.

Henderson’s chapter, “A Profession in the Making,” specifically covers the growth of landscape architecture education in the country over the past 70 years and its role in producing powerful leaders in the areas of design, conservation, advocacy, and ecology. According to Henderson, the profession is particularly strong in China because of strong governmental and institutional commitment to the design discipline, which is suited to resolve complex and systemic challenges in both society and the environment.

“The turn of the twenty-first century witnessed an increasing demand for environmental and urban design leadership in the rapidly urbanising cities,” writes Henderson. “Today, landscape architects in China have a stronger role in the design of cities and territories than in almost any other nation in the world, and it happened very quickly.”

The book, published on October 26, is available in both physical and digital editions.

Image: A Lively Link, a bridge design in rural China by landscape architect Fu Yingbin which is featured in the book. Image courtesy of Fu Yingbin.