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The national
ASLA annual meeting was held from October 3-7. As chapter president and
South Jersey native, I was pleased to represent our chapter at this
important event that was hosted conveniently close to home.
7,000
Landscape Architects Under One Roof?
If you’ve never
been to a national meeting, I would encourage you to attend at least one.
Our state meeting is one of the best in the country and is very informative
and well attended, but to appreciate landscape architecture on a larger
scale, a national meeting is a must. Landscape architects traveled across
the country, from as far away as Alaska. I’ve never seen so many LAs at once
in my life and it’s gratifying to know that they are out there, that we
share many of the same problems and that we are working towards similar
goals.
EXPO
You’ve probably
been to a car show or a flower show or similar venue and you have an idea of
how large a space is required to host such an event, but imagine a space
that size chock full of items you specify on a daily basis. More than 450
exhibitors were on hand.
The selection
is mind-boggling: benches to sit on, play equipment to experience, textures
and finishes to inspect.
Scanning
With such a
large group of people, tracking becomes more important. At each session,
your badge is scanned to keep track of your continuing education
requirements. At the end of the conference, you were able to print out your
transcripts and keep them for your records. Likewise, at the EXPO, vendors
could scan your badge and forward information to your office, rather than
having to lug it around with you. It also allows the exhibitors to update
their database electronically.
I still have a
lot of information to digest and some much needed sleep and work to catch up
on, but I absolutely think it was a great experience and would recommend it
to any landscape architect if their schedule permits.
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