The Sustainable Sites Initiative is a partnership of the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and the United States Botanic Garden in conjunction with a diverse group of stakeholder organizations.
Founded in 1899, ASLA is the national professional association for landscape architects, representing more than 17,000 members in 48 professional chapters and 68 student chapters. Landscape architecture is a comprehensive discipline of land analysis, planning, design, management, preservation and rehabilitation. ASLA promotes the landscape architecture profession and advances the practice through advocacy, education, communication and fellowship. Members of the Society use their "ASLA" suffix after their names to denote membership and their commitment to the highest ethical standards of the profession.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at The University of Texas at Austin is dedicated to increasing the sustainable use and conservation of native plants and landscapes. Founded in 1982 by Lady Bird Johnson, the former first lady, the Wildflower Center maintains an extensive native plant botanic garden and offers professional and adult education. The Wildflower Center also conducts research on landscape restoration and plant conservation at its 279-acre site, promoting the role of native plants in addressing ecological problems. Recent research initiatives focus on native turf grasses, green roof technology in a sub-tropical climate, prairie restoration methods including prescribed fire, the control of invasive species and ways in which native plants can aid in combating climate change in urban landscapes.
Dating from 1820, the United States Botanic Garden (USBG) is one of the oldest botanic gardens in North America. The Garden informs visitors about the importance and fundamental value of plants to the well-being of humans, all nations, and our planet, and highlights the diversity of plants worldwide, as well as their aesthetic, cultural, economic, therapeutic and ecological significance. Formally placed under the jurisdiction of the Joint Committee on the Library of Congress in 1856, the U.S. Botanic Garden has been administered through the Office of the Architect of the Capitol in the Legislative Branch since 1934. With nearly a million visitors annually and located on the National Mall, the USBG strives to demonstrate and promote sustainable practices for individuals, organizations and institutions.
American Society of Landscape Architects
Nancy C. Somerville
Executive Vice President/CEO
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Susan Rieff
Executive Director
United States Botanic Garden
Holly Shimizu
Executive Director
University of Texas at Austin
Center for Sustainable Development
Fritz Steiner, Ph.D., FASLA
Dean, School of Architecture
This ia a coalition of stakeholder groups charged with overseeing the development of the Sustainable Sites Initiative Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks. The members include the following:
American Society of Civil Engineer's Environment and Water Resources Institute
Karen C. Kabbes, P.E., D.WRE
President, Kabbes Engineering, Inc.
and
Michael Clar, P.E., D.WRE
Assistant County Engineer, Department of Land Use
New Castle County, DE
American Society of Landscape Architects
José Almiñana, ASLA
Principal, Andropogon Associates, Ltd.
and
Deb Guenther, ASLA
Principal, Mithun
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Steve Windhager, Ph.D.
Director, Landscape Restoration Program
National Association of County & City Health Officials
Karen R. Nikolai
Community Design Liaison, Hennepin County, MN
National Recreation and Park Association
Richard J. Dolesh
Director of Public Policy
The Nature Conservancy
Valerie Vartanian
Horticulture and Landscape Professions Liaison
Global Invasive Species Team
United States Botanic Garden
Ray Mims
Conservation Horticulture
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Jean Schwab
GreenScapes Program Manager
U.S. Green Building Council
Deon Glaser, ASLA
Manager, LEED Technical Development
University of Texas at Austin
Center for Sustainable Development
Fritz Steiner, Ph.D., FASLA
Dean, School of Architecture
A voluntary group of professionals from diverse locations and backgrounds who provide technical expertise in
specific areas of focus.
Michael Barrett, Ph.D., P.E., D.WRE
Research Associate Professor
Center for Research in Water Resources
University of Texas at Austin
Michael Clar, P.E., D.WRE
Assistant County Engineer, Department of Land Use
New Castle County, DE
American Society of Civil Engineer's Environment and Water Resources Institute
Robert Goo
Environmental Protection Specialist
Nonpoint-Source Control Branch
Assessment and Watershed Protection Division
Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
William Hunt, Ph.D., P.E.
Assistant Professor & Extension Specialist
Biological and Agricultural Engineering Urban Stormwater Management
North Carolina State University
Tom Liptan, ASLA
Landscape Architect/Environmental Specialist
Sustainable Stormwater Prorgam
City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services
Ed MacMullan
Senior Economist
ECONorthwest
James Patchett, ASLA, LEED AP
Founder and President
Conservation Design Forum
Eric Strecker, P.E.
Principal
Geosyntec Consultants
Steve Windhager, Ph.D.
Director, Landscape Restoration Program
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
David Yocca, ASLA, RLA, AICP, LEED AP
Principal Landscape Architect/ Planner
Conservation Design Forum
Megan Turnock, MLA
Research Assistant
Alison Kinn Bennett
Co-Chair, Green Building Workgroup
Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Meg Calkins, RLA, ASLA
Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture
Ball State University
Kimberly Cochran, Ph.D.
Environmental Engineer
Office of Solid Waste
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Nora Goldstein
Executive Editor
BioCycle Magazine
Jean Schwab
GreenScapes Program Manager
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Scott Cloutier
Research Assistant
Graduate Student
Environmental Research Group
University of New Hampshire
Susan D. Day, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Professor of Urban Forestry
Department of Forestry
Department of Horticulture
Virginia Tech
David McDonald
Resource Conservation Planner
Seattle Public Utilities
Fritz Steiner, Ph.D., FASLA
Dean, School of Architecture
Center for Sustainable Development
University of Texas at Austin
James Urban, FASLA
Owner
Urban Trees + Soil
Nina Bassuk, Ph.D.
Professor and Program Leader
Urban Horticulture Institute
Cornell University
Jacob Blue, RLA, ASLA
Landscape Architect/Ecological Planner
Applied Ecological Services
Nick Kuhn
City Forester
ISA Certified Arborist/Municipal Specialist
City of Albuquerque, NM
Chris Martin, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Applied Biological Sciences
Arizona State University
Greg MacPherson
Director
Center for Urban Forest Research PSW
USDA Forest Service
Mark Simmons, Ph.D.
Ecologist,
Landscape Restoration Program
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
John Peter Thompson
Chairman
Behnke Nurseries Co.
Valerie Vartanian
Horticulture and Landscape Professions Liaison
Global Invasive Species Team
The Nature Conservancy
Melanie Sifton
Research Assistant
Graduate Fellow, Cornell Graduate Program in
Public Garden Leadership
Cornell University
Len Hopper, FASLA
Senior Associate
Mark K. Morrison Associates LTD
Frances Kuo, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Director
Landscape and Human Health Laboratory
Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences Department of Psychology
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Cherie LeBlanc Fisher
Social Scientist
Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service
Karen R. Nikolai
Community Design Liaison, Hennepin County
National Association of County & City Health Officials
Robert Ryan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Jerry Smith, ASLA, LEED AP
Sustainable Sites Manager
HDR Sustainable Design and Solution Group
Rodney Swink, FASLA
Director, Office of Urban Development
North Carolina Department of Commerce
Lynne Westphal, Ph.D.
Project Leader & Research Social Scientist
People and Their Environments
Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service
Julie Wilbert
Senior Health Promotion Specialist
Human Services and Public Health Department Hennepin County, MN
Kathleen L. Wolf, Ph.D.
Research Social Scientist
College of Forest Resources
University of Washington