Quantifying the Landscape

Barbara Deutsch is the Executive Director at the Landscape Architecture Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to research, scholarship, and advocacy. She and her small team are trying to advance the landscape architecture perspective by quantifying the benefits provided by landscape elements like plants and water. For the past six years they've been building a collection of over 100 case studies from projects across the United States. Each case study evaluates the landscape's contributions in three areas: social, environmental, and economic. The purpose of the case studies is to arm designers and policy makers with persuasive, research-driven evidence of the value of the landscape to achieve sustainable urban design. By measuring the performance of landscapes, they're creating tools in the movement to change minds and policies – and, ultimately, the places we live. This podcast is a production of DeepRoot Green Infrastructure, LLC (www.deeproot.com). For more information about Landscape Architecture Foundation, visit www.lafoundation.org. Music: Dave Depper, "Picturebook" Podington Bear, "Lilywhite" and "Nature Kid"