Against a backdrop of world-changing events this year, matters central to landscape architecture have come to the fore. COVID 19 has highlighted issues of unequal access to green space and the health benefits afforded by nature; the ecological and climate crisis remain an existential threat to us all, and with COP 26 on the horizon we hope for urgent action by those in power. Landscape Architecture has an immense amount to offer as a stitcher-together of communities, ecologies, and places. Our specialist skills bridging biological sciences, creativity, technical knowledge, and co-ordination could not be more relevant today. Within the context of practice, built environment professionals are all bound by financial and regulatory limitations. The Master of Landscape Architecture at MSA offers space to experiment beyond these margins.
This year we implemented several changes to our course. We brought landscape architecture and architecture students together through research, live projects, and through the MSA Atelier system. The MLA Open Lecture series and contributions to MSA Provocations gave a platform to ongoing global discussions. While continuing to deliver a fundamentally landscape architectural and accredited education, we are collaborating across disciplines. Our aim is to afford a dialogue between built environment professions, encouraging mutual learning, respect, debate, and cooperation. We surely need this approach to navigate the shared challenges that lie ahead.
Our students responded to the constraints of the pandemic with immense resilience and creativity. As they continue their paths into the profession, we urge them to continue to think critically about what landscape architecture can be and to push at the boundaries of the profession.