Healthcare and Therapeutic Design PPN Newsletter is Available

Newsletters are a primary communication vehicle for ASLA’s Professional Practice Networks (PPNs). The Healthcare and Therapeutic Design PPN is happy to announce the availability of its January 2007 newsletter, which can be accessed at http://host.asla.org/groups/tgdpigroup/H&TD_January07.pdf. In this issue:

• Chair Naomi Sachs, ASLA, recalls the first meeting of the group, begun in 1999 by Jack Carman, FASLA. Sachs recalls being “struck and intrigued by how varied the group was” and notes that many participants had a personal connection to this discipline—a family member, friend, or colleague experiencing illness or disability. From the original group of 23, the Healthcare and Therapeutic Design PPN has grown to an active membership of more than 300.

• In a far-reaching article, Bob Scarfo, ASLA, discusses emerging global trends in the environment, health, and aging that call for expansion of therapeutic design concepts into the broader community. He identifies the aging baby boomers as a tremendous source of "social capital" and points to the benefits of the built environment in helping to develop the types of communities that sustain health and conserve resources.

• David Kamp, ASLA, talks about the Elisabeth and Nona Evans Restorative Garden, which he designed for the Cleveland Botanic Garden. Kamp’s design received ASLA’s 2006 Honor Award in General Design. The garden “focuses on the needs of older adults or individuals with special needs while creating an exemplary setting expressing the therapeutic powers of nature.”

• Clare Cooper Marcus discusses the unique challenges UC–Berkeley graduate students faced in designing a therapeutic garden for a prison hospice. In this environment security was naturally a top concern, but some of the elements of student designs—potted lemon trees and irrigation systems—that were turned down as security hazards come as a surprise. Inmate volunteers who staff the hospice were enthusiastic supporters of the project, suggesting desirable garden elements such as color, the sound of water, and vegetables, and also coming up with innovative ideas for funding.

For additional information about the Healthcare and Therapeutic Design PPN (formerly the Therapeutic Garden Design PPN), or to see previous newsletter issues, visit the group’s website at http://host.asla.org/groups/tgdpigroup/. For information about ASLA’s other Professional Practice Networks, and links to PPN home pages, visit the main PPN website at http://www.asla.org/members/ppn/home.htm.