Early-Career Professionals

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Action! Design in Motion. Work in Progress.

Organized by the ASLA Associate Advisory Committee

Theme & Project Site

The ASLA Associate Advisory Committee, dedicated to supporting and representing emerging professionals nationwide, is launching the second edition of its design competition for early-career landscape architects. This initiative provides a platform for emerging designers to engage with pressing challenges in open space design, climate, and social justice. Mirroring the theme of the 2026 ASLA Conference, the Emerging Professionals Design Competition invites emerging professional ASLA members to reimagine a new design for Angels Knoll in Los Angeles, California with the theme “Action! Design in Motion. Work in Progress.” 

Angel’s Knoll Park is a small but highly visible and currently inaccessible open space in downtown Los Angeles. Located on Bunker Hill next to the historic Angels Flight Railway and across from Grand Central Market, the site is a steep, grassy knoll with panoramic views and strong transit connections. Once maintained as a modest urban park, it has been fenced off for years following the dissolution of the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA/LA) in 2012.

The site is widely recognized for its appearance in the movie, (500) Days of Summer, but its future has been uncertain. A proposed mixed-use development, “Angels Landing,” has stalled amid legal and financial challenges, leaving the site in limbo. At the same time, community advocates have called for reopening and preserving it as public green space.

Despite its size, Angel’s Knoll presents a complex design opportunity. Its topography, central location, and lack of accessible green space nearby raise key questions around grading, accessibility, climate resilience, and connectivity. The site offers a focused test case for rethinking small urban parks in a dense downtown context.

Entrants are challenged to rethink Angel’s Knoll Park as a site in flux, aligning with the theme Action! Design in Motion. Work in Progress. Rather than a fixed outcome, proposals should frame the park as an evolving landscape—responding to its current condition as a fenced, inactive space and its uncertain future between stalled development and public reclamation.

Participants may expand or redefine the site’s boundaries to support their design approach, considering its steep topography, transit access, and proximity to Angels Flight Railway and Grand Central Market. While conceptual in nature, proposals should remain grounded in the site’s realities.

Designs may explore phased or adaptable interventions, improved accessibility, climate responsiveness, and strategies to reconnect the site to the public realm—positioning Angel’s Knoll as an active, evolving piece of downtown infrastructure.

Eligibility

This design competition is open to emerging professional ASLA members in the field of landscape architecture or allied fields with less than 10 years of experience. All individuals participating in a team must be current ASLA members.

• Participants must be ASLA members with less than 10 years of professional experience. 

• Entries may be made up of individuals or teams of up to three (3) people. Each individual or team can only submit one (1) entry.

• Participants can only submit one entry per applicant; an individual may not submit more than one entry or be a part of multiple teams. 

• Student ASLA members entering their final year (Bachelor’s or Master’s) in Fall 2026 may participate.

• Participation is free.

Competition Schedule

• Launch: Tuesday, June 2

• Submission Deadline: Thursday, July 16, 11:59pm ET

• Jury Deliberation: August

• Winners Notified: Wednesday, August 12

Awards

• First Prize: Full registration to ASLA 2026 (Los Angeles) or ASLA 2027 (Chicago) Conference for individual or winning team + Publication on ASLA channels

• Second + Third Prizes: Publication on ASLA channels

Submission Requirements

The Jury will only review proposals that are digitally submitted through the Slide Room competition platform by the date and time of competition closing. No late submissions will be accepted for review by the jury.

• Submission Requirements: 

  • One (1) B2 board (24”x36”, portrait format), submitted in high quality format; [File name: “EPDesignComp_ProjectTitle”]

  • Project title (on board)

  • 300-word maximum explanatory text (on board)

  • Submit only PDF files less than 10MB

• Do not include identifying information on images, file names, or explanatory text. This includes information that would hint at individuals, schools, firm affiliations, organizations, etc. Entries that include any identifiable information will be disqualified. 

• No physical submissions will be accepted

• Submitted materials should not be released to the public or other media prior to the announcement of the winning entries. 

• ASLA is not liable for any costs incurred by any entrant in the preparation of a submission. 

• By entering into the competition, you warrant that your submission does not include any images or text infringing on third-party copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights. 

• By submitting your entry, you hereby grant ASLA a non-exclusive irrevocable, perpetual, transferable, royalty-free and worldwide license and right to use, reproduce, distribute, transfer, license, sub-license, reprint, publish and display your Entry, or any part thereof, either alone or as part of a compilation with other works, electronically or otherwise, on social media platforms, on ASLA’s websites; in Landscape Architecture Magazine, in ASLA blogs, emails, brochures, and newsletters; and in presentations (including without limitation, live, recorded and/or streaming presentations, broadcasts, conferences, events, and webinars) given by ASLA and its National representatives. ASLA reserves the right to edit any and all submission text for clarity and concision.

Project Site Base Maps

2026 EP Design Competition_Context Map A

2026 EP Design Competition_Context Map B

2026 EP Design Competition_Map 1

2026 EP Design Competition_Map 2

Submission Review Criteria

The ASLA Emerging Professionals Design Competition jury will review, evaluate, and score submissions using the following criteria:  

• Alignment with Theme “Action! Design in Motion. Work in Progress”
  Demonstrates a clear and compelling response to the theme, framing design as an evolving, adaptable process rather than a fixed outcome.

• Strength of Conceptual Design
  Presents a bold, innovative, and coherent vision with strong design intent and clarity.

• Site Responsiveness
  Engages thoughtfully with Angel’s Knoll Park, reflecting sensitivity to its topography, location, cultural visibility, and urban context.

• Equity & Inclusion
  Advances inclusive and accessible design strategies that respond to community needs and support diverse public use.

• Climate Action & Biodiversity
  Integrates climate-responsive and nature-based strategies, including heat mitigation, planting, and ecological performance.

• Design Process & Implementation
  Demonstrates a clear methodology and considers how the proposal could be realized through phased, adaptable, or technically grounded approaches.

• Future of the Public Realm
  Offers a forward-looking vision for Angel’s Knoll as an active, flexible, and meaningful public space.

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