LABash, the landscape architecture conference for students, by students, was held March 28-30 at the University of California Davis in Davis, CA. After more than a year of planning, a team of 10 student leaders led by Mark Peñaran, Student ASLA, and Olive Tang, Student ASLA, hosted a successful conference with 440 attendees, made up of 250 students and 190 professionals.

49 speakers presented in 20 education sessions, four art workshops, and eight field sessions. The Expo had representatives from 48 companies, firms, universities, and non-profits engaging with the future of the landscape architecture profession.

Thanks to Haven Kiers, Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture + Environmental Design, students were welcomed to the campus by the UC Davis Sheepmowers, which demonstrated how sheep can serve as a more sustainable lawn care alternative. The exhibit also featured sketching, watercolors, and needle felting with the sheep's wool.  

Sheepmowers, Davis, California / SuLin Kotowicz, FASLA

Other highlights included the opening keynote “Designing Conscious Spaces” by Kimberly Garza, ASLA, Founder and Principal at Atlas Lab Inc. based in Sacramento, and the closing keynote “Adaptive Landscapes” by Gena Wirth, ASLA, Design Principal and Partner at SCAPE which has offices in New York City, New Orleans, and San Francisco.
 
Students also got to explore landscapes in Davis and Sacramento on field sessions throughout the day on Friday. Trips to Village Homes, Jepson Prairie, Downtown Sacramento, and Yolo Causeway allowed attendees to explore beyond the campus. Others chose to stay local and participate in an art workshop “Wisdom of Place” led by Chip Sullivan, FASLA, Professor of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning at University of California Berkeley and Elizabeth Boults, ASLA, Lecturer at UC Davis, or explore the UC Davis campus with Professor Kiers on a nature walk. 

LABash field session, Davis, California / Kristopher Pritchard, Hon. ASLA

Vectorworks Landmark also hosted a BIM workshop and there was a sketch crawl led by Dr. David de la Peña, Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture + Environmental Design at UC Davis, and student leader Anne Miyadi, Student ASLA.
 
The final day provided students opportunities to attend education sessions covering topics that fell under the conference tracks: Sustainability, Pre-Professional, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

The conference concluded during the Closing Ceremony, which took place at the beautiful Ruhstaller Farm, with a fun-filled night of music, dancing. The ceremony also included the traditional passing of the Permaloc Cup to next year’s LABash host, the University of Guelph, which is just outside of Toronto, Canada.

Fun fact, LABash started in 1970 at University of Guelph, so the students are excited to #BringLABashHome.

Closing Party, Davis, California / Kristopher Pritchard, Hon. ASLA