Designing Change: Landscape Continuity in an Age of Uncertainty 

Designing Change: Landscape Continuity in an Age of Uncertainty 

Symposium
black and white contact sheet of historic images of Roberto Burle Marx and members of the Longwood team and the public at the opening of the Cascade Garden

Dates & Price

Wednesday and Thursday
October 15–16, 2025

The Fountain Room at Longwood Gardens


 

Fee
$289 prior to August 15
$329 August 16–September 30

Registration closes on September 30

Curated by Anita Berrizbeitia, Professor of Landscape Architecture at Harvard Graduate School of Design, this two-day symposium welcomes landscape architects and designers, preservationists, ecologists, thought leaders, and industry professionals to one of the great gardens of the world to engage with world-renowned speakers and enjoy many opportunities for discussion. The symposium also examines the unprecedented preservation, relocation, and reconstruction of the Cascade Garden, designed by acclaimed Brazilian landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx and newly opened at Longwood Gardens.

During the symposium, enjoy an impressive roster of speakers comprised of award-winning scholars, landscape architects, ecologists, and ethnobotanists. Events include a welcome reception and keynote on the Cascade Garden preservation; lightning talks on existing preservation paradigms; a panel discussion on the intersection of biological and cultural conservation; and a concluding keynote on the future of historic estate landscapes, among many other highlights.

Featured speakers include:

  • Kongjian Yu, Ph.D., Pioneer of the “Sponge City” Concept
  • Kristin Frederickson, Principal of Reed Hilderbrand
  • Steven Heyde and Sylvia Van Damme, Ph.D., Authors of The Future of Estate Landscapes in Europe
  • Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, Partners and Cofounders of WEISS/MANFREDI

Session chairs:

  • John Beardsley, Curator of the Cornelia Hahn Oberlander International Landscape Architecture Prize
  • Charles Birnbaum, Founder, President and CEO of The Cultural Landscape Foundation

Schedule

Wednesday

  • 4:00 pm – Welcome
    Paul B. Redman, President and CEO, Longwood Gardens
  • 4:30 pm – Symposium Context and Framework
    Anita Berrizbeitia, Harvard Graduate School of Design
  • 5:00 pm – Welcome Keynote
    • Longwood Reimagined: A New Garden Experience
      Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi, WEISS/MANFREDI
    • The Reconstruction of the Cascade Garden
      Kristin Frederickson, Reed Hilderbrand
  • 6:00 pm – Cocktail Reception
  • 7:00 pm – Dinner

Thursday

  • 9:00 am – Keynote: Sponge Planet: Reclaiming the Monsoon Way in a Climate-Challenged World
    Kongjian Yu, Turenscape and Peking University
  • 10:00 am – Coffee
  • 10:15 am – Session 1: The Expanded Field of Preservation
    • The Expanded Field of Preservation
      Charles Birnbaum, Session Chair, The Cultural Landscapes Foundation
    • Enter the Garden: Conservation and Care in Today's Gardens
      Claire Agre, Unknown Studio Landscape Architecture & Urban Design
    • Climates of Control: Interior Landscapes of the Long Twentieth Century
      Danielle Choi, Harvard Graduate School of Design
    • Dis-membering and RE-membering Landscapes that Endure
      Sara Zewde, Studio Zwede and Harvard Graduate School of Design
  • 12:30 pm – Lunch
  • 2:00 pm – Session 2: Biocultural Conservation Panel
    Biocultural Conservation: An Introduction
    • John Beardsley, Panel Moderator, The Cornelia Hahn Oberlander International Landscape Architecture Prize
    • Makalé Faber Cullen, Toyota Research Institute
      Harmonious Communities Lab and Drexel University
    • Thomas Woltz, Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects
    • William Woys Weaver, The Roughwood Table
    • Rowen White, Sierra Seeds and Indigenous Seedkeepers Network
  • 3:30 pm – Break
  • 4:30 pm – Keynote: The Future of Estate Landscapes
    • Charles Birnbaum, The du Pont Estates of the Brandywine Valley
    • Designing the Future of Estate Landscapes in Europe
      Steven Heyde, University College Ghent
    • Sylvie Van Damme, University of Antwerp
  • 6:30 pm – Dinner
  • 8:00 pm – Cocktails and Fountain Performance