UWLA’s Green Futures Lab (GFL) recently hosted a group of second-year graduate students from Peking University’s landscape architecture program as part of their study tour focused on low impact development (LID) strategies. This visit was integrated into their Landscape Hydrology course, which explores innovative approaches to managing water in urban and ecological systems, which is led by Professor Li Dihua, Vice Dean, College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Peking University and Dr. Nian She, Director, Institute of Smart Sponge City Construction and Planning, Tsinghua University Innovation Center in Zhuhai.
During their visit, students engaged in a presentation and discussion session led by Vincent Javet, Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Sloane Palmer, Research Assistant and MLA graduate student at UWLA. The session introduced students to GFL’s pioneering work in applied green infrastructure research, with a focus on the lab’s green wall and floating wetlands projects.
Javet and Palmer provided an overview of the projects’ evolution, sharing insights into their design, construction, monitoring, and impact on local ecologies and urban resilience. Particular emphasis was placed on the integration of research and design in these projects, as well as their respective educational and community outreach components. Students learned about both the technical and social dimensions of implementing such systems in a Pacific Northwest context, while also considering their potential adaptability in Chinese cities facing parallel environmental challenges.
