Designers of the Year: Our All-Star Landscape Architecture Judges

Introducing the experts who know what makes a space beautiful both outside and in.

A San Francisco-based sustainable design duo, a three-time winner of our Designers of the Year awards, and the head of UBC’s landscape architecture program: these are the stars on this year’s Landscape Architecture judging panel.

Kate Stickley and Gretchen Whittier

Arterra is a full-service landscape architecture firm specializing in contemporary, sustainable design and based in San Francisco. They are dedicated to doing sustainable work, and living sustainable lives. Kate is a Founding Partner of Arterra, a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects, The Association of Professional Landscape Designers, Build It Green, and the National Association of Women Business Owners. She is a Certified Green Building Professional and is constantly looking for ways to incorporate sustainable design into all facets of the garden.Gretchen is a Partner at Arterra, a member of American Society of Landscape Architects and has been with Arterra since 2005. Gretchen brings her east coast influence and environmental sensibilities to working with the natural landscape to create dynamic spaces that are comfortable and whimsical.

David Battersby

David Battersby is a founding principal at BattersbyHowat Architects Inc. Established in 1996, BattersbyHowat is a full-service architectural practice that specializes in a fully-integrated, multidisciplinary approach to design. David’s background includes professional education in both Architecture and Landscape Architecture. He has experience designing a wide range of commercial and residential projects that are not only forward-thinking but also respond to surrounding landscapes in sensitive and innovative ways. In 2013, David completed the Passive House Designer Course through the Canadian Passive House Institute.Many of David’s projects with BattersbyHowat Architects Inc. have received international and national recognition, both through publications and awards, including the firm’s recognition with the Ron Thom Award for Early Design Achievement in 2006, three Canadian Architect Awards of Excellence, Western Living’s Architecture and Interior Designers of the Year (2011) and Landscape Designers of the Year (2018). 

Susan Herrington

Susan Herrington is Professor and Chair of the landscape architecture program at the University of British Columbia. She teaches in the landscape architecture, environmental design, and architecture programs. She regularly teaches histories of landscape architecture, theories in landscape architecture, vertical studios, and core studios. She leads studios that investigate contested landscapes, including landscapes for risk, and seminars that explore the competing ideas underpinning modernism versus postmodernism.Susan is a licensed landscape architect in the United States and consults professionally in Canada and the US. Her research concerns design theories of contemporary landscape architecture, including theories regarding children’s landscapes. In 2016, she received the 2016 Anne de Fort-Menares Award for her article, “Restoring a Modern Landscape in the Anthropocene: Cornelia Hahn Oberlander,” on the Friedman Residence. She received a 2015 John Brinckerhoff Jackson Book Prize for her book, Cornelia Hahn Oberlander: Making the Modern Landscape. She has conducted research with funding from the Graham Foundation, the Social Science and Humanities Research Council, the Canada Council for the Arts, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and in Germany with support from the German Academic Exchange and in Cambridge as a visiting researcher at Harvard University.

Enter Designers of the Year by April 1, 2019! Questions? Check out our FAQs.