Theme to be 'Discover Careers in Landscape Architecture' WASHINGTON, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) has proclaimed April 2007 as National Landscape Architecture Month. ASLA chapters across the country will celebrate with public outreach activities to help individuals "Discover Careers in Landscape Architecture," the theme for this year. The month encompasses Earth Day on April 22 and the birthday of Frederick Law Olmsted on April 26, who founded the American landscape architecture profession. "National Landscape Architecture Month provides a great opportunity for ASLA members to introduce landscape architecture to students in their communities," said Pat Caughey, FASLA, ASLA President. "With sustained growth in demand projected for landscape architecture services, there are major opportunities for young people considering entering the profession. It's a very good time to be a landscape architect." According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, landscape architecture is the fastest growing of all the design professions. The latest ASLA National Salary and Business Indicator Surveys support that projection, showing the average base salary and bonuses for landscape architects at nearly $90,000-up 20 percent from 2004-and firm billings up by 10 percent over the previous survey. And, demand for landscape architecture services is projected to expand 18 to 26 percent by the year 2014. To meet this demand, the number of graduates in landscape architecture programs needs to grow by an average of six percent each year. At the national level, ASLA is working with the ACE Mentor Program to reach high school students and with the Cultural Landscape Foundation to target middle school students through its Cultural Landscapes as Classrooms program. Throughout the month, ASLA chapter events will be held to reach out to students. Again this year, ASLA is partnering with a number of national organizations to gain support for National Landscape Architecture Month, including the American Planning Association, the National Wildlife Federation and the Professional Landscape Network. ASLA will be reaching out to more organizations in the coming months for partnership opportunities.
