Greetings, all!
As the crisp coolness returns to the morning air here in the Piedmont, I have had some time to reflect on the insanity that has been this last year, a year in which I have had the distinct pleasure of serving as your ASLA North Carolina Chapter President. When I started my journey as Chapter President, I had a lot of things I felt we could do better for our membership in terms of expanded offerings of events, better engagement in our Mountain, Triad, and Coastal sections, and an expanded conference that better met the continuing education needs of our members for maintaining their licenses and expanding their knowledge and skillsets. I envisioned expanding our presence and promoting our profession in the political realm but also taking advantage of our recent STEM designation status to become a strong voice in the education of our youth about a noble profession they might want to pursue.
My goals for my chapter presidency were basic, attainable, and what I would consider to be “normal” … then came Helene.
Immediately, my focus had to shift to “What can we do as a collection of professionals to help?” I put out the call to our members in Western NC, “What do you need?” The responses were varied, and they changed over time from basic needs early to longer term sustainable strategies as recovery progressed. I put out a call to our membership, saying, “Can you help to keep your fellow landscape architects on their feet while they recover?” I looked to develop a workshare initiative where those whose “backlogs overflow-eth” could work with those whose projects had instantaneously washed away with the storm waters, helping each other in partnership.
What I failed to account for were two things; first, this wonderful membership of ours is painfully busy and was having a hard time finding the right avenues to offer assistance while keeping their own proverbial ‘plates spinning; and second, I underestimated the speed with which recovery efforts, complete with new and plentiful project work for those local to the disaster, would kick into gear and get things back on track. I failed to understand just how quickly, working together as a community, our compatriots in western North Carolina were back on their feet in many regards, producing the high-quality work that we are used to seeing from them, and turning their eyes toward the future. These are the folks that define the spirit of resilience and several of them are valued and visible members of our organization.
We held online Town Hall meetings with affected practitioners and the conversations were eye-opening. The stories they shared were both tragic and triumphant. They came together as a community to overcome the unknowns, and to get their feet under them so rapidly that my efforts simply could not keep up with their progress. While my efforts may have been slow in pace and efficacy, I have been reminded that they kept the plight of western NC’s communities fresh in the minds of our membership. The need for that continued awareness still holds today, and with Federal funding that was supporting so much of the recovery now being withheld by the powers that be, the needs and focus for affected communities have changed yet again. I ask each of you one more time to reach out to those you know in affected areas. Ask them how they are doing. Visit their towns and spend some money with local businesses. Offer help in any way that you can. Be there to support them as you hope they will for you when crisis knocks on your door and stays for a self-invited, extended visit long after the welcome wagon and the tv cameras have rolled back down the mountain.
Be there for each other. It’s important.
As the ASLA Annual Conference on Landscape Architecture fast approaches, so does the end of my NCASLA presidency. Turns out we still accomplished those things I mentioned earlier, and the amazing Executive Committee we have now is striving to make each of those offerings and more a better value and better experience for you, our membership. Lucky us! They all serve as volunteers. For those of you who have not held a service position within the industry, I ask you to get engaged at the local, state, regional, or national level. The world needs to hear the ideas and the tried-and-true practices of your unique experience. Please make volunteering, within our profession or in other avenues, a bigger part of your lives. It is incredibly rewarding to know that your efforts have improved the lives, situations, and experiences of others. We could use more landscape architects leading civic discussions, holding elected positions, and helping to guide municipal and regulatory policy toward sustainability, resilience, and equity. Consider me highly biased, but no one can do it better.
I enjoy my adopted home of North Carolina. Each of you has improved the potential of positive experiences for me and my girl, our dogs, and our families and friends. I want to thank you for all that you do and thank you for allowing me to give back to you in some small part. I can’t wait to see where Paul Kuhn takes us in his presidential driver’s seat this next year. In a time when the sentiment isn’t plentiful, I find myself very hopeful.
Thank you all and have a wonderful, colorful, and successful autumn!
With deepest gratitude,
Dan Lambert, PLA, ASLA
NCASLA Chapter President