News and Updates

Congratulations to Jonathan Smith, ASLA, landscape architect at Bernardo Wills and the newest member of the WASLA Board of Directors. WASLA is the local body of ASLA – American Society of Landscape Architects, and Jonathan will represent Eastern Washington.

Originally from Montana, Jonathan began his professional life as a middle school and high school English teacher. Eventually, his passion for nature and the outdoors prompted him to re-enroll in college at the University of Idaho’s College of Art and Architecture. Jonathan’s approach starts with viewing landscape design as a system—a set of separate elements that each have a bearing on all the others. This approach is guided by his perspective that simplicity is key to achieve a successful design where form follows function. Jonathan enjoys designing with plants and thinking about construction details for landscape elements.

One of the main reasons Jonathan would like to represent eastern Washington is student engagement and the chance to create and promote prospects for student/professional engagement. UI and WSU are both located in the same rural region of the country where opportunities for students are scarce, and he would like to be part of an effort to create more occasions for interactions between eastern Washington professionals and WSU students. Jonathan wants to advocate for more marginal groups within Washington’s LA community in the hopes that WASLA can provide direction to relevant educational and professional opportunities for all members. He wishes to promote landscape architecture as a part of a larger solution – relevant to eastern Washington: namely solving issues of dwindling resources, mitigating stormwater/pollution, and wildfires.