Coming off of the Olmsted 200 bicentennial celebration in 2022, the Olmsted Network (formerly the National Association for Olmsted Parks) focused on producing meaningful programs for a wide variety of audiences, including landscape architects, park enthusiasts, and history buffs.

In 2023, the Olmsted Network carried on with its popular bicentennial webinar series, Conversations with Olmsted, which examines different aspects of Olmsted’s far-reaching influence on America’s physical landscape and social fabric. These quarterly programs explored the topics of green gentrification (featuring ASLA CEO Torey Carter-Conneen), climate change, park stewardship and, most recently, free speech.

In keeping with the forward-thinking attitude of Conversations with Olmsted, we often invited park leaders to present exciting initiatives in monthly partner meetings. In August, for example, Mary Page Michel shared information about Hillside Park, a burgeoning park in Baltimore, Maryland, that’s pulling inspiration from Olmsted and his design principles. Experts, like Patricia O’Donnell, FASLA, AICP, F.US/ICOMOS, also presented during these meetings, offering insight into management challenges.

Some of our programs also focused on the history of Olmsted and the Olmsted firm— The Olmsted Brothers in Chicago, Before Central Park, Jacob Wrey Mould, Tracing Olmsted Roots in the West and Olmsted in the Pacific Northwest. These single-speaker webinars allowed scholars to zoom in on the history of specific regions and highlight not only Olmsted, Sr. but Fredrick Law Olmsted, Jr., John Charles Olmsted and other colleagues as well.

Finally, the Olmsted Network is proud to share that all presentations and panel discussions from our recent three-day conference in Wisconsin were recorded and have since been uploaded to YouTube. This collection of discussions revolved around public health and equity, historic landscape management, community engagement and the opportunities for Olmsted landscapes in Milwaukee and Lake Geneva.

Quality programming— both virtual and in-person— will continue to take a front seat in 2024. Please save the dates for next year’s annual conference, September 13-15, in Newburgh, NY, and please join our mailing list and follow on social media (@OlmstedNetwork) to receive occasional updates about other upcoming events.