Museums offer the perfect opportunity to introduce the landscape architecture profession to thousands of local residents and visitors from around the world. And that’s not all. Local museums host an array of educational programs that could align with ASLA Chapters.

National ASLA maintains a unique and thriving partnership with the National Building Museum, the premier museum in Washington, D,C, for the built environment. It transforms the public’s understanding of the history and impact of architecture, engineering, landscape architecture, and design.

This partnership has allowed ASLA to connect with:

• Students of all ages
• Local school administrators
• Environmental education groups
• Classroom teachers
• The science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) community

On January 21, ASLA introduced an intergenerational audience of over 2,500 families, educators, and children to landscape architecture at the opening of the National Building Museum's Building Stories exhibit in Washington, DC.

ASLA brought award-winning children’s musician Billy Jonas, creator of ASLA’s children’s song The Big Idea, who gave two performances of The Big Idea! to a packed audience of young children, families, educators, and authors.

Curated by the nation’s leading expert on children’s literature, Leonard Marcus, Building Stories is the first national exhibition to call attention to the built environment’s role as an important, and often overlooked, character in children’s literature.

Billy Jonas at National Building Museum / Lisa J. Jennings

National Building Museum visitors see Billy Jonas perform / Lisa J. Jennings

Jonas also participated in Celebrity Story Time with DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, special guests from the DC Public Library, the educational media group PBS, and a national community of children’s artists. Jonas read the landscape architecture story, Green Trees and Sam by Bolton & Menk with Shannon Gapp, ASLA.

ASLA’s participation was made possible by BKT mobiliario urbano, which was represented by Duilio Passariello.

Duilio Passariello / Lisa J. Jennings

Whether your local museum is focused on science, nature, the built environment, engineering, or technology, there’s always room for landscape architecture. Here are some tips from the ASLA Career Discovery and Diversity team on ways your local ASLA chapter can connect with museums in your area.

If you need help getting started with your local museum, contact Lisa J. Jennings, Senior Manager, Career Discovery and Diversity.