Category: Equity & Inclusion

Field Notes

Olmsted’s First Walk in a Public Park

Nearly 175 years ago, Frederick Law Olmsted’s passion for parks as democratic spaces was ignited by a trip to Birkenhead Park in England.
Conservation & Advocacy

Olmsted’s Legacy at the Capitol Lives On

The Olmsted Network’s guide to the U.S. Capitol Grounds makes its way to Congress just in time for the upcoming presidential inauguration.
Field Notes

Beloved Olmsted scholar’s library finds a new home 

Tony Horwitz’s collection of Olmsted books was recently donated to the University of Virginia’s Center for Cultural Landscapes.
Field Notes

Maplewood Memorial Park Conservancy wins grant for park improvements

Thanks to an AARP Community Challenge Grant, Olmsted Network partner Maplewood Memorial Park in NJ will receive a new walkway and new entryway plantings—updates that will better pedestrian access and bring the park closer to its original designs.
Field Notes

Rock Creek Conservancy helps shape future of historic amphitheater

Alliance forms to revitalize the historic Carter Barron Amphitheater in Washington, D.C.'s Rock Creek Park.
Field Notes

Olmsted Now Committee of Neighborhoods Wins BSLA Award

A multi-pronged campaign to establish public spaces as essential infrastructure for democratic exchange and community health is recognized by the Boston Society of Landscape Architects.
Reprints

Looking Southward

Originally published circa 2008, this blog by John Stauffer of Harvard University explores Frederick Law Olmsted’s trips to the South to research the institution of slavery.
Field Notes

Park Pride’s Annual Parks & Greenspace Conference in Atlanta Attracts Hundreds

It takes many hands to build a parks system that meets everyone's needs.
Equity & Inclusion

Seeing the Forest and the Trees: Frederick Law Olmsted and the Twenty-First Century City

Among those who study the work of Olmsted, there is a growing consensus that Olmsted’s experiences in the South had a profound impact on his later career as a landscape architect who would design some of the nation’s most beloved parks.
Equity & Inclusion

“Communitiveness” in the Age of Coronavirus

Frederick Law Olmsted sought to build “communitiveness” and healing through landscape design. As we mark the first anniversary of the pandemic, we need parks now more than ever.
Equity & Inclusion

Olmsted’s Democratic Vision

Olmsted’s parks give us an opportunity to enjoy natural beauty together -- and regain community and connection.
Equity & Inclusion

Explore: Olmsted’s Crusade Against Slavery

In addition to writing about the scourge of slavery, Olmsted was a fierce advocate for abolition and an early supporter of equal rights for Blacks in America.
Equity & Inclusion

The Olmsted Legacy and Women in Landscape Architecture