My research and teaching has focused on community activism in open space planning and design. My ongoing research on community gardening and greening has been published in my book, City Bountiful: A History of Community Gardening in America (University of California Press, 2005), the co-authored book Urban Community Gardens: Greening the City and Growing Communities in Seattle (co-authored with Jeff Hou and Julie Johnson, University of Washington Press, expected 2008), and in several articles. As an active participant in the University of Illinois’ East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP), I have worked with several resident organizations on neighborhood planning and park revitalization projects. In the midst of high levels of poverty, unemployment, environmental degradation, and minimal municipal support, these neighborhood groups in East St. Louis are leading efforts in community and economic development. Park revitalization, reclamation of vacant land to productive use, and safe social and recreational activities are central to these efforts. My involvement has included both action research and service-learning studio instruction. I plan to expand my research on park activism in low-income communities through a series of case studies of parks in other cities. My current research project is a study of activism around Garfield Park in Chicago, Illinois. At the university level, I am involved in efforts to expand community-based learning. I plan to continue to advocate for the inclusion of community-based design in landscape architecture pedagogy
Education
Ph.D. in Environmental Planning, Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, University of California, Berkeley, 2000.
Masters of Landscape Architecture, University of California, Berkeley, 1992.
Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1988.
Academic Experience
Assistant Professor, Department of Landscape Architecture, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
January 2002 – Present.
Assistant Professor, School of Landscape Architecture, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge.
August 2000 – January 2002.
Research
Dr. Lawson’s research interests include historical and contemporary study of community design, environmental justice, and urban design. She is on the executive committee of the East St. Louis Action Research Project (ESLARP) and has instructed students in interdisciplinary, service-learning studio courses that work with community groups in East St. Louis. Her book,
City Bountiful: A History of Urban Garden Programs in American Cities, will be published by University of California Press in spring 2005.
Awards and Honors
Laura Lawson has been awarded multiple honors and grants, including a 2007-8 University of Illinois Fine and Applied Arts Creative Research grant, a 2006-7 University of Illinois Center on Democracy in a Multiracial Society Faculty Fellowship, a 2005-6 Landscape Architecture Foundation Land and Community Design Case Study Grant (co-investigator with Jeff Hou and Julie Johnson), two University of Illinois Research Board Grants, two University of Illinois Community-based Learning Grants, a 2004 American Institute of Architects Education Honor Award, a 1998 Dumbarton Oaks Junior Fellowship, and a 1994 National Endowment for the Arts Individual Grant.
Publications
Books Authored and Co-Authored:
Hou, Jeff, Julie M. Johnson, and Laura Lawson. Urban Community Gardens: Greening the City and Growing Communities in Seattle. Seattle: University of Washington Press, expected publication 2008.
Lawson, Laura. City Bountiful: A History of Urban-Garden Programs in America, 1890s to Present. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2005.
Eckbo, Garrett; Chip Sullivan, Walter Hood, and Laura Lawson. People in a Landscape. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1998.
Chapters in Books:
Lawson, Laura. "Linking Youth Training and Employment with Community Building," Democratic Design in the Pacific Rim: Japan, Taiwan, and the United States. Edited by Randolph T. Hester and Corrina Kweskin. Mendocino, California: Ridge Time Press, 1999. pp. 80-91.
Lawson, Laura. "Urban Gardens Past and Present: Community Development Model or Minefield?" Democratic Design in the Pacific Rim 1999. Edited by Tamesuke Nagahashi, Sanae Sugita, Naoki Kimura. Japan: Tadasu Shobo, 1999. pp. 114-129.
Articles in Peer-Reviewed Journals:
Lawson, Laura. “The South Central Farm: The Dilemma of Practicing the Public.” Cultural Geography 14, 4 (2007): 611-616.
Lawson, Laura. “Parks as Mirrors of Community: Design Discourse and Community Hope for Parks in East St. Louis.” Landscape Journal 26, 1 (2007): 116-133.
Edwards, Mary and Laura Lawson. “The Evolution of Planning in East St. Louis.” Journal of Planning History 4, 4 (November 2005): 356-382.
Lawson, Laura. “Dialogue through Design: The East St. Louis Neighborhood Design Workshop and South End Neighborhood Plan.” Landscape Journal 24, 2 (Fall 2005): 157-171.
Lawson, Laura. “The Planner in the Garden: A Historical View of the Relationship of Planning to Community Garden Programs.” Journal of Planning History 3, 2 (May 2004): 151-176.
Lawson, Laura and Marcia McNally. “Putting Teens at the Center: Maximizing Public Utility of Urban Open Space through Youth Involvement in Planning and Employment,” Children’s Environment 12, 2 (June 1995): 209-221.
Lawson, Laura. “A Garden Grows a Community,” Places 9, 3 (Fall 1994): 47.
Presentations and Lectures
Laura Lawson has delivered numerous lectures and presentations to audiences of academics, practitioners, and grassroots organizations. These include: the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture (CELA), American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Annual Conference, Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA), American Community Gardening Association (ACGA), Conference of Democratic Design in the Pacific Rim, Society of American City and Regional Planning History, California Nutrition Network, International Conference of Agricultural Economics, Urban Ecology, Eco-City 2 Conference in Australia, and to students and faculty at universities.
Recent Courses
Community and Residential Design (LA 335): This course introduces students to master planning as an integration of residential site planning, community design, and open space planning/design. Students develop designs based on the fusion of environmental context (climate, hydrology, topography, vegetation), social context, the clients’ program, and their own artistic inspiration and expression.
East St. Louis Neighborhood Design Studio (LA 236/338): This is a community-based learning studio that engages students in participatory design projects with neighborhood organizations in East St. Louis, Illinois. The projects vary according to community partners. Past projects have included neighborhood planning, park design, and urban design. The course is often taught in collaboration with Architecture 372 and Urban and Regional Planning 378.
Thesis Preparation Seminar (LA 599a): This class provides guidance to students developing their thesis proposals.
Urban Public Landscapes (LA 587): This seminar delves into the design and use of everyday urban environments as expressions of individual, community, and civil society.
Supervising Student Independent Work
Laura Lawson has served on many thesis committees at both the University of Illinois and Louisiana State University. In the capacity of chair and as member, she has advised on topics that include community design, streetscape analysis and design, environment-behavior studies, studies in everyday urbanism, park use and design, and more. She has also advised students in independent studio projects and independent reading courses.
