Just two months remain until the landscape architecture industry’s premiere event – the 2015 Firth NZILA National Conference. As well as fascinating presentations from some of the sector’s most inspiring speakers, the conference promises to provide valuable opportunities to network and collaborate.

Key speakers include: 

Antoine Coffin

Antoine will be the facilitator of a cultural landscapes session and will introduce a panel discussion on the meaning of cultural landscape with an exploration of time, place and people. This session will draw on case studies of professionals who are trying to interpret, redefine and express the meaning of cultural landscape in architecture, urban development and conservation.

The area of cultural landscape management in New Zealand management is in its infancy with most focus on sites and features of limited spatial size.

Antoine is well-versed in cultural landscapes and is currently Technical Advisor to the Western Bay of Plenty, on the Smart Growth Committee and is about to embark on a new journey as Director of Heritage and Environment at Te Onewa Consultants.

Rau Hoskins

As a practitioner and educator working in the field of Māori architecture Rau brings a rare combination of kaupapa Māori design skills coupled with significant experience with urban design, research, Māori housing and Maori cultural, health and educational design consultancy over the last 24 years.

Rau is a founding Director of design TRIBE architects (established in 1994) which specialises in the field of Māori architecture particularly within cultural / visitor, health, urban design, educational and papakāinga environments.

Rau has been an Auckland Council urban design panel member since 2012 and continues to work with the Built Environment Unit and Auckland Transport on the application of the Te Aranga Māori design principles (which he co wrote) in a range of high profile urban design projects including the CRL and Quay Street projects.

Kim Westerskov

For all those aspiring landscape photographers the NZILA is delighted to have Kim Westerskov, who will be running the Government Gardens/ Sulphur Point photography teaching tour.

Kim is a professional outdoor photographer, writer, and photography teacher based in Tauranga. He is one of only three photographers in the world ever to have won five First Prizes in the world’s largest nature photography competition, the BBC/Natural History Museum “Wildlife Photographer of the Year” competition.

These days he spends much of his time teaching photography to keen photographers - from brand new amateurs to professionals – through photo workshops, private tuition, mentoring, and regular “Photos & Coffee” and “Photo Evaluation” evenings.

For more information and to register for the conference, click here.