A Research-Driven Design Process
Designing at the Intersection of Ecological Conservation, Culture, and Communication
Over the past two decades, our firm has refined a research-based design process that uncovers layered histories of place. This information drives the design of landscapes, reconnecting them to their ecological and cultural contexts. Our Conservation, Culture, and Communication Groups bring the specialized perspectives and methods of their fields to connect communities to our shared histories.
Conservation
Restoring and preserving ecologies
NBW’s Conservation Group includes in-house experts in restoration ecology and conservation biology to ground each project in ecological and cultural histories of place. Through biological assessments, historical research, and landscape analysis, our designs engage restoration and remembrance of ecosystems and stories alike. The knowledge and insights gained from this process inform not only how we design but also how we plan for long-term resilience and stewardship.
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Conservation Research, Methods, and Findings
Biological assessments
Our assessment teams are led by restoration ecologists and conservation biologists from the NBW Conservation Group, working closely with research scientists whose deep expertise supports a comprehensive understanding of each site’s ecology, habitat integrity, and biodiversity.
Site analysis
We gather and assemble essential information, including topographical and soil surveys, GIS data, and reports on ecological, hydrological, and physical systems. This research is synthesized into site diagrams, timelines, and narratives that help us understand the site’s history, highlight key insights, and uncover design opportunities and constraints.
Collaboration with other scientists, researchers, and specialists
Collaboration is central to our process, grounding every design in ecological and cultural understanding. This shared inquiry reveals the stories and systems of a place that connect people to the places we inhabit.
There is a moral imperative in the practice of landscape architecture to deepen our connection to nature.
Culture
Enriching communities and honoring the legacy of the land
The NBW Culture Group employs a multi-faceted research methodology to develop a comprehensive understanding of a site's history. They analyze a wide range of archival materials, including maps, deeds, and historical documents, to trace patterns of land use, ownership, and development. Oral histories and personal accounts are also integrated to provide qualitative insights into the human experience of the landscape over time.
In addition to traditional historical research methods, the Culture Group utilizes advanced geospatial technologies, such as Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR). This remote sensing technique provides high-resolution topographic data, revealing subtle variations in elevation that may indicate past disturbances, archaeological features, or hidden elements within the landscape. By synthesizing these diverse data sources, we construct a detailed narrative of the site's evolution, identifying key periods of significance and informing a culturally sensitive and ecologically responsive design approach.
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Culture Research, Methods, and Findings
Data mapping
Our cultural research process draws on archival records, oral histories, historic maps, LiDAR, and site data to uncover the site’s history and cultural context. These insights are distilled into Cultural Landscape Reports, timelines, narratives, and diagrams that illuminate key patterns and guide design direction.
Cultural landscape reports
Our research culminates in Cultural Landscape Syntheses and Reports. Cultural Landscape Reports adhere to the rigorous standards established by the National Park Service. This internationally recognized format documents a site’s history, analyzes its context, and identifies key “periods of significance” – those eras that most profoundly shaped its human occupation.
Uncovering the hidden layers of a site, from its geological formations to its cultural narratives, allows us to create landscapes that are deeply rooted in place and time.
Community involvement
We get to know the people whom a landscape serves, so that any remaking of the site is useful to them over a long span of time. This is how we build stewardship, by creating authentic places that honor the past and that belong to the people who live in that place.
Communication
Revealing stories and shaping the public experience
As each landscape design evolves, the NBW Communications Group works to reveal the layered histories of place. Using words, films, graphics, and digital models, the group helps people to understand design narratives, and to orient them in the landscape. These visual and interpretive tools shape signage, wayfinding, and storytelling elements that help convey the land’s past and the vision that has emerged from it.
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Communication Research, Methods, and Findings
Signage and wayfinding
Our wayfinding and signage systems are thoughtfully woven into the landscape to provide clear, intuitive navigation while enhancing the visitor experience, encouraging exploration, and deepening understanding of the place.
Informational displays
We bring key project narratives into focus through multi-media, informational displays, and dynamic elements integrated into the landscape.
Revealing histories
Creating places that communicate key stories, connect people to the land’s layered past, and inspire empathy and stewardship.
We bring forward histories that the land holds, making them visible and felt.
