Intern Spotlight: What excites you most about the profession?

As we wrap up summer, we asked our summer intern Noelle to reflect on her time at Assemblage, the profession of landscape architecture, and what she looks forward to in her journey.

It feels very exciting to be entering the field at this moment. My favorite part of landscape architecture is thinking creatively with plants and working with people. Plants are the first association with landscape architecture, and typically the most attractive and exciting aspect of a design, but are often relegated to the periphery of the design process or the last aspect considered through the design process. I hope to bring as much plant-forward momentum as possible into any project in my career, and at Assemblage I saw how this approach is brought into practice.

Working with Wendy and Cate this summer has shown me how our profession must expand upon the most obvious or first “answer” for a design. Coming from a social science background, an eye into their process has helped me develop confidence as a designer and encouraged me to remember that experimentation is how we grow. 

Working with Assemblage, and their plant-forward methods, has only strengthened my desire to  unify plants and people in the urban environment as I work through my final year of study. I plan to design plant-focused methods of creating welcoming, cooling, and water-absorbing spaces along historic flood zones and heat islands. This experience has been invaluable towards understanding my role as a landscape designer to advocate for the future of urban infrastructure.