Join Michigan ASLA today!

Dear Prospective Member:

The entire landscape architecture profession benefits from the work and dedication of ASLA and now more than ever, Michigan ASLA needs your support through membership. With licensure for Michigan landscape architects remaining in jeopardy, it is imperative that we collectively protect our rightful place alongside other Michigan design professionals. Toward that end, I ask you to join Michigan ASLA and participate in the effort to maintain regulation for our profession.

Since the deregulation threat became known, Michigan ASLA has accomplished the following on behalf of ALL Michigan landscape architects:

Utilized the services of our lobbyist to speak to legislators and strategize for key legislative contacts and contributions;

Written a letter to the governor explaining the importance of a regulated landscape architecture profession in Michigan;
Organized a letter and e-mail writing campaign to the governor, providing over 200 individual correspondences;
Organized Lobby Day, attended by 41 Michigan landscape architects in which 32 legislators were contacted in person and educated about the role we play in building a better Michigan;
Organized a meeting with key legislators, individuals representing the Governor’s staff and the leadership of the office of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) to illustrate to them how deregulation will adversely affect Michigan’s built environment and hinder important initiatives to build a better and stronger Michigan, such as placemaking and tourism. More importantly to our membership, we showed them how deregulation will cost our State jobs

The fight to prevent deregulation of our profession has been the priority of Michigan ASLA over the past year. Our 2013 effort to preserve licensure will shift from the Governor’s office to the legislature, where we expect the introduction of a legislative bill early in the year. And while we remain diligent on that front, be aware that your ASLA membership provides valuable benefits beyond licensure retention at both the chapter and national levels, such as:

Promotes the exchange of ideas and best practices for the profession.
Fosters collaboration across land use professions on the stewardship, planning, and artful design of our cultural and natural environments.
Advocates for the adoption of laws and regulations that: enhance the design, planning, and stewardship of the natural and built environment.
Enhances the visibility, and understanding of the profession with client groups, public policy makers, allied professions, media, and the general public.
Celebrates the profession through awards and honors programs.
Informs members in the pages of Landscape Architecture Magazine, LAND e-newsletter, and the Dirt.
Creates networking opportunities to foster information exchange in support of members and their practices at the ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO.

Please join us in the fight to maintain licensure for landscape architects in Michigan, and in demonstrating a sense of pride and passion in our profession by becoming a member today at http://www.asla.org/. As an alternative to the one-time yearly membership dues, a monthly payment plan is available for your convenience. For more information contact me at 734.239.6608 or ASLA Member Services at 888.999.2752.

Regards,

Christy D. Summers, LLA, ASLA, LEED AP

Immediate Past President

Top 10 Reasons to Join ASLA

1. Increase Awareness of the Profession. ASLA has launched extensive public relations and targeted marketing efforts which will introduce prospective and current commercial, residential, and government consumers to our full palette of skills and expertise, and explain how these talents are best employed.

2. Protect and Enhance the Integrity of the Profession. Across the country, ASLA and its members are at the forefront of successful efforts to maintain and improve professional state licensing laws. Because of the diligent efforts of ASLA and its members, 46 states now have licensing laws. In addition, the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board, managed under ASLA auspices, ensures the quality of degree-granting programs and provides the profession with an essential mantle of credibility. Finally, ASLA successfully lobbied to create an appropriate professional sector for our members in the all-important Federal Industrial Classification System. This distinct classification for landscape architects will open up opportunities for you to compete for a larger pie of federal, state, and municipal contracts and programs.

3. Protect the Environment. At the national and local level, ASLA and its members are at the forefront of efforts to increase respect for the land and our natural environment, particularly on issues of prudent land use and planning, sustainable development, waste and water management, recreation, and land reclamation. Through efforts by ASLA, landscape architects are now recognized as experts and their knowledge and skills are often called upon by other organizations with common goals and ideals.

4. Continuing Education. ASLA members enjoy access to an ever-widening array of continuing education programs, each designed to keep the busy professional abreast of the latest developments in horticulture, land use, CAD, and other areas of importance. Plus, our annual meeting is the industry’s leading education program, with entire tracks and specific sessions focusing on areas of need-including practice management, marketing, and liability.

5. Networking Opportunities. ASLA members are afforded numerous opportunities to meet and network with peers from various areas of expertise within the profession at the local, state and national level. For example, members can join one or more of ASLA’s 15 “Professional Interest Groups,” comprised of individuals from multiple disciplines who come together around a specific topic of interest, including historic preservation, parks and recreation, and campus planning.

6. Information Tools. ASLA offers its members a comprehensive variety of publications and digital resources including our comprehensive Product Profiles and Directory, Landscape Architecture News Digest, salary and practice surveys, and a “members only” section on ASLA’s website. In addition, ASLA members enjoy access to an unparalleled technical library and a paid research librarian to help you obtain information you need to conduct your business.

7. Landscape Architecture Magazine. If you don’t already read it, you should. A subscription is included in your annual dues. Landscape Architecture is the definitive design magazine of the industry. With rich illustrations and photographs, and compelling writing, this magazine is a must-read for tens of thousands each month who must stay on the cutting edge of design and technology.

8. Discounted Products and Services. ASLA members receive substantial members-only discounts on purchases from ASLA’s widely respected bookstore, affinity programs, and continuing education registration.

9. 100 Years of Integrity, Respect, and Proven Value Behind Your Name. ASLA, through licensing, accreditation, marketing, and public relations efforts, is successfully establishing ASLA as the premier “brand” which, when seen behind your name, identifies you as a professional of the highest standard.

10. ASLA Membership More Than Pays For Itself. ASLA membership is a proven value. The benefits above more than offset the cost of your dues-in any number of ways, you’ll recoup your modest membership fees in a matter of weeks, if not days. Just ask any one of your nearly 13,000 peers who is a member.

There you have it. Ten compelling reasons why you should join ASLA. If three or more of these apply to you or your business, then you should be one of us. Our goal is 100% participation for 100 years.

Visit the national American Society of Landscape Architects web site for more details on joining ASLA.