Hello, and thank you for joining the Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) and the APLD California Chapter!
As an APLD California member, you will receive regular announcements of upcoming programs in your district, as well as throughout the state. In addition, you will be the first to get notified of new editions of California Landscape Design, the flagship publication of our chapter. Every quarterly issue is full of relevant and illuminating articles to spark your creativity and inform you on a wide spectrum of topics, from design to sustainability to best business practices.
Member contributions to this publication are welcome! Feel free to contact our editor at CLD@apldca.org and pitch your idea for an upcoming issue.
In addition to your official APLD Profile listing at APLD.org, the California Chapter offers a complete directory of all APLD colleagues in your District and throughout the state. (Visit the APLD CA Chapter Membership Directory here.)
APLD California Chapter Membership Benefits
Besides the many benefits the national organization provides to its members, California designers enjoy these additional exclusive benefits of membership in the APLD CA state chapter:
- Access to and participation in local programs and meetings throughout the state of California, including special educational workshops sponsored by the Chapter and individual Districts.
- Opportunities to meet and network with landscape designers, artists, artisans, contractors, and other green industry professionals, including invitations to local design salons, open studios, showrooms, and other exclusive trade-only events.
- Listing in the California Chapter Member Directory. (Note: for the sake of maximum utility to members, this directory is searchable by name and can also be filtered by District.)
- Participation in professional Mentor/Mentee Programs (where available).
Get Involved!
When it comes to your professional development as a landscape designer, participation is the name of the game. Here are just a few of the valuable resources at your disposal as an APLD CA member.
Publications and Communications
As a member of APLD, you will receive periodic communications from the national, state, and local districts. These are designed to keep you up-to-date on news in the field of Landscape Design and to make you aware of special meetings, workshops, and events that will be of interest. These communications include:
- Email announcements for local events, programs, workshops, and news (sign up here).
- APLD CA’s own online magazine, California Landscape Design—designing today’s gardens for tomorrow’s California.
- Access to the national organization’s monthly newsletter, Design Online.
- The award-winning national quarterly magazine, The Designer.
Be sure your email is up to date with the APLD California Chapter by using our “Member Email Confirmation” form.
How to Contribute to APLD CA Chapter Publications
Members are encouraged to submit articles to our Chapter’s online magazine, California Landscape Design, as well as to other promotional publications. Contact us with your story idea at CLD@apldca.org.
Members can also submit articles and stories to The Designer, the quarterly magazine of our national association. The Designer considers all submissions, but is particularly interested in articles that fit the issue’s editorial theme or are appropriate for one of the magazine’s recurring features. For more info, please see these submission guidelines (PDF).
Enhance Your Branding
Whatever the size of your landscape design practice—large, small, or somewhere in between—membership in a national professional organization like the APLD can only help build your reputation with clients and prospects. For both websites and print materials, be sure to include the appropriate APLD logos, badges, and avatars, which are available in various print-ready and web-friendly formats here.
APLD Programs
Gain expertise and enhance your business through APLD programs and other events. Watch for announcements and visit the APLD Events page for more details. Of special note is the annual International Conference, which is held in a different U.S. city each year and is the premier worldwide event for APLD. Recent locations include Washington, D.C., Dallas, Detroit, Orlando, Portland, San Francisco, and Santa Fe. The next International Conference will be held in July 2020 in Chicago.
Chapter and District Membership Events
Our local Districts are at the heart of compelling and timely educational programming. Watch for local and statewide event promotions. Members get a heads-up on early registration opportunities, member-only events, and other exclusive gatherings. For local and District events of interest to California members, see the APLD CA Events Calendar.
Find Us Online
In addition to valuable “real-world” events and programs, the APLD CA enhances its offline presence with our active online communities.
Groups.io If you’re stuck for ideas or need advice on a project, your first stop should be our lively members-only Groups.io discussion boards. These interactive online resources have been set up for APLD California Chapter members to pose questions and share tips and other information. Once you have been approved, you may subscribe to regional sub-groups, a certification work group, and more. Please allow one week to to be added to the group.
Facebook
Engage with your California colleagues at our Facebook pages, which represent all California Landscape Designers and provide landscape design news, event listings, articles of interest, career opportunities, and more. Links to the Chapter and District Facebook pages are as follows:
Instagram
Follow us on Instagram for a stream of inspiring photos of landscape designs, member activities, event photos, etc. There are four active pages, one for the California Chapter at large and the other for three of our Districts:
- APLD California Chapter (@apldca)
- Bay Area District (@bayareaapld)
- Greater Los Angeles District (@apldgla)
- San Diego District (@apldsandiego)
Twitter
Although our Chapter does not currently have a Twitter feed, you can follow our parent organization’s tweets here: @APLD.
Volunteer
You are APLD California! Serving on your Chapter or District board is one of the best ways for members to advance your voice in the local landscape design scene. Our Chapter and Districts are only as effective and relevant as we make them. By saying “yes” to service, you have the opportunity to influence and drive the priorities of your Chapter and board. Be inspired by the efforts of your fellow members—come learn and grown with us! To view the current Chapter and District officers, click on the links below.
- APLD CA Chapter
- Bay Area District
- Greater Los Angeles District
- Sacramento District
- San Diego District
CEUs—and How to Get Them
Membership in the APLD CA means you can start earning professional credits right away—and we can help you!
As professional landscape designers, we owe it to ourselves and our clients to remain informed and relevant in our industry. To that end, APLD’s Professional and Associate membership levels require continuing education units, as follows:
- Certified members need 30 units.
- Professional members need 30 units.
- Associate members need 15 units over a 3-year period.
- Qualified Professional members need 30 units.
These CEUs must be recorded to ensure your membership renewal. APLD National tracks all earned credits. See our CEUs page to learn more about how to acquire and record your earned CEUs.
Advocacy: California Landscape Designers and the Right to Practice
APLD California and its members stand in support of the right of our members to legally practice our profession. Landscape Design and affiliated professions are crucial to the State of California as it confronts ongoing serious environmental challenges. APLD designers in California gather regularly with colleagues to learn and apply the restorative landscape practices exemplified by the watershed approach to California landscapes. These practical standards and practices achieve multiple synergistic benefits for our clients and communities, as we contribute to soil health, conservation of resources, restoration of habitat, and the creation of sustainable natural beauty.
APLD CA advocates for all qualified landscape designers who share this commitment. We promote consumer access to a diverse and experienced source of residential landscape design services, suited for Californians who want to make more of their own opportunity to heal our planet—through their own gardens.
Collectively, and individually, APLD members in California serve our clients, communities, and our environment, through support and advocacy for the highest landscape practices and landscape education standards. In doing so, we lend our expertise and ideas to local and state agencies, provide comment on relevant rule-making, and advocate for regulatory changes that support our goals.
If you wish to know more about APLD CA’s current efforts in this arena, please visit our Advocacy and Sustainability pages.
