Canadian Society Of Landscape Architects With Matthew Mills & Teri Cantin, Board Members

The Canadian Society of Landscape Architects (CSLA) is searching for its next Executive Director—a pivotal role that goes far beyond traditional association management.

Are you ready to join a passionate, “fun, nerdy, quirky, cool” team of professionals dedicated to solving some of Canada’s most pressing challenges? In this spotlight episode, CSLA President Matthew Mills and Board Member Teri Cantin peel back the layers on the profession and the association, revealing why this is a unique leadership opportunity.

Discover how the new Executive Director will:

• Lead a Profession in Demand: Navigate rapid growth and the urgent need to train the next generation of Landscape Architects.
• Drive National Impact: Spearhead initiatives touching on climate change, urban health, reconciliation, and social equity.
• Embrace Volunteer Addiction: Work with a high-functioning, nationally collaborative board characterized by high passion and low ego.

If you are a collaborative leader eager to leverage a strong organizational foundation to “springboard into the next echelon” and make a tangible difference in the built and natural environments, your time is now.

Listen to our full interview with Matthew Mills and Teri Cantin to hear more about the CSLA’s exciting strategic vision, the importance of culture alignment, and why the time for landscape architecture in Canada is now.

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Listen to the podcast here

 

Canadian Society Of Landscape Architects With Matthew Mills & Teri Cantin, Board Members

I have the great pleasure of speaking with two members of the board of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects. Teri Cantin is with me here in BC. She is based in Kelowna. Welcome, Teri.

Thank you. It is great to be here, Christoph.

On the other side of the country, in St. John’s, is Matthew Mills. Welcome, Matthew.

Thanks, Christoph. I’m happy to be here.

I am so looking forward to this conversation. We are going to be talking about the new executive director role. It is not a new executive director role, but the new executive director of the CSLA, for that matter. I want to learn a little bit more about the organization, the profession, and just have a bit of a wide-ranging conversation.

People who want to learn more, might be interested or curious, and can understand more about you and the profession. Let us dive right in. Maybe just by way of introduction, I have said a little bit about you, just your names. Maybe you can share a bit more about yourself, who you are. What got you involved in the CSLA to start with, for that matter? Matthew, why don’t we start with you?

Introduction To The CSLA & Landscape Architecture Profession

I am Matthew Mills. I am the current president of the CSLA. As Christoph mentioned, I am based in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. I have been involved with the CSLA since 2018. I got involved with the CSLA through my local component association, which is like the chapter that represents landscape architects locally. That is called the Atlantic Provinces Association of Landscape Architects.

What has kept me involved on the CSLA board is really an interest and passion in working on issues of national significance and importance to our profession, landscape architecture. We have a really enthusiastic group of volunteers from all over Canada, and it is really cool to work on issues of importance to our members and the profession with all those like-minded people.

Thanks for that. That is a great introduction. You have touched on so many issues that I want to cover in our talk, too. Teri, maybe you can jump in.

My name is Teri Cantin. I have been a landscape architect for a little over twenty years now. As Christoph mentioned previously, I sit in beautiful Kelowna. I have not had quite the length of experience with the CSLA as Matthew has. I joined about two years ago, but I have been involved with my component association. Basically, since I graduated, I started out over twenty years ago as the BCSLA intern rep.

That is, before someone becomes an actual registered landscape architect. They get involved, get to know the profession, and make their way through their qualifications. I have held various roles within the BCSLA. I was the president for a while, and now my role is the CSLA rep. I represent BC on the CSLA board. It is one of the best decisions I have made at this point in my career.

As we spend a significant amount of time in our chosen professions, we can start to lose the passion and maybe lose a little bit of interest. Becoming involved with the CSLA has really renewed my passion for the profession. It is a great organization to be involved with. It is so great to hear what the different components across the country are doing. I am really enjoying my time. I have let my name stand for re-election. Hopefully, I will get to spend another two years with this amazing board. Fingers crossed.

As we spend a significant amount of time in our chosen professions, we can start to lose some passion and interest. Becoming involved with the CSLA has truly renewed my passion for the profession. Share on X

If I had a vote, I would vote for you, but I am biased. What can I say? I should say, Teri and Matthew, you are both, just for the record, members of the task force, and you are leading the search with me together. That is why we are speaking on that matter. Teri, you have been a landscape architect for twenty years. Dumb it down for me a little bit. What is a landscape architect? For somebody who may not be familiar with the profession, what does a landscape architect do?

Christoph, if you ask ten different people, you get ten different answers, but essentially any built space that you see outside has had some thought put into it by a landscape architect in some way, or form, whether it is a formal park design, whether it is a cemetery, or whether you are talking about the urban realm. Streetscapes, just walking around your favorite downtown, a landscape architect has had a hand in designing it.

We have as the basis of our design is creating safe public spaces for the public to enjoy. That is the biggest, most important component of it is health, safety, and welfare. It is one of the things that undermines all of the bases of the component organizations, as ensuring that our membership is designing safe spaces. You name it, if it is outdoors, a landscape architect has had a hand in designing it and hopefully making it better.

Fair enough. Matthew, one of the things that I find so compelling about landscape architecture is that it touches on some of the things that Teri spoke about safety, urban environments, urban health, climate change, and environmental concerns. It is touching on so many different social, environmental health, ecosystem, and geographic issues. It touches on so many contemporary and important issues in so many ways. Do you want to speak a bit more about that, just to give us that scope and the importance of the profession?

Teri hit the nail on the head. Even though you are right, Teri, if you ask ten different landscape architects, you get ten different definitions. You are exactly right. Anything outside in the great outdoors that has been designed has probably had input from a landscape architect. It is not just about making a place look good or making a place function. As you said, Christoph, it is about finding solutions or helping to address some of the most urgent challenges of our time. This is the piece that really gets me excited about being a landscape architect, as it is a chance to make a positive impact.

It’s about finding solutions and helping address some of the most urgent challenges of our time. That’s what’s really exciting about being a landscape architect—it’s a chance to make a positive impact. Share on X

We work on projects that address issues of climate change, biodiversity loss, urban sprawl, social equity, and reconciliation, like so many really big societal issues that we face today. Landscape architects are able to take those issues and weave them into our work. We are not just creating spaces that are beautiful and functional, but they are also connected with nature, connected with each other, connected with our communities.

That is a great summary, and I really appreciate the diversity of scope, the diversity of thought, and the importance of the profession and how it affects us in so many different ways without knowing it, for that matter. Let us pivot to the association. Matthew, maybe you can continue. For those people who are not familiar with the CSLA itself, tell me a little bit more about the association. You mentioned component associations, for instance. What is the organization as a whole all about?

CSLA Association Structure & Board Culture

The Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, the CSLA, is the national body of landscape architecture. As Thierry and I both alluded to, there are several component associations, which are the smaller provincial or regional associations. Most landscape architects become members of their regional association, and through those, are members of the Canadian association. The CSLA’s scope, of course, is national. We tend to look at issues that are of national significance more so than the regional ones, which fall within the purview of the component associations.

In terms of its role as an association, we are really responsible for promoting and increasing awareness of the profession, advocating for issues that are important to our members, celebrating the achievements of Canadian landscape architects, supporting our members through professional development and advocacy, and, of course, encouraging the growth of the profession. It is quite a vast realm of things that the CSLA does for its measures at a national level.

It covers a lot. Teri, was there anything that, not to put Matthew on the spot, but is there anything you wanted to add to that? Anything you missed about the association? You have both been involved in different ways at different times.

A great description of what the CSLA does, Matthew, and over the years, one of the most important components or roles that the CSLA has played has been in unifying those component associations and keeping the dialogue going between the different parts, landscape architects, and the different parts of Canada.

Just in this conversation right now, we are covering coast to coast literally, I am West Coast, Matthew is East Coast. If it were not for the CSLA, we would not have the opportunity to work with and support each other on different things that landscape architects across the country face. We would not have the support of our colleagues across the country if it were not for the CSLA bringing us all together and unifying us.

If memory serves, your component associations vary quite significantly in size and scope as well. I think your smallest component has 10 to 11 members, and the largest range is over a thousand members, for that matter. That is really, truly national in that sense, fundamentally as well. That is great. Thinking a little bit about the executive director, they are going to work very closely with you as board members. What is the board culture like? How does cooperation and collaboration happen among board members? Teri, do you want to take a first start at that?

I mentioned earlier that I have only been on the board for two years, so I have limited exposure. I have to say it has been an amazing two years. One thing about volunteer organizations like the CSLA is that you tend to get the keeners of the group, which is inspiring in and of itself. It has been really great to meet with, speak with, and collaborate with such motivated landscape architects across the country.

 

I think that, again, I mentioned being involved with the CSA has rekindled my fire and my passion as a landscape architect. The people that we work with bring such different perspectives and such interesting ideas to the table, to be able to sit around and talk about everything that we work on. We only meet 2 or 3 times a year, and we work hard for 2 or 3 days of solid meetings, and then we go out for dinner with each other, and we get to find out about each other’s families, passions, hobbies, and activities.

We are such a great group of people that we are able to have those fantastic after-hours conversations. That really builds the relationship between everyone, and the collaboration just comes naturally. Everyone just feeds off of everyone’s passion and interest in the various subjects. It just generates such great conversation and great community among all members of the board.

It also strikes me how well-organized you are. You are very specific in focus. You have got really clearly precise strategic plans. You are a high-functioning group. Not only are you passionate keeners, as you say, but you are also accomplishing a lot fundamentally as well. Matthew, maybe we can pivot.

That is where our ED comes in. We herd the cats. When you have a creative group, you can tend to go off on tangents here and there. Speaking about the role of ED, that is where the organization and leadership come in, which is just focusing and funneling all the good energy and ideas that get generated during our time together.

Matthew, if you want to jump in there.

I just wanted to add, Teri is exactly right. We are such an engaged, enthusiastic group as a profession. It really is addictive to volunteer for the CSLA. That is actually a term we use, as a lot of organizations get volunteer fatigue. We get volunteer addiction.

What a nice problem to have.

Every time we put out a call for volunteers, we get inundated with people. It is a really nice problem to have. It just goes to show what a great organization it is to be involved in. As you said, Christoph, we have structures in place that make sure that the committees are each very specifically focused on a topic of the day or a subject area. Volunteers know exactly what they are volunteering for, and it is something that they are usually interested in. It is usually with like-minded people who are also interested in it. It just all equates to a really fun collegial atmosphere to be a part of. The culture is one of the most incredible things about the CSLA.

 

That is amazing, volunteer addiction or volunteer surpluses. It is a nice problem to have in many ways. Tell me, looking ahead, then let us do that. Let us pivot to the ED a little bit. What is on the horizon for CSLA as an organization that the ED will be looking forward to doing? What are some challenges, opportunities, perhaps on the horizon for this person?

Challenges & Opportunities For The New Executive Director

I was going to say, this is actually a very exciting time for the profession of landscape architecture. We are growing. We are growing significantly right now. There are a couple of component organizations that are going through what is called professional governance. We are getting a higher level of recognition of the profession in the individual provinces. For that to be successful, the CSLA has to take an even greater role or a stronger role in certain aspects that those component organizations are no longer able to do for themselves.

There is going to be a lot more collaboration between the components. There is going to be a lot of learning in the component organizations as well as the CSLA. It is going to change how we do business. In certain extents it is not like we are rewriting the book by any means, but certainly there are going to be some pivots, there are going to be some learning moments, and a lot of growing. It is a really exciting time for the profession and for both the national and the component organizations right now.

Matthew, anything you want to add to that? What is on the horizon here in your view?

For the CSLA?

Yes.

Teri is right. We do have to continue collaborating with our component associations on issues around professional governance. We have a 100th anniversary coming up in 2034, which is a big milestone for the CSLA. That is a great opportunity to celebrate where we have gone in those past 100 years, but also think about the future and where we want to go as a profession.

I know a new ED is coming on right at the time when we need to start thinking about the future, and it is a chance to put your finger on that long-term plan. We are growing as a profession, and the demand for our profession is growing, as Teri mentioned, but we do have a little bit of a conundrum in that. We cannot produce landscape architects quickly enough to fill the needs of the market.

Our schools are struggling to keep up with demand. People are recognizing that the mix that our profession brings to the table of environmental and social justice issues is really a unique and cool mix, and they want to work in the field. We are having a little bit of trouble responding to that demand and keeping up.

Obviously, we need to have these great talented landscape architects in the future. We are just trying to explore and position or explore and better understand how we can position ourselves to make sure we do not miss that opportunity. That is something I think the next ED will certainly need to assist with as well.

Key Qualities &  Compelling Reasons To Join As Executive Director

Lots to do both on the professional side and the higher-level justice side, for that matter, too. Tell me, what are we looking for in a candidate, then? When are we reviewing CVs together? What do you think are going to be some of the key qualities, competencies, and background? Teri, I know you put a lot of emphasis on alignment with culture and the importance of this person being very humane, having a strong background to really interact with this passionate, dedicated group. Teri, maybe we can start with you. What do you think we are looking for in the next ED?

Obviously, there is a job description and a checklist of qualifications. For me, I have been in a hiring manager position in my firm for several years now, and I have been building a team. I really value the part of the personality of whichever candidate is that is really collaborative and engaging, and it is someone open to learning and learning about the people that they are working with.

We have had some struggles in the past at the CSLA with a lack of engagement from the component organizations, and one thing that I can really credit our current ED with, and that I would love to see continue, is strong collaboration across the component organizations. There is so much value in it, and there are so many personalities.

We are a fun, nerdy, quirky, cool, smart bunch of people. When you are working with all these personalities across the country, it really takes someone who can think on their feet and someone who is looked to as a leader and a collaborator, as opposed to someone who is just organizing things. For me, that part of the role that is really important is someone that everyone feels comfortable talking to, going to, looking to for direction, but also being able to rely on to do some of the smallest, most menial tasks.

We are a fun, nerdy, quirky, cool, and smart bunch of people. When you’re working with all these personalities across the country, it really takes someone who can think on their feet. Share on X

As Matthew said, we have no shortage of volunteers, and everyone is always willing to lend a hand. There are no egos in our profession, which I think is really refreshing. That is why we are so collaborative and why we all get along so well. Someone whose personality can just jump in and roll with the punches, I think, is.

That is really reflected, I think, in the staff team too. It is a tightly knit group. It is a national group. People are spread out across geographies as well, and all your work happens virtually. That dynamic, that interpersonal rapport building, is so important. You are right over and above the ability to manage an organization and work with the board and manage staff, be a strong association lead, all those pieces, like those skills and backgrounds, are important. To your point exactly, that collaborative leadership is so important when you’re working with a, how did you say, quirky, nerdy, you said keeners earlier too? I am really, you are really painting the picture for me here, Teri.

That is great. We are just a fun bunch. We just got a little bit excited about nerdy things sometimes.

Matthew, why would somebody want to leave their organization, leave their role, and come join you? What is the case in your mind for somebody coming to join you? We have touched on so many different themes, but what are the compelling reasons for someone to come join you?

I have been working on our strategic plan update, which sounds a little bit dry, perhaps not for a new ED. Maybe that is what a new ED loves, strategic plan updates. In doing that, you spend some time reflecting on where the profession is and where it is going. There is a line in our strategic plan that says the time for landscape architecture in Canada is now. That really sums it up for me.

If we are here as a society facing really immense pressures and challenges that in my lifetime are unprecedented, issues of climate change and biodiversity loss, and social equity and reconciliation, all these huge issues. I feel like there are a few professions as primed to play a leading role in addressing some of those issues as landscape architects. It really comes back to that collaborative cross-disciplinary thinking. We are trained in keeping our eye on the bigger picture.

 

We do not just work in our little silos. We think big pictures, big systems thinking. We balance social with environmental, with economic perspectives to find innovative ways of doing things, new things that respond to these issues. I think to myself, if I were speaking to the ideal candidate, I would say this really is an opportunity to join a profession that is primed to really lead on some of these issues and really play a bigger impact in, I guess, not to sound too soft-boxy, but in making the world a better place.

Fundamentally, that is what it is all about. That is why we are in this profession. That is why we are in this sector exactly. That is likely what drew you to it, as you talked about it before. Just in closing, then, if anybody has made it this far into the show, then clearly their curiosity would have been piqued. I would encourage people to dive further or to be in touch with me at [email protected].

If they are interested in learning more, you have an excellent web page as well at CSLA-AAPC.CA, which talks all about the strategic plan that you have mentioned about the profession, about the organization, and the component organizations for that matter. There is a ton of information out there that really reflects the profession. I really appreciate both your passion and interest in what it is that you are doing, and your excitement for the new ED, for that matter. Anything I may have missed or anything else you wanted to add, just in closing, any final messages for curious or compelled people.

None at all. One thing about landscape architects is that we are a polite bunch. We are going to tell each other to go ahead until someone goes ahead. Teri, ladies first, of course.

I was just going to say, I am a Canadian standoff. Now I have lost my train of thought. It is a really exciting opportunity for somebody who is really looking to grow their career as an ED within the same time as an organization and profession that is growing. We have a lot of learning to do and a lot of growing still to do. If executive director had been my chosen career path, I would think that it is an exciting opportunity to be able to sort of expand current skills, learn new skills, and really learn alongside a bunch of people that are learning and keen to learn and keen to grow. It is definitely not going to be a boring job.

Just building on what Teri said, our current ED has laid an incredibly strong foundation that a new ED can build on. The foundational pieces, like having great staff, solid policies, and positions on contemporary issues, are all in place. It is not like a new perspective ED needs to come in and start from scratch. We are at a point where we really are, and I have said it already once, but we are primed to grow. We are just ready to springboard into the next echelon. That is a really exciting prospect to me, and hopefully to anyone who is tuning in to the show as well, so that they hopefully feel compelled to apply and work with us.

I am really looking forward to engaging more deeply with the candidates who express interest. I am sure we will get lots of interest. I’m really excited. As you said, the 100th anniversary is coming up for such a warm, passionate organization. Even speaking on Zoom, I really get a sense of who you are as people, and that really comes through, and I hope it does for everybody that is tuning in as well. I will let you get back to your important professions. Again, really appreciate your time and attention, and looking forward to working with you both in the months ahead.

You too, thanks for letting us be here.

 

Important Links

• Teri Cantin on LinkedIn
• Matthew Mills on LinkedIn
• Atlantic Provinces Association of Landscape Architects
• Canadian Society of Landscape Architects
• [email protected]