Landscape Architecture Portfolio

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

PORTFOLIO

Shannon Giesbrecht

01

2 Billion Trees

Type:

Type:

Work-Intergrated Learning Studio in collaboration with O2 Planning & Design

Instructors: Chris Hardwicke & Matt Williams

Collaborating Member:

Group Members:

Concept:

Concept:

The Government of Canada has committed to planting 2 billion trees to address climate change and biodiversity loss over the next ten years (Government of Canada, 2022).

This project assessed the impact and viability of nature-based climate solutions in the City of Calgary. During initial phases of the project it was determined that naturalization as a solution to carbon sequestration requires vast amounts of land.

However, naturalization has other benefits and therefore it is worth pursuing a large scale project in the City of Calgary to make the city more resilient to climate change.

Madiha Mehdi

Forest

9 tons of carbon/ hectare sequstered

Ecosystems Examined

Grassland

7 tons of carbon/ hectare sequstered

Wetland

32 tons of carbon/ hectare sequstered

After significant research the amount of carbon each ecosystem sequesters was estimated. These ecosystems only sequester carbon effectively if they are planted in appropriate conditions. After examining underutilized land in Calgary, it was determined that road Right-of-Ways have the most potential to sequester the most carbon. Forests were planted on north facing slopes, grasslands placed on the shoulders of roadways and in the meridian and wetlands placed in clover leaf interchanges and low lying areas.

The chosen focus site for this project was Deerfoot Trail with a site specific example at the intersection of Deerfoot Trail and Memorial Drive. The aforementioned intervention has the potential to sequester 6200 tons of carbon. This is the equivalent amount of carbon emitted by driving the full length of Deerfoot Trail 3 million times. Renders and sections are on the following pages. Site Selected

A-A’ West facing section showcasing public realm and overbridge

B-B’ West facing section showcasing viewpoint and overbridge

Forests were placed on north facing slopes and in slight depressions. Wetlands were placed in low lying areas. Grasslands were placed on south facing slopes and along the road. Wildlife and pedestrian crossings were also proposed to further connections across Deerfoot Trail and reduce animal fatalities and vehicle collisions.

02

Ramsay Reimagined

Type:

Type:

Landscape Architecture Studio II

Instructor: Enrica Dall’Ara and Gordon Skilling

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Group Members:

Masterplan: Melissa Bourne and Bonnie Mikalson

Site Specific Design: Individual

Concept:

Concept:

This studio focused on two of the oldest neighborhoods in Calgary: Inglewood and Ramsay. Our team completed a large scale community analysis and then developed a community masterplan for Ramsay. Based on this research, each team member selected a smaller site to design in greater detail. I chose the site of the former Lilydale chicken plant.

Selected Site

The main goals of our master plan were to create community gathering spaces, increase signage, develop the movement corridor, add lights, furniture and expand the tree canopy.

03

Dinosaur Provincial Park

Type:

Regional Landscape Systems

Instructor: Kris Fox

Concept:

This project was about tourism and recreation in southern Alberta. The focus of my project was Dinosaur Provincial Park. This studio work included enhancing the journey to Dinosaur Provincial Park as well as a futuristic vision to enhance the park itself.

Travel Through The Mesozoic

1 Km=1 Million Years

The journey to Dinosaur Provincial Park starts the moment you step into your vehicle from Calgary. Using the metric that 1 km=1million years, 3 rest stops were developed at the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous intervals. Each of these rest stops have a sculpture that showcases a famous part of history from that time. The Triassic rest stop showcases the faults that broke up supercontinent Pangaea, the Jurassic showcases the evolution of dinosaur into bird and lastly the Cretaceous shows the ending of the Mesozoic period through the impact of an asteroid hitting the earth.

Once the visitors arrive at the park significant locations use augmented reality through a QR code to bring science to life. Examples of this include experiencing a hadrosaur herd, the erosion of hoodoos, river geomorphology, and a dinosaur dig.

The Herd

Meandering Stream

04

Ylsskaana’pll A’síítahtaa

Type:

Type:

Landscape Architecture Studio III

Instructor: Mary-Ellen Tyler & Jennifer Koppe

Group Members:

Concept:

Concept:

Concept:

Ylsskaana’pll A’síítahtaa “Calm Creek” challenges the vision of the Winston Golf Course in Calgary. This studio, developed with input from Urban Indigenous Community Land Trust (UICLT), was designed to envision opportunities within Calgary to connect land, landscape, and Indigenous households.

The Winston Golf course is located in the North East of Calgary. The green space is 85 hectares allowing for a variety of programming opportunities. The new Midfield Heights development and the future Green Line on Centre Street will increase connectivity to downtown and access to amenities.

Connect

Ceremony Space & Intimate Gathering Space

Cultivate Create CalgaryCommunit y

Medicinal Plant Garden & Storage Makers Space

Greenhouse & Food Storage

Home Community Kitchen Gallery & Restaurant

Sports Fields Walking & Biking Trails Playground Foraging Walking Public Washrooms

The goal is to create a safe and natural space for healing.

• Housing is placed at the center of the site plan

• Programming elements in the indigenous focused community were divided into the guiding principles of: Connect, Create and Cultivate

• Indigenous focused community is easily accessible from housing

• The greater Calgary community surrounds the Indigenous focused community and housing and is easily accessible to site users

Amenities: Phasing:

Legend:

Proposed Building

Riparian Zone

Paved Pathways

Trails

1. Community Centre & Healing Lodge

2. Proposed Housing

3. Elders Cottage

4. BBQ Shelters

5. Medicinal Plant Storage

6. Elders’ Garden

7. School

8. Ceremony Space

9. Greenhouses

10. Orchard

11. Playground

12. Creek Access

13. Picnic Area

14. Hockey Arena

15. Forest

16. Coniferous Tree Screen

17. Makers Space

18. Restaurant

19. Farmers’ Market

20. Soccer Fields

21. Sky Garden

Phase One Phase Two Phase Three

1) Healing Lodge and Mid-Rise Apartments

2) Elders’ Cottage and Greenhouse

3) Farmers’ Market and Plaza

Inspiration

The Project

This garden was designed for first time home owners Rhiannon and Tony. The goals for the yard included:

1) Multiple seating areas for family and friends

2) Vegetable patch for Rhiannon

3) Grass for Tony to care for

4) Plants that thrive in Calgary with little to no maintenance

Inspired by a traditional English garden, the design achieves the above goals while incorporating stone paving, sculptures and sinuous plant beds. Shrubs and trees were chosen to provide blooms all season long and colour throughout the winter months.

01 Recreation

In my spare time I enjoy watercolour, painting and sketching.

Lunenberg Watercolour, 2019

Flowers Watercolour, 2019

The Drive to Okotoks Acrylic Paint, 2022

Somewhere in the Rockies Felt Pen, 2019

02 Photography

I took a photography course in 2022 that focused on the urban environment. The series developed in the course focused on Bow Tower and its presence within downtown Calgary.

Construction Drawings

In 2022, I completed a Site Technology course that provided a technical learning experience. The course included designing a park as the main assignment, which involved developing a grading plan for the park. In addition to this, I acquired the skills to create drawings of the various features and their specifications. Throughout the course, I used AutoCAD to produce the following drawings.