Research Update: Ethical Materials Sourcing for Landscape Architects
The LAF Research Grant in Honor of Deb Mitchell supports research relevant to design practice. The 2024 grant was awarded to “Ethically Sourcing: Specifying Forced-Labor Free Materials in Landscape Architecture”. The 14-month research project is being conducted by a joint team of MNLA, led by Noriko Maeda, and research partner Franca Trubiano of the University of Pennsylvania. Six months into the project, they provided an update on their progress.
The research focuses on how landscape architects can use project specifications and procurement processes to combat forced labor and help advance fair labor practices. This inquiry was inspired by and builds on the Design for Freedom movement, which was initiated by Grace Farms to eliminate forced labor in the building materials supply chain. While many common landscape materials, such as concrete and lumber, are part of this more building-focused work, materials specific to the landscape industry are not yet included.
The research team identified five materials commonly used by landscape architects that have not yet been investigated: permeable pavers, synthetic turf, rubber safety surface, geotextile fabric, and plastic lumber.
While rubber safety surfacing protects children in developed countries from fall hazards, the contrasting reality is at the other end of the supply chain, the production of this material puts another population of children at serious risk.
MNLA and UPenn research team
Their first phase of work laid a foundation through outreach to the landscape architecture community and an extensive literature review. The team is employing multiple methods to illuminate the supply chains for the five selected landscape materials and identify forced labor risk along the way. They are attempting to trace the connections from designers to products to distributors to manufacturers to raw materials, drawing on both the team’s professional network and investigative data tools.
An aspect of the research is outreach, including surveying manufacturers about their material sourcing and surveying designers about the products they specify. Surveys were distributed via email and through in-person engagement with product vendors and manufacturers at the ASLA 2024 Conference on Landscape Architecture. Research team members spoke with 73 manufacturers across the five materials identified. From September through December, the team collected information from landscape architects and designers via an online survey. The team is still analyzing the responses to help develop a more accurate picture of how forced labor is embedded in landscape material supply chains and how much landscape architects currently think about forced labor in their specifications.
The University of Pennsylvania team members have been engaging with partners, including Grace Farms, to understand supply chain mapping by third-party companies who audit manufacturing supply chains for the presence of forced labor. The research team has also gained access to an open-source database for supply chain mapping, which will further inform their work.
Landscape architects and product companies are key partners as we strive to continually do better and promote the ethical sourcing of landscape materials.
MNLA and UPenn research team
The research will conclude in August. The methods are being fine-tuned as the team learns from its various prongs of inquiry. The primary output will be samples of specification language that integrates a social life-cycle assessment for use in landscape architecture projects. The research team also plans to develop a framework for scalable landscape materials research. These products will be important tools in propelling market transformation in the built environment disciplines toward the ultimate goal of equitable labor practices.
This fall, look for their full report and an LAF webinar showcasing the research process and findings.
