Daniel Phillips, a landscape designer and urban ecologist who has been awarded the coveted Rome Prize from the American Academy of Rome, has been named an assistant professor within Texas Tech's Department of Landscape Architecture, according to College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources officials. He officially steps into his new teaching and research post on Sept. 1.

The California native will be focusing on areas of experimental green infrastructure and informal urban greenspaces. He indicated that he is interested in continuing his teaching and research efforts in Lubbock, while drawing upon a global perspective.

One of his primary goals here at Tech is to further bolster the capacity of the Landscape Architecture program to engage in rigorous research within and for urban ecosystems to bridge the "design science divide."

Prior to joining the Tech faculty, Phillips served as faculty of record in urban sustainability at Unity College in Maine, and a design thinking at the New School of Architecture and Design. In addition, he worked as part of many transdisciplinary teams in India, including the Jana Urban Space Foundation, and the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE).

Separately, he is co-founder of Commonstudio, a collaborative creative practice between Phillips and land-based artist, Kim Karlsrud. This ongoing partnership employs a broad understanding of "commons" to create collaborative initiatives, interventions and installations exploring the complexities of urban ecosystems and their inhabitants. Under the leadership of Phillips and Karlsrud, Commonstudio has worked in a number of diverse urban contexts globally with projects such as Greenaid Seedbombs, an urban seed planting initiative with international reach.

Phillips received his BFA degree from Otis College of Art & Design and will soon hold a doctoral degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Michigan's School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS).

Honors for Phillips include the Prince Charitable Trusts Rome Prize in Landscape Architecture (2014-2015), a Fulbright-Nehru Fellowship (2016-2017), and a Headlands Residency Recipient (2017), among others. He is a regular contributor to thenatureofcities.com, and has a number of pending publications in journals such as Water Science & Technology and Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. He brings a decade of transdisciplinary experience to the Texas Tech faculty, and is exited to continue these efforts here in Lubbock.

CONTACT: Eric Bernard, Professor and Chairperson, Department of Landscape Architecture, Texas Tech University at (806) 834-3482 or eric.bernard@ttu.edu

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