About Bryan, written by Bryan…

I am an artist and applied ecologist working at the intersection of land, culture, and living systems. Over more than twenty-five years, my work has developed across both public and private sectors, gradually forming a practice that brings together ecological science, environmental design, and artistic inquiry in service of resilient, life-supporting landscapes.

Based in Beacon, New York, I am the founder and principal of One Nature LLC, an interdisciplinary ecological design and build firm established in 2004. What began as a small effort has grown into a multifaceted practice integrating consulting, construction, nursery operations, and long-term ecological stewardship. The work spans hundreds of projects throughout the Hudson Valley and adjacent ecoregions, from small residential gardens to watershed-scale restoration efforts. Throughout, the focus has remained on a systems-based understanding of the environment, where each project is approached not as a fixed design, but as a living system that evolves over time.

This practice is guided by the belief that landscapes can—and should—serve multiple roles simultaneously. The aim is to create places that function as habitat, infrastructure, and cultural space at once, balancing ecological performance with human experience. This approach is reflected in initiatives like the Beacon Refugia Network, a long-term effort that has helped transform more than 250 properties within the 12508 zip code into interconnected ecological habitats, distributing over 10,000 native plants throughout the community. Safe Harbors Green in Newburgh similarly explores this balance through a “50/50” model, pairing space for cultural use with restored native habitat.

Central to this work is a commitment to collaboration. Meaningful projects emerge through the collective knowledge of clients, communities, designers, builders, and ecologists. Each project becomes a shared process, shaped by many perspectives and forms of expertise. Rather than being authored by any one individual, the work is guided through dialogue—responding to local knowledge, ecological conditions, and the needs of the people who will live with it. This collaborative approach strengthens the design itself and helps ensure that landscapes are rooted in place, allowing them to evolve more resiliently over time.

Recent work has engaged more directly with large-scale ecological systems and community-based design. The ecological master plan for the Ash Creek Estuary in Connecticut brings together habitat restoration, coastal resilience, and public access into a unified vision for a recovering tidal landscape. The project considers hydrology, sea level rise, and long-term ecological function alongside the social and cultural value of the estuary, creating a framework that supports both environmental repair and community connection.

At the same time, a series of nature-based play environments has explored how designed landscapes can support learning, imagination, and physical engagement. These spaces move away from conventional playgrounds, instead using locally sourced materials—logs, earth, water, and plantings—to create open-ended environments for exploration. Projects such as the forest playground in Beacon and the community play space at the Hester Haring Cason Preserve demonstrate how simple elements can be shaped into climbing structures, gathering areas, and immersive environments that invite children and families to interact directly with natural systems. These spaces are intentionally flexible, allowing for risk, creativity, and intergenerational use, while also addressing broader concerns around disconnection from nature.

My perspective has also been shaped by immersive experiences in diverse landscapes and cultures around the world. Living for over two years immersed in Chitumbuka culture in a rural agrarian landscape in Malawi had a profound influence on how I understand land, community, and stewardship. Daily life was closely tied to seasonal cycles, subsistence farming, and shared responsibility for the land, offering a grounded perspective on resilience, resourcefulness, and the social dimensions of ecological systems. Time spent canoeing through the Canadian boreal forest has informed an understanding of scale, resilience, and the quiet complexity of intact ecosystems. Botanical study in Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula has highlighted the intensity and richness of tropical ecological systems, while visits to temples and monasteries in southern India and Sri Lanka have offered insight into landscape as a spiritual and cultural framework. Study of Islamic gardens in southern Spain has further deepened this perspective, demonstrating how water, geometry, and climate can be integrated into systems that are both functional and expressive. Together, these experiences continue to inform an approach that recognizes landscapes as shaped as much by cultural values as by environmental conditions.

Earlier work included roles as an applied ecologist, senior managing designer, and project manager, including time with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Service as an agroforester with the United States Peace Corps in Malawi involved collaboration with local communities on sustainable land management strategies, grounding the work in both technical knowledge and social engagement.

I hold a Master of Landscape Architecture from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Environmental Studies from Knox College. Teaching, public speaking, and writing are ongoing parts of the work, with contributions to conferences, institutions, and publications focused on ecological design and restoration. There has also been involvement in professional organizations, mentorship programs, and nonprofit boards.

At the core of this work are a few guiding ideas. Landscapes are not simply designed—they are cultivated over time. By bringing together ecological function and cultural meaning, environments can emerge that are not only sustainable, but alive. At the same time, landscapes are recognized as systems that cannot be fully understood. In practices such as observational painting, I find ways to engage with qualities that extend beyond analysis, acknowledging the limits of human comprehension while remaining attentive to patterns and processes. Finally, the perceived division between the “natural” and the “artificial” is reconsidered. Human-made environments are understood as part of the same continuum as other living systems, suggesting that a more integrated perspective is essential to creating enduring and harmonious relationships between people and the landscapes they inhabit.