Seminar Dates: November 13, 2025 9:45 AM
Seminar Cost: $45.00 Register Now
Seminar Description:
With less than 20% of the fire impacted areas currently being developed, landscape professionals have a responsibility and opportunity to rebuild LA in the best ways possible. Learn from four of Southern California’s leading experts about planning, design implementation, clean up and more for future fire prevention. 
Learning Objectives:
Join industry leaders in a panel discussion on rebuilding after the devastation that hit Los Angeles in the recent fire.
Gregory Rubin
Doug Kent is an author, activist, and educator in ecological land management. He has been exploring the ecology of human sustainability for over 40 years. He is the author of eight environmental land management books, including Regenerating Essential Goods and Services in Urban Landscapes (Routledge, 2024), Firescaping (Wilderness Press, 2019, 2nd Ed.); Foraging Southern California (Adventure Publication, 2019); California Friendly (MUNI, 2017); and Ocean Friendly Gardens (Surfrider Foundation, 2009). Doug also teaches ecological land management at the Center for Regenerative Studies (Cal Poly Pomona), UCLA Extension, and USC Architecture. His work can be viewed at www.anfractus.com and he can be reached at newair@mindspring.com.
Greg Rubin was named the 2018 Horticulturist of the Year by the San Diego Horticultural Society. He is the president and founder of California’s Own Native Landscape Design, Inc., and is a licensed design/build landscape contractor (C-27 No. 717147) who has been working with California native plants since 1985. His company has designed over 800 residential, commercial, and institutional native landscapes in Southern California.
Specialties include year-round appeal, low maintenance, water efficiency, rich habitat, and fire-resistance. Greg has been featured in many prominent publications and media outlets, and regularly gives presentations and workshops throughout California.
In 2021-22 Greg participated on an advisory panel to create a County Native Landscape Model Ordinance which was passed unanimously. He is also known for his expertise and success with fire-resistant native landscapes, and in 2014 Greg’s company was selected by the US Navy to conduct a scientific research project studying the fire-resistant properties of properly designed native landscapes, with very positive results.
Greg is co-author, with Lucy Warren, of "The California Native Landscape: The Homeowner’s Design Guide to Restoring its Beauty and Balance and "The Drought Defying California Garden", published by Timber Press. His website is: www.calown.com.
Dr. Natalie Levy received her Bachelor of Science degree from UC Berkeley in Environmental Science. She began working in agroecology research projects in the tropics studying the impacts of coffee agriculture on bat and bird biodiversity. She then completed a Master of Science degree in Agronomy at Louisiana State University (LSU) and completed her PhD at LSU in Agricultural and Extension Education and Evaluation. Dr. Levy’s dissertation examined residential fertilizer management practices used in urban landscapes and lawns. The results informed the design of targeted educational outreach programming to address widespread nonpoint source pollution contributing to seasonal algal blooms in the Gulf of Mexico. Following graduate school Dr. Levy began working as an Associate Specialist for Water Resources with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) at South Coast Research and Extension Center (REC). In this role, Dr. Levy focused on addressing water conservation issues in the arid Southern California region. She worked on the UC Landscape Plant Irrigation Trials™ to identify low water landscape plants recommended for this climate. In 2024, Dr. Levy accepted the UC ANR position of Soil Health and Organic Materials Management Advisor serving Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties. In this position, she is dedicated to creating sustainable, community-driven solutions that address organic waste management and climate change. Dr. Levy’s work focuses on collaborating with diverse stakeholders to divert organic waste and edible food from landfills, while promoting the application of organic materials back into urban and agricultural ecosystems. Through the development of closed-loop systems that mimic natural decomposition cycles, she helps communities sequester carbon, improve soil health, and foster environmental resilience. This role has allowed Dr. Levy to be at the forefront of addressing some of California’s most pressing environmental challenges while empowering communities to build a healthier, more sustainable future.
Elisa Read Pappaterra is an internationally recognized, award-winning, licensed landscape architect based in California. She is the founder and principal of studio pappaterra, a firm dedicated to exploring the symbiotic connections within the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI), educating the public on Firewise landscaping, and creating botanically artistic, environmentally appropriate landscapes throughout Southern California and beyond.
Elisa holds a bachelor’s degree in Architecture from UNPHU in the Dominican Republic (1998) and a master’s degree in Metropolitan Research and Design (MR+D) from SCI-Arc in Los Angeles (2001). Through her partnership with the Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains (RCDSMM), she helped create DefensibleSpace.org, a platform advocating for sustainable, Firewise practices in Southern California landscapes. She is also the author of The Living Rim: Wind and Fire Resilient Garden Guides - an RCDSMM research project funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) - and serves as the Spanish-version instructor for the Wildfire Rebuilding Certificate Training with USGBC California.
Elisa continues to develop research-based projects to educate on Firewise design for Southern California, contribute to speaking engagements, and conduct in-depth defensible space landscape evaluations for WUI homeowners.
