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Seasonal cycles, species interactions, and indigenous concepts of reciprocity can all lead us to create a community of mutual support. Ecological resilience and social resilience follow the same patterns of shared presence, contribution, and care.

About Our Presenter

Shawn Severance leads nature education and public programming for Washtenaw County Parks, creating hands-on experiences that connect people with local ecosystems. Her work centers on ecological literacy, seasonal natural history, and fostering community engagement with the outdoors.

Join us for a tour of the backyard of Wild Ones Ann Arbor Area member Dina Lehmann-Kim, led by William Kirst of Adapt Landscapes, who designed and installed the native landscape. 

Dina Lehmann-Kim on Her Native Garden

Last year, when we first moved into our new home, there was nothing in our garden beyond sandy soil and various weeds. Our single-family home is one of the first to be completed in a new development that operates as a condo association (CA). The CA allows owners to have their own gardens in the back of the home but specifies that the garden dimensions must be no bigger than 30 feet long and no wider than the length of the house. In our case, the garden is a little over 1,500 square feet, which was too large for my husband and me to fill in one growing season (another requirement of the CA was that the garden could not be a blank space for longer than one season). Our goal was to fill the space to the greatest extent possible with native plants. We also wanted the garden to have hedgerow to provide shelter for local birds.  A related goal was to showcase the beauty of native plants for future homeowners while demonstrating the ecological function that even a relatively small space can offer.  

We contracted with Adapt Landscapes for the design and plant installation.  Adapt is an ecological landscaping company specializing in creating native plant and perennial food landscapes that are both beautiful and functional—spaces that support biodiversity, reduce maintenance, and connect people more closely with the land around them. Visitors will walk on fescue paths to view over 20 native plants, trees, and shrubs and will have copies of the garden design and a plant key to guide them.    

About Wlliam Kirst, Adapt Landscapes

William Kirst is the founder of Adapt Landscapes and Adapt Community Supported Ecology, bringing over 20 years of experience as an ecologist to his work. At Adapt, William co-leads full-service landscape design, stewardship and maintenance planning, installation, and care for homeowners, businesses, and organizations across Southeast Michigan. He combines ecological knowledge with hands-on experience to create landscapes that are beautiful and naturally resilient.

Join the City of Ann Arbor's Office of Sustainability and Innovations (OSI) and Wild Ones Ann Arbor Area for a guided tree walk of Wurster Park! Learn about the tree species in the park, how to identify them, and the many benefits they provide for resilience, sustainability, and more. One of our stops will be at the park's grand Chinkapin Oak, a Champion Tree (the largest of its species known to grow in the city) that measures over 100 feet tall. Plus, hear about OSI's various programs under the A2ZERO Carbon Neutrality Plan that help to build resilience through our natural features. 

This guided tree walk will follow a portion of OSI's Old West Side Neighborhood Tree Walk, a self-guided walk that is easy to follow on a smart phone or tablet and will lead you through the neighborhood, helping you identify trees while providing some fun and interesting facts about those trees and the history of the neighborhood. The map of the Old West Side Tree Walk—and twelve others for neighborhoods across the city— can be found Neighborhood Tree Walks section of the 10,000 Trees Initiative page of the City of Ann Arbor website

About Our Guide

Sean Reynolds (he/him) is a Senior Analyst with the City of Ann Arbor's Office of Sustainability and Innovations. In this role, Sean oversees work on various environmental and community resilience programs and initiatives. He has prior urban forestry experience through Casey Trees, a non-profit in Washington, D.C., and h​as an M.S. degree in Forestry from Auburn University. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, reading, cooking, and spending time with his husband Blake and their two cats, Glacier and River.​ 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon! 

Details coming soon!