Aaron Nelson

Landscape Architect, Salt Lake City

2006 Salt Lake City Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?
"I liked the downtown walks, riding the train to work, hiking the foothills to catch a view; all activities that helped us understand the urban design dilemma."

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW?
"16 heads are better than 1, and 32 hands are better than 2. With a talented team like ours, it's amazing what can be produced in just 10 days. "

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?
"It's the best gig in town. Working for a firm like Design Workshop is what I dreamt about in class."

Philip Jeffreys
Strategic Services, Aspen
2005 Tahoe Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?

"The camaraderie, being interviewed by the local newspaper, and gambling with my ever so financially savvy landscape architect pals."

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW.

"How a charrette comes together and the challenges of planning in a highly regulated environment (Lake Tahoe Basin)".

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?

"Opportunity to continue to learn and work on diverse projects.  Strong belief in Design Workshop's underlying principles and values."

Kim Williams
Landscape Architect, Asheville
2005 Tahoe Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?

"The best day was a sun-drenched, sand in toes, picnic on the LakeTahoe Beach. The Tahoe staff cooked up some amazing food and for hours we played boccie ball, ultimate frisbee, and watched kite surfing."

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW?

"Getting the chance to intensively look at a problem and explore all the complexities. Having experts and members of the community come in a discuss factors effecting the charrette was invaluable at understanding these complexities."

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?

"Who I work with is one of the most important factors to consider. I am constantly amazed at the quality of people in every office and with the pool of people found in the 2005 internship. Not only are people highly skilled with impressive backgrounds, but they are dynamic, down to earth, and not afraid to have some fun. It doesn't hurt that all of the offices are located in some of the coolest places in the U.S."

Kirby Hoyt
Principal, Phoenix
1995 Aspen Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?

"Don Ensign's incredible wit and wisdom."

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW? 

"Work can be fun."

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?

"The culture"

Tawny Allen
Landscape Architect, Santa Fe
2005 Tahoe Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?
"It's hard to choose one thing. The charrette was definitely a highlight. It was a great project to be involved with and an amazing, talented group of people putting their heads together to come up with creative and practical solutions. Not to mention, it was a blast!"

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW?
"There is no one answer...but the experience of taking part in construction administration was eye-opening and incredibly useful. The process of working with a team to create a built place is why I'm in this field, and it was an incredible opportunity to be part of that as a summer intern."

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?
"Although the design process, projects and general philosophy at Design Workshop are great, the real decision maker for me was the opportunity to work with such a talented, intelligent and energetic group of people."

Jeramy Beals
Landscape Architect, Phoenix
2004 Calgary Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?
"My favorite memory of the Internship experience was watching the Calgary Flames in the Stanley Cup finals on the streets of downtown Calgary with the people of Calgary."

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to DW?
"As a Landscape Architecture student, I just wanted to plant trees everywhere and turn everything into a park. The Design Workshop Internship taught me about the economics of place. I learned there is more to designing a memorable place than just cool looking furniture and nice plants."

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?
"I chose to work for Design Workshop because they work on a variety of different types of projects and there continuing education program ensuring that I will always be improving my skills as a designer. They are also aware of the necessity to be environmentally responsible for the places we create."

Shannon Cox-Baker
Strategic Services, Denver
2006 Salt Lake City Summer Internship

What was your favorite memory of your Summer Internship experience?
My favorite experiences of the charette were getting to know the folks in Salt Lake who had spent years tirelessly advocating for change in their city. The women who gave us a tours of their art studios and discussed their concern over whether their rent-controlled apartments in Salt Lake's only art district would be sold to commercial developers...The retired planning department official who drove us from the headwaters of City Creek, along its underground passage through the city streets, to its entry into the Jordan River - talking passionately the entire time about his dream to unearth the enclosed stream and create a park for city-dwellers along its banks. These people served as our inspiration and made the all-nighter before our presentation to city officials seem well worth the effort!

What did you learn during your Summer Internship experience that you did not know before coming to Design Workshop?
As an MBA student and Strategic Services intern, I'm a bit embarrassed to admit that I didn't fully understand what landscape architecture was all about! After working alongside my fellow interns for over a week, I gained the utmost respect and admiration for those pursuing this profession. Their creativity and ability to tackle challenges as daunting as redesigning an entire city is inspirational.

Why did you choose to come work for Design Workshop, after your Summer Internship?
The learning environment at Design Workshop is unique compared to anything else I have experienced in the corporate world. The company manages to strike an amazing balance between an intellectual, academic atmosphere while focusing on delivering the best product to the customer in a timely and efficient manner. It's a very motivating and exciting place to work where collaboration and personal growth are strongly encouraged. I couldn't recommend it more highly.