Arcadia is delighted to announce that proud Wiradjuri man, Mackenzie Saddler, has been awarded the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Arcadia Indigenous Landscape Architecture Scholarship.
Mackenzie is in his third year of a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and works as a mural and installation artist.
“With the scholarship program in its fifth year, we are thrilled that Mackenzie has been selected as the most recent recipient. He impressed us from the outset with the work he has done with his Wiradjuri community in Leeton, as well as on Ngunnawal Country, designing murals and installations. His personal journey to understand Indigenous culture and history and his willingness to share his experiences make Mackenzie a valuable contributor to Arcadia and our future scholarship recipients,” said Alex Longley, Founding Principal of Arcadia Landscape Architecture.
Mackenzie, who is taking the opportunity to work as a student Landscape Architect in Arcadia’s Sydney studio, believes in understanding the natural sustainable and human flows of a site; researching its recent history and Indigenous heritage and working with that information to create informed decisions about a space.
“In my time working at Arcadia, I have been able to build on my cultural knowledge through connections with other Indigenous designers and Indigenous Knowledge Holders. Listening to the Indigenous Community is an important part of my design process as it allows me to bring the relationship that First Nations people have with the land to the forefront when people interact with my designs, and this aligns with Arcadia’s focus on designing with Country,” says Mackenzie Saddler.
Since establishing the first Indigenous Scholarship for Landscape Architecture at UNSW in 2017, Arcadia has been committed to increasing Indigenous representation in the built environment. Scholarships are now available at six universities nationally.
About the Scholarship
The intention of the scholarship is to encourage Indigenous students to enter Landscape Architecture, as proper representation of Indigenous people in this industry will increase the capacity to care for and connect with Country and place. This will result in better performing, more meaningful spaces where stories and knowledge can be shared, and true custodianship and care is allowed for.
The scholarship is currently offered through the following universities:
- Queensland University of Technology
- Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
- University of New South Wales
- University of Western Australia
- University of Canberra
- University of Technology Sydney
All Indigenous students enrolled in an AILA-accredited Landscape Architecture program are invited to apply for an Arcadia scholarship. Each scholarship will provide support to each student for the duration of the course. This scholarship will be available to one student per university, per year.
Arcadia offers additional support to scholarship students including:
- Introductions to senior staff to provide mentoring, career and coursework advice and guidance
- Opportunity to take on a paid student role within one of our studios in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Canberra.
- Opportunity to build their network of Indigenous contacts, by connecting them to other Indigenous designers, practitioners and Indigenous Knowledge Holders.
