I spoke with Timothee Sallin (President of Cherry Lake and Outside Collab lead) today. He walked me through the structure and aims of the organization. We also discussed our up-coming conference. I will provide more detail at the Board meeting if needed, but key points were:
- Outside Collab is a collaboration of landscape architects, developers, researchers
- They are currently an informal organization, but will be seeking 501c3 status in 2023
- The steering committee is made up of industry folks (Cherrylake, Tavistock), The Nature Conservancy, and UF (Dr Pierce Jones)
- Their aim is to reduce use of water, pesticides, and fertilizers, for improved ecosystems. This includes use of natives.
- There are business and new market opportunities that will result from their work, such as high-margin maintenance contracts, high-value landscape projects etc.
- They are funding research with UF and UCF
- They have research / display gardens available for visits at Cherrylake.