The urgency of global climate change has made the early twenty-first century one of the most productive periods in landscape and garden design. Clients--corporate, civic, and private--are committed to the creation of innovative outdoor spaces.

Curated by one of the world's leading critics of contemporary landscape design, this collection profiles work by fifty design studios through texts, up-to-date projects, easy-to-read plans, and photographs. The practices have been chosen for their innovation and their unique contribution to current debates in landscape and garden design. The selection spans well-established names, such as Patrick Blanc (France), Fernando Caruncho (Spain), Dan Pearson (UK), and Stephen Stimson (US) to smaller, lesser-known studios, such as Ossart & Maurie res (France), Wette und Kunecke (Germany), and Landscape India (India).

Five essays identify and explain the prevailing preoccupations and practices of today's designers with themes that range from the recent predilection for creating new landforms to the trend towards eco- expediency.