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Landscape For Life™ is an educational program based on the principles of the Sustainable Sites Initiative™ program (SITES®), the nation’s first rating system for sustainable landscapes. SITES® was developed as an interdisciplinary effort led by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at The University of Texas at Austin, the American Society of Landscape Architects, and the United States Botanic Garden in conjunction with a diverse group of stakeholder organizations. The program is now managed by Colorado State University Extension.
If you’re familiar with the original Landscape for Life™ program, you’ll notice that we’ve taken the original curriculum and created a new online learning tool that allows people to learn at their own pace in the comfort of their own home. The material has been updated and refreshed by subject matter experts and is still built on the foundations of the Sustainable Sites Initiative.
The original program was based on a train-the-trainer model and classes were taught in-person, in individual communities. We're updating the website to ensure everyone can still access the teaching materials and continue to conduct trainings. The website with the updated materials and training information will be complete in 2025.
The information is designed to work anywhere you garden. There are exercises throughout the curriculum that bring the theory into practice for your area.
Using sustainable landscaping practices is important whether you’re a DIYer, or a landscape professional looking to offer better services to your clients. The curriculum is geared toward anyone looking to create more resilient landscapes, particularly those working at a residential scale.
The program is split into seven courses, each building on the previous course’s material. When taken all together, you’ll receive over 25-hours of instruction.
Each course can be taken individually ($99), or you can register for either the Foundations Bundle (4 foundational courses for a discounted rate of $285), or to receive the best value, you can register for the Complete Program Bundle (6 courses for a discounted rate of $399).
The Introduction to Sustainable Landscapes course is free and will get you started down the garden path to sustainability, no matter how you choose to register for the other courses.
The Landscape for Life™ program and courses are offered in partnership with the United States Botanic Garden through the Office of Engagement & Extension at Colorado State University (CSU). CSU is an accredited institution, which ensures that the course/program has gone through a comprehensive process that evaluates content quality. Our courses were developed and reviewed by faculty, staff and subject matter specialists from across the county in the sustainable landscape field. However, our noncredit programming is not accredited separately from the University accreditation.
CSU Extension is stewarding the national Landscape for Life™ program in partnership with USBG. Course registration fees are used to support our program faculty and staff leading the program and building out additional free and low-cost resources including a train-the-trainer course coming in 2026!
We are in the process of translating all of the courses into Spanish and plan to launch them in early 2025.
You have options! We recommend that learners start with the FREE Introduction to Sustainable Landscapes Course and then choose one of the bundle options at a discounted rate.
The Complete Bundle is the most comprehensive option to help you gain the knowledge and skills needed to create a sustainable landscape. It includes six courses for a discounted rate of $399.
The Foundations Bundle includes four core courses and will teach you the basics of what it takes to harness the power of nature and create healthy, beautiful outdoor spaces for a discounted rate of $285.
If you prefer to pick and choose which courses you take, each course is offered individually for $99.