Landscape architects work to fit human activities into the natural or the built environment so that those activities function efficiently, take place in a beautiful setting, and will have minimal impact on natural systems. Working closely with planners, architects, and civil engineers, landscape architects plan and design the myriad of elements that make up our cities and towns.

The term landscape architecture came into use in the United States in the mid-1800s, at the time that Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux were designing Central Park in New York City. Mr. Olmsted, who was active in his profession from the mid 1850s to the mid 1890s, was involved with the full range of efforts implied above. Today, because the relationship between the built and the natural environment is increasingly complex, many landscape architects focus on one or more aspects of the profession, such as: urban, rural, small scale, large scale, design, planning, construction supervision, or combinations thereof. A tremendous diversity of effort and a multidisciplinary approach is required in this profession which brings together art and science, and involves a sensitivity to both human use of space and landscape quality.