Sadie Balkind Scholarship Awardee 2022/2023 - Erika Hansen

Erika Hansen was our 2022/2023 successful awardee for the GWC Sadie Balkind Scholarship. Erika shares her experience below.

I am immensely grateful to Graduate Women Canterbury for the 2022/2023 Sadie Balkind Scholarship award whilst I complete the second year of the 240 Masters of Landscape Architecture programme at Lincoln University. Due to the demanding programme, which includes a dissertation, major design project and two additional courses, limited time makes it incredibly challenging to support oneself financially for the duration of study. The scholarship has therefore eased financial pressures by providing support for living costs, which has enabled me to focus all of my time and energy on achieving my academic potential and maintaining my personal wellbeing. 

The focus of my dissertation is how wilderness landscapes and various practices facilitated by natural landscape features support human wellbeing, with a focus on the human Soul. In the 21st century, with the rise of technology, many people have access to ultimate comfort, with indoor artificial lighting, thermally controlled environments and endless products available on demand. Despite this, people’s wellbeing is suffering and the symptoms of ‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ (termed by Richard Louv in Last Child in the Woods (2005)) are becoming a global issue. I am deeply concerned that as a species we are rapidly losing sight of what it means to be human, intrinsically connected with nature and natural phenomena, in this increasingly artificial world. In the major design course I am applying the theoretical research from the dissertation in a design context in a spectacular landscape in the St Arnaud area of the Tasman District. 

Upon graduating I intend to register with the New Zealand Institute of Landscape Architects and work in the Nelson region with an established landscape architecture firm. With a Bachelor of Design with first class honours and a Master of Landscape Architecture I hope to specialise in the fields of landscape planning and landscape design where I can apply my unique skillset to assist with the protection of New Zealand’s outstanding natural landscapes and the wellbeing of all who inhabit them. 

As a female entering the Landscape Architecture profession it is immensely helpful to not only receive the financial support of the Sadie Balkind Scholarship, but also academic recognition and encouragement from Graduate Women Canterbury. I support Graduate Women Canterbury on their mission to provide barrier-free education for women to ensure gender equality in education and I believe it may consequently positively affect gender equality across male dominated professional industries. 

“As a female entering the Landscape Architecture profession it is immensely helpful to not only receive the financial support of the Sadie Balkind Scholarship, but also academic recognition and encouragement from Graduate Women Canterbury”