Jillian Cummings (Masters in Landscape Architecture, 2026) has been awarded this year’s European Council of Landscape Architecture Schools ‘Outstanding Masters Student Award’ for her final year research by design project, Fruitful Futures.
Jillian’s work, developed during her time at ECA, focuses on Prestonpans in East Lothian, a town with a history of market gardening. Fruitful Futures imagines an initiative which transforms the town into an edible landscape through the planting of food-producing trees across gardens, public greens, and streets. The design includes enclosed gardens, which offer refuge, while public greens invite collective engagement, and roadside verges connect green spaces and their ecologies. Edible plants provide habitats and social spaces for people, and connect them to seasonal rhythms.
Jillian said: “It is such an honour to have won this award. Over the past year, I have gained a much clearer understanding of the issues that matter most to me and the areas of practice that I want to contribute to and help change. Receiving this award is incredibly encouraging and reinforces my commitment to pursuing that path.
“Studying at ECA has really challenged my understanding of systems thinking. Coming from architectural practice, the focus has primarily been on systems as they relate to serving the building. While pragmatic, this approach can position the building as the primary subject, with its wider context treated as secondary.
“The Masters in Landscape Architecture programme at ECA has encouraged me to invert this thinking by first recognising the existing social, ecological, and infrastructural systems operating at different scales and then considering how a design intervention might enter into/respond to/participate within those systems in ways that will support longevity, both for users and ecosystems.
“In the context of the climate emergency, I believe this shift in perspective is necessary in all architectural practices, and it is one that will certainly continue to shape how I understand the role and responsibility of design.”
The project was developed within the ‘Paradise Spectacle Fabric’ studio, which is authored by Lecturer Anna Rhodes and supported by Milja Tuomivaara, Hazel Mei and Chris Gray.
Anna said: “The Landscape Architecture staff team are thrilled that Jillian's project has been recognised and celebrated by the European community, a testament to her talent and the department's commitment to nurturing innovative and socially responsible design excellence.”
