I grew up in a new suburb in greater Tokyo where rice fields met new multi-storey residential buildings. There were no nature playgrounds or beautiful street trees.

At university, I studied economics. One day, I stumbled across an inspiring urban design book written by the Japanese architect and urban designer Yoshinobu Ashihara, in the library, and was intrigued to know that such design professions as Landscape Architecture existed.

Suddenly childhood experiences, the beautiful streetscapes I had watched in western movies, and the existence of this profession come together in my mind. This was the moment that inspired me to become a landscape architect and urban designer.
For me, designing landscape is another form of communication with natural environment and people. We, landscape architects, read the environment and listen to clients, stakeholders, Traditional Owners, and community. Then, we edit the landscape to suit people’s future needs and to strengthen the qualities of the living and built environment.

I embarked on a career of exploration, to understand the contribution of landscape architecture to different urban project types. My work has taken me across Australia and abroad, including Hong Kong and Japan. During my time in Tokyo from 2018 to 2021, I managed my own business, called Overlap. I am currently a Principal at Rush Wright Associates.

I am passionate about sustainability and committed to delivering innovative projects that benefit the community.