Shauna Gillies-Smith, founding principal of GROUND, brings deep experience creating artful urban landscapes that balance innovative design, elegant detailing, and clever problem solving. Trained initially as an architect and urban designer, Shauna’s shift to landscape architecture was driven by the desire to bring joy and surprise to the everyday.
Shauna holds professional degrees from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design and the University of British Columbia. She is an active voice in academia, having taught design studios at institutions such as Harvard’s GSD, Tulane University, the University of British Columbia and the Rhode Island School of Design. She regularly engages in conversations at the intersection of design, urbanism, and resilience, sharing insights from her professional practice. A passionate design advocate, Shauna is a frequent speaker at conferences and has served on numerous design juries. She has been on the Board of Directors of the Boston Society of Architects, was a Trustee of the Boston Architectural College, has been awarded grants from the Canada Council for the Arts and recognized with both Honorary Membership (2021) and the Women of Design Award (2023) from the Boston Society of Architects.
GROUND is currently engaged in the Landscape Master Plan for Cathleen Stone Island, a 170-acre island off the shore of Boston for the Outward Bound Foundation. In addition to focusing on the critical risks of sea level rise and climate change, the masterplan strives to achieve equitable and inclusive experiences for the inner-city kids who participate in the program, involving them directly in the dialogue about climate change, as well as considering the practices of the native people who first frequented the island. The multi-disciplinary master plan team includes architects, landscape architects, engineers, climate scientists and communication experts.
