The International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) announced YoungSun Jung as the recipient of the prestigious 2023 IFLA Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award in Landscape Architecture.

This esteemed award stands as the pinnacle of recognition for landscape architects and represents the highest honour bestowed by IFLA. The jury, comprising the chair and members from IFLA’s five regions worldwide, along with a guest member, unanimously agreed that YoungSun Jung possesses exceptional expertise and has made significant contributions to the field of landscape architecture.

From the jury statement:

“YoungSun Jung ́s approach to landscape architecture not just pioneered and led landscape design in Korea, but also “translated” the unfamiliar concept of landscape which originated from the West to fit Korean land and landscape. With projects like Cheonggye Stream Restoration and Seonyudo Park, she and her office SeoAhn Total Landscape anticipated international trends to reconcile nature and city, to integrate natural processes in our built environment and to respect the industrial traces of the past and make it part of new designs. The commitment to resiliency and sustainability, key concerns today are implicit in the work. These projects had worldwide impact and influence on the profession of landscape architecture.”

Furthermore, the promotion of the profession is reflected through teaching and the numerous committees from diverse disciplines that YoungSun Jung has been involved in. Born in 1941, YoungSun Jung graduated from the Department of Agriculture at Seoul National University in 1964 and from the Department of Landscape Architecture at the same university in 1975. YoungSun Jung worked as a Professor at Cheongju University and Adjunct Professor at Sungkyunkwan University before founding SeoAhn Total Landscape in 1987. From 2010 to 2012, YoungSun Jung was Chair Professor at the Landscape Architecture Department at Seoul National University.

In the years when the social awareness of landscape architecture was poor in Korea, YoungSun Jung emphasized the importance of landscape architecture through major projects such as the Asian Athlete’s Apartment Complex (1984), the Seoul Arts Center (1984),the Olympic Athlete’s Apartment Complex’(1985), Heewon Garden, Hoam Art Museum (1997-1998), Incheon International Airport (1999), Seoul Olympic Museum of Art and Sculpture Park (1999), Cheonggye Stream Restoration (Section 1, 2002-2005), Gwanghwamun Plaza (2007), Gyeongchun Line Regeneration Park (2014) or Seoul Botanic Park (2014). Seonyudo Park (1999-2002) achieved international recognition and won numerous international awards. YoungSun Jung’s professional public and private practice range from large scale public works at many levels to smaller scale well-balanced garden designs and restorations that enhance cultural heritage. The projects on all scales reflect an approach resulting in sublime, delicate, sensible, and balanced work which fits well in its context.

As excellent and passionate landscape practitioner and an intellectual leader within the field of landscape architecture combined with an exceptional design capability, poetic sensibility, and 50 years of professional experience, YoungSun Jung is the perfect recipient of the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award in Landscape Architecture and the jury felt that she richly deserves the highest honour that the International Federation of Landscape Architects can bestow upon a landscape architect.