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HELP: Habitat and Ecosystems Land Pro
A comprehensive education program to train landscape professionals in ecological and sustainable landscape practices.
Homeowners and property owners—select "ENDORSED ECOSCAPERS" on the menu below to view our list of HELP-endorsed landscapers to help you design, create, and maintain ecologically-functional landscapes.
NOTICE: Our Winter 2026 sessions have been rescheduled due to weather. Please see below for the updated dates.
The Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary and Audubon Center offers an ecological landscaping course called HELP: Habitat and Ecosystems Land Pro, a comprehensive professional educational program to assist landscape and horticulture professionals in creating ecological landscapes, using sustainable landscape practices, and creating natural climate solutions.
Ecological landscaping makes it possible to create rich habitats in a variety of spaces that support birds and other wildlife. It also helps improve ecosystems services like clean water and clean air. This course will teach landscaping professionals the skills, strategies, and tools necessary to create habitat, as well as how to advertise, leverage, and monetize these highly-desired services.
Upcoming Programs
The HELP: Habitat and Ecosystems Land Pro program is a 15-hour, 3 session endorsement class. Registrants must attend all three classes to complete the course.
Winter 2026
Rescheduled due to weather! See below for updated dates.
- Monday, March 2 from 8:15 AM – 1:30 PM
- Hybrid—In-person or via Zoom
- Monday, March 9 from 8:15 AM – 1:30 PM
- Hybrid—In-person or via Zoom
- Monday, March 16 from 8:15 AM – 1:30 PM
- In-person ONLY
Scholarships available—please reach out to joyann.cirigliano@audubon.org for more information.
Program is presented in English with a manual available in Spanish. Spanish subtitles will be projected on-screen in-person, and close captioned via Zoom. Printout and PDF versions of the presentation slides will be available in Spanish.
- Native plants and ecosystems services, with site-specific cultural needs for our local native plants
- How to create functional ecosystems in the managed landscape, known as reclamation ecology
- Integrated Pest Management (IPM): Specifically targeted pest management with OMRI-listed organic chemicals, EPA 25b list and organic practices
- Ecological and habitat services design principles
- Natural climate solutions
- How to incentivize and monetize the ecological landscaping and land management model
- Horticulturists and Nursery Professional interested in learning in depth about native plants, ecological landscape practices, and sustainable horticulture.
- Landscape Professional or Landscape Architect with clients requesting native plantings, habitat gardens, chemical-free organic pest management, and more sustainable practices on their clients’ properties.
- Parks / Municipality / D.O.T. Supervisor or employee who would like to gain extensive knowledge about which native trees and plants work best in specific situations.
- Landscape Design/Install company interested in expanding their client base through native plant installations and ecological land practices.
- Attaining a broader knowledge of ecological landscaping principles to address increasing requests for aesthetically pleasing native plantings and pet/child safe maintenance practices.
- Learning the Ecological Landscaper Business Model
- New clients from referrals
- Professional CE credits:
- CNLP: 12 professional CE credits
- LA CES HSW: 12 professional CE credits
- ISA: 10 professional CE credits
- NYS DEC professional Pesticide credits
- 2: 0.25 professional CE credits
- 25: 2.00 professional CE credits
- 3a: 2.00 professional CE credits
- 6a: 0.25 professional CE credits
- 9: 0.25 professional CE credits
To receive endorsed status and receive all benefits of class, individuals will need to complete the course, pass the module quizzes, and conceptualize a way in which they will apply the material covered in the class, applying a minimum of five key principles into the project. There is a 30-day review process for final project submissions.
To maintain endorsed status, metrics will need to be collected once each year to show the impact of the program on best practices. Additionally, 6 Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary-approved ecological CE credits will be required every 2 years.
Luke Barclay | LRB Landscape Design (NY)
- Site visits, consultations, landscape design
- Contact: (914) 713-7912| Website
Sasha Freedman | Urban Planner
- Contact: Email
CeCe Haydock (NY)
- Native plant and landscape architectural design
- Contact: (516) 551-5838 | Website
Dean Janulis | Design Ecosystems (NJ)
- Landscape design, conceptual drawings through installation management
- Contact: (973) 270-7847 | Website
Anthony Marinello | Dropseed Native Landscapes (NY)
- Native plant nursery, garden design, landscape consultations
- Contact: (516) 524-8711 | Website
Karen Marks | The Compleat Garden, LLC (NY)
- Garden design and installation
- Contact: (516) 661-7714 | Website
Jeanine Miedzwiecki | Montauk Garden Center (NY)
- Site assessment, garden installations, garden maintenance
- Contact: (516) 449-3582
Maggie Muzante | Long Island Native Plant Initiative (NY)
- Source for locally ecotypic seeds and plants, regional seed bank, propogation
- Contact: (631) 260-1513 | Website
Jessica O'Callahan | Renewed Ground (NY)
- Ecological design, site consultations, tree health and identification
- Contact: (516) 426-2203 | Website
Beth Romaker | Meadowscapes (CT)
- Meadow installations, garden design and install, bioswales, hardscaping
- Contact: (860) 672-8786 | Website
Kimberly Simmen | KMS Native Plants (NY)
- Retail and wholesale native plant nursery
- Contact: (631) 848-2178 | Website
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