Andrew Anderson
As a senior landscape architect (IFLA, CSLA, OALA), practice-based researcher, biocultural planner, cultural and natural heritage conservation advisor (ICOMOS, IUCN), UNESCO World Heritage expert and Research Associate at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (CMEP) with nearly thirty years of experience in the design, management, conservation and restoration of landscapes, cultural sites and ecosystems, Andrew's work and research revolve around the protection of the world's natural and cultural heritage at the intersection of design and science. He is a member of the ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes and the Association of Critical Heritage Studies. In 2026 he was recognized for his work on the Zayed National Museum in Abu Dhabi, UAE, which was awarded the 2026 Prix Versailles.
Andrew was the first landscape architect to obtain a UNESCO Master of Science in World Heritage Management (University College Dublin, 2011). His work experience spans the private, public and academic sectors, and he has instructed advanced level landscape architecture and cultural heritage courses and lecturing in Canada, the United States, Europe and the Middle East. As an accomplished writer and editor, he has published widely over the course of his career. Most recently, he contributed to the Routledge Handbook of Cultural Landscape Practice (eds. Cari Goetcheus and Steve Brown) and co-edited and contributed to The Mountains of Oman: A Technical Reference of Nature and Society.
With a diverse range of professional experience, Andrew's research and private practice interests are varied and include natural and cultural heritage conservation, cultural landscapes, native plants and biodiversity conservation, landscape architectural history and professional practice, design theory, biophysical and cultural analysis, ecological design and restoration, stakeholder and community engagement, ethnobotany and landscape archaeology. He is a reviewer for the Ethnobotany Research and Applications Journal, and the Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development.
In addition to numerous appointments as an expert advisor for ICOMOS and IUCN, working together with the RBGE Centre for Middle Eastern Plants, he led the integration of design and science for the Oman Botanic Garden in Muscat, Oman. He consults internationally from his studio in Quebec, Canada.
Selected Lectures and Presentations
2025. Anderson, A. “The Cultural Landscapes and Flora of Saudi Arabia.” International Society of Dendrology. February 2025. AlUla, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
2024. Anderson, A. “The Art + Science of Landscape.” Greening Riyadh Symposium. December 2024. Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
2019. Anderson, A. “A Journey Through Oman: The Cultural Landscapes of Arabia.” Penn State University Guest Lecturer. College of Mineral and Earth Sciences, Department of Geography. November 2019.
2019. Anderson, A. “The Cultural Landscapes of Oman.” ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes Annual Meeting. Dublin, Ireland. June 2019.
2019. Anderson, A. “ISCCL Heritage Impact Assessment Working Group.” ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes Annual Meeting. Dublin, Ireland. June 2019.
2018. Anderson, A. Event Chairman and Panel Moderator. 2018 Urban Design and Landscape Summit. Dubai. November 2018.
2016. Anderson, A. “Cultural Landscapes and Conservation.” International Scientific Committee on Archaeological Heritage Management (ICOMOS) global conference expert field trip and special presentation.
2016. Anderson, A. “Conserving the Cultural and Natural Heritage of Oman.” German University of Technology (GUtech) invited guest lecturer. Muscat, Sultanate of Oman.
2016. Anderson, A. “Canadensis – The Garden of Canada: Planning a New National Botanic Garden for Canada within a UNESCO World Heritage Site Case Study.” Annual General Meeting keynote lecture. Ottawa, Canada.
2015. Anderson, A. “The Design Potential of Native Plants and Natural Heritage in the Designed Landscapes of the Middle East.” Middle East Smart Landscape Summit. Dubai, United Arab Emirates. April 2015.
2015. Anderson, A., Al-Sorayai, T., Buscheinen, T., Velegrinis, S. and Scott, P. “Design Panel Discussion.” Middle East Smart Landscape Summit. Dubai, United Arab Emirates. April 2015.
2015. Anderson, A. “Environmental Restoration in Arid Environments: Best Practices.” Society for Ecological Restoration – Botanic Gardens Conservation International. Amman, Jordan. March 2015.
2014. Anderson, A. “Natural and Cultural Heritage for the Qatar Landscape and Public Realm.” Future Landscape and Public Realm Qatar. Doha, Qatar. October 2014.
2014. Anderson, A. “Landscape Architecture: Design Your Own Career Path.” OALA Guest Speaker Series, Landscape Architecture Program, School of Environmental Design and Rural Development, University of Guelph. Guelph, Ontario, Canada. January 2014.
2013. Anderson, A. “A Whole New Design Palette: Designing with the Native Plants of Arabia.” Keynote lecture: Plant Life of Southwest Asia Conference. Edinburgh, Scotland. July 2013.
2011. Anderson, A. “UNESCO World Heritage in Ireland: Archaeological Landscapes.” Guest Lecture: College of Arts and Celtic Studies, School of Archaeology, University College Dublin. Dublin, Ireland.
2010. Anderson, A. “Dhofar Ethnobotany and Conservation of the Dhofar Escarpment Cloud Forest.” Seminar Presentation: Sultan Qaboos University, College of Agriculture and Marine Sciences, Centre for Environmental Science and Research.
2010. Anderson, A. “Starry, Starry Night: Dark Sky Preservation in the Tentative List World Heritage Site of the Burren, Ireland.” The Burren Conference. The Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare, Ireland.
Selected Publications and Scholarly Research
2024. Horisk, K., Ivory, S., Freeman, K., Baczynski, A., McCorriston, J., Anderson, A., Anderson, S. and Al-Kathiri, Ali. “Late Holocene hydrologic variability and ecosystem structure from rock hyrax middens in Dhofar, Oman.” In: Frontiers in Earth Science: Quaternary Science, Geomorphology and Paleoenvironment. 2024.
2023. Horisk, K., Ivory, S., McCorriston, J., McHale, M., Mehri, A., Anderson, A., Anderson, S., Al Kathiri, Ali. “Vegetation dynamics in Dhofar, Oman, from the Late Holocene to present inferred from rock hyrax middens.” In: Quaternary Research. 2023; 116: 12-29.
2023. Anderson, A. and Wosinski, M. “The legal and legislative framework of the cultural landscapes of North Africa and Southwest Asia.” In: S. Brown and C. Goetcheus (eds), Handbook of Cultural Landscapes. Routledge Press.
2021. Lupton, D., Patzelt, A., Anderson, A., Harder, H., and Zacharias, D. “Distribution, reproductive potential and conservation assessment of the rare and endemic Dionysia mira in the Hajar Mountains, Sultanate of Oman.” In: Nordic Journal of Botany. https://doi.org/10.1111/njb.03192
2021. Ivory, S., Cole, K., Anderson, S., Anderson, A., and McCorriston, J. “Human landscape modification and expansion of tropical woodland in southern Arabia during the mid-Holocene from rock hyrax middens.” In: Journal of Biogeography. http://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14226
2020. Anderson, A., Kirkbride, H., Al Saqri, S. and Mershen, B. (eds). The Mountains of Oman: An Illustrated Reference to Nature and Society. Office of the Advisor to His Majesty for Economic Affairs. Muscat, Oman.
2020. Anderson, A. “The Landscapes of Musandam; The Landscapes of the Western Hajar Mountains; The Landscapes of the Eastern Hajar Mountains; The Landscapes of the Central Oman Escarpment and Hills; The Landscapes of the Isolated Hajar Mountains; The Landscapes of the Southern Mountains: Jabal Samhan, Jabal Qara and Jabal Qamar.” [8 sections within the book] In: Anderson, A., Kirkbride, H., Al Saqri, S. and Mershen, B., (eds.) The Mountains of Oman: An Illustrated Reference to Nature and Society. Office of the Advisor to His Majesty for Economic Affairs. Muscat, Sultanate of Oman.
2018. Anderson, A. and Lupton, D. “Going native in Oman.” In: The Plant Review. Royal Horticultural Society. September 2018: 146-151.
2017. Anderson, A. “Where Darkness and Light Meet: The Light-Responsive Design of Oman Botanic Garden.” In: Ground: Landscape Architect Quarterly. Volume 37: Spring 2017.
2017. Lupton, A., Al Moqbali, H., Al Rahaili, B., Al Qassabi, Z., Al Hajri, B., Anderson, A., Patzelt, A. “Oman Botanic Garden (3): A Review of Progress (2010-2016) with emphasis on herbarium and seed bank, collections, propagation, challenges and garden design principles.” Sibbaldia: The International Journal of Botanic Garden Horticulture, (14), 119-132.
2015. Anderson, A. (ed). A Synopsis of the Flora and Vegetation of Oman, with Special Emphasis on Patterns of Plant Endemism. Sultan Qaboos University Press. Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. Author: Dr. A. Patzelt.
2015. Anderson, A. and Lupton, D. (eds). Photographic Field Guide to the Plants of the Western Hajar Mountains, Sultanate of Oman: A Complete Checklist of Vascular Plant Species. Sultan Qaboos University Press. Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. Author: Dr. A. Patzelt.
2015. Anderson, A., Patzelt, A. and Al-Mahrouqi, S. “Sowing the seeds of change: a new botanic garden in Oman.” Pride: Celebrating 45 Years of Oman’s Renaissance. Al Roya Press & Publishing House. Muscat, Oman.
2015. Anderson, A. and Gratzfeld, J. (eds.). The Darwin Technical Manual: From Idea to Realisation – BGCI’s Manual on Planning, Developing and Managing Botanic Gardens. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). London, UK. http://www.bgci.org/resources/2016-BGCI-botanic-garden-manual.
2015. Anderson, A. and Patzelt, A. “Planning and Implementing Botanic Garden Design Projects” in The Darwin Technical Manual: From Idea to Realisation – BGCI’s Manual on Planning, Developing and Managing Botanic Gardens. Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). London, UK. http://www.bgci.org/resources/2016-BGCI-botanic-garden-manual.
2015. Anderson, A. and Patzelt, A. (eds.). Oman Plant Red Data Book. Diwan of Royal Court, Sultanate of Oman.
2014. Anderson, A. “Designing with the Native Plants of Arabia.” Juried paper published at the 51st IFLA World Congress. Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 2014.
2014. Anderson, A. and Peñalosa, R. Fall/Automne. “Voices for Landscape: IFLA Argentina 2014 / des Voix pour le Paysage Argentin, 2014.” Landscapes / Paysages. 16(4).
2013. Anderson, A. “Indigenous Landscape Wisdom in the Dhofar Escarpment Cloud Forest.” Juried paper accepted for publication at the 50th IFLA World Congress. Auckland, New Zealand, April 2013.
2012. Anderson, A. “People, Plants and Place: A Journey of Exploration on the Edge of the World / Une Aventure d’Exploration au Bout du Monde.” Landscapes / Paysages. 14(1): 40-43.
2011. Anderson, A. “The Dhofar Escarpment Cloud Forest, Sultanate of Oman: Plant Use by the Jibbali People and Strategies for Conservation.” Thesis: Master of Science in World Heritage Management. University College Dublin. Unpublished.
2011. Anderson, A. “The Monastic City of Clonmacnoise and its Cultural Landscape: A Critical Review of the World Heritage Nomination Process and Draft Management Plan.” Unpublished.
2011. Anderson, A. “Historic Landscape Characterization: Transformation and Continuity of the Archaeological Resource.” Unpublished.