Meet Ali.

As a site designer based between California and Spain, she enjoys working with clients all around the world.

With a Bachelors of Architecture from Cal Poly SLO and years working in the industry, Ali holds a credible and diverse roster of skills and project experience that ranges from peaceful backyard landscapes for single families to large-scale public parks. She is widely known for her passion for environmental conservation, keen design-eye, and dedicated work ethic. Some of her past work includes creating sustainable master plans for major cities such as Houston while working for Gensler, as well as designing high-end retail environments for Apple stores in Europe and Latin America.

When she’s not working, she enjoys music, cooking, yoga, and spending time in the mountains.

Now, here’s the long version:

Two years ago, I left my fast-paced life to explore more of what truly felt good to me: nature. Now I help others incorporate more nature it into their daily lives, one space at a time.

Throughout my teens and early twenties, I had been following everything I felt I should be doing, as most of us do when we’re young. I studied hard, got good job opportunities, and filled my scheduled with countless activities and non-stop busy-ness. Even though I was doing and “gaining” so much, I didn’t realize what I was losing. Over this period of life, I had lost the connection to myself. I lost the sound of my inner voice, the trust in my intuition, and my purpose in life. I had only been making choices that I felt were best for others and society, not for my truest self.

I was too busy, distracted, and driven to “succeed” that I never slowed down enough to ask myself if this was the life I truly wanted.

After immediately jumping into a corporate architecture job after university, I never felt more disconnected. Even with this realization, I was unsure of what to do about it or what the next direction I should take. The only path that felt right to me at the time was to separate from my work life for the time being. So, I quit my job, sold all of my belongings, and left the United States to travel within nature for six months with only a backpack.

I traveled throughout Latin America, hiked El Camino de Santiago in Spain, and volunteered in a remote ranch Argentina, five hours away from the nearest town and hospital. I spent my days in nature, having conversations from all sorts people around the world, and slowing down after a decade of non-stop chasing. I felt so comfortable walking within mountains, so safe being underneath trees, so calm sitting next to flowers, and so restored after swimming into fresh, cold water. And slowly, I started to hear my inner voice again. I felt true self speak again, after forgetting what her voice even sounded like.

I become enamored with the healing qualities of nature. I had never felt so connected to myself, the people around me, and my meaning in life.

Soon after I returned home, I felt that familiar disconnection to myself and to nature start to creep in again. I could observe from a broader perspective just how much I had been prioritizing production, quick-fixes, and escapism rather than connectivity, community, and slowness throughout my years prior. Not wanting to let go of the joy and deep sense of connection that I just recently discovered, I made some big life changes.

In late 2023, I transitioned my career from general architecture to landscape architecture. With this shift, I could now help preserve and honor this beautiful planet we live in with every project I work on. I launched my own freelance design practice, and, with much gratitude, moved to Spain in 2024, the place that makes me feel most alive.

My courage to pursue what felt true to my soul saved me, and now I want to use my work to help others experience the same in return.

Today I have both independent clients and contractual positions for landscape architecture firms around the globe. While for the majority of the time I reside in Bilbao, I frequently visit the US to visit sites, connect with clients, and spend quality time with family and friends. My current remote work situation allows me to provide good green design to anyone, anywhere in the world, an opportunity I feel very grateful for.

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Ali Harwood Design

Your surroundings matter. Design them wisely.