This year’s speakers reflect a broad spectrum of ways in which designers, horticulturists, and thinkers engage with the living world — from historical gardens and ecological technology to landscape design, restoration, and the philosophy of our relationship with nature.
Date: Saturday, 28th February 2026
Venue: Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport Hotel Conference Centre, Northwood Park, Santry, Dublin D09 X9X2 (click for map)
Time: Registration opens 8am. Seminar 9am–5.30pm.
Tickets
Tickets for the 2026 GLDA Seminar The Interconnection of All Things are now available.
All tickets include coffee breaks and a buffet lunch.
Full Ticket – for non-members and for those who want to renew their Friend subscription for 2026–27. Includes seminar admission and a one-year GLDA Friend subscription.
Student Ticket – for students with valid student ID.
To buy your tickets, click here.
GLDA Members and current Friends
Members and existing Friends receive a private link to their discounted ticket. If you have not received your link but believe you should have, please contact info@glda.ie.
Speakers
Neil Porteous
Neil Porteous is a historic gardens consultant, gardener and plantsman whose work sits at the intersection of plants, practice and garden history. Trained in garden history and grounded in hands-on horticulture, he approaches historic landscapes as working gardens, where plant knowledge, place and time are inseparable.
He has worked with the National Trust as Head Gardener and Gardens and Parks Advisor in England and Northern Ireland, and with Ireland’s Office of Public Works as a consultant. Neil currently works closely with head gardeners and garden teams at sites including Mount Stewart, Blarney Castle, Castlewellan, Clandeboye and Glenarm Castle, providing practical horticultural advice rooted in the realities of each place.
In his talk, Plants for Irish Gardens for the 21st Century – Mount Stewart, Co. Down, Neil uses Mount Stewart as a working example to explore plant choice in a changeable climate, and the decisions that shape long-term garden resilience. The talk includes a short tribute to plantsman Seamus O’Brien, who passed away late last year.
Galen Fulford
Based in the UK, environmental entrepreneur and inventor Galen Fulford is the founding director of Biomatrix Water, a company pioneering modular floating ecosystems that restore water quality and biodiversity in urban waterways.
With projects delivered in 20 countries, Galen combines ecological engineering and design innovation to create living infrastructure.
In his talk, Designing and Building Floating Gardens and Parks, he will explore international case studies and share concepts developed for Dublin’s Grand Canal Basin.
Margie Ruddick
US-based landscape designer and author Margie Ruddick is known for her pioneering approach that bridges ecology and high design. Her work spans the United States and abroad, with projects in India, China and Mexico, and has been widely recognised through major awards for innovation and environmental leadership.
A long-time educator, Margie has taught at leading universities including Harvard, Yale and Princeton.
Restoring Connections:
In her talk, Margie rethinks restoration “not as restoring what once existed, but restoring connections — between landscapes, ecosystems and communities.” She will share how this idea has shaped her work, from a desert landscape in Mexico and a 3,000-acre preserve in India’s Western Ghats to her own backyard in the Eastern US.
Lulu Urquhart & Adam Hunt
With over twenty years of practice, Urquhart & Hunt work from studios in Somerset, UK, and Cork, Ireland, creating landscapes that place ecological restoration at the heart of design.
Their projects — from the public Giardini Pistola in Italy to the Rewilding Britain Landscape at the 2022 Chelsea Flower Show — explore the evolving relationship between people, nature, and place. They also collaborate with Piet Oudolf on private and public projects, including the Hauser & Wirth Art Gallery in Somerset.
In Designing with Nature, Lulu and Adam present their vision of the garden as a living dialogue between the natural and the cultivated world.
Venue Details
Staying at the Hotel
The best rates tend to be available by booking directly with the hotel. Call (01 862 8888) to ask for the GLDA seminar rate, and compare with the hotel’s online booking system.
Directions & Parking
Limited paid parking is available at the hotel. An alternative is to park at Dublin Airport and take the free Crowne Plaza shuttle bus from Zone 16.
Public Transport
Dublin Bus routes: 16 / 41 / 41b / 41c
BYOB … Bring Your Own Bag!
Be sure to bring your own bag so you can take home suppliers’ brochures available on the day.
