Living Lands Workshop Shelter Island

Presented by Perfect Earth Project, Shelter Island Water Advisory Committee, and
the Town of Shelter Island Green Options Committee

Join Edwina von Gal (Founder of Perfect Earth Project), Abby Lawless, (Principal at Farm Landscape Design), Cody-Marie Miller (Conservation and Stewardship Manager at Mashomack Preserve), and Tim Purtell (Chair of the Shelter Island Green Options Committee) for a discussion about ecological gardening. Before coming to the workshop, review your landscape contract to understand what is currently happening on your property. Come with questions!

You'll also have a chance to connect with representatives from Group for the East End, Mashomack Preserve, the Peconic Baykeeper, Peconic Estuary Partnership, Sylvester Manor, and the Town of Shelter Island Conservation Advisory Council, Green Options Committee, and Water Advisory Committee.

July 17, 2025 5:30 - 7:30 pm

Shelter Island Presbyterian Church

32 N Ferry Road, Shelter Island, NY

Tickets are free. Pre-registration is encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome.

Refreshments will be served.

Thank you to the Peconic Estuary Partnership for funding this event.

Edwina von Gal 

A leading voice in sustainable gardening and landscape design, Edwina von Gal founded Perfect Earth Project in 2013 to promote nature-based, toxic-free land care for the health of people, their pets, and the planet. As principal of her eponymous landscape design firm since 1984, Edwina created landscapes with a focus on simplicity, sustainability, and beauty for private and public clients around the world. Her work has been published widely, including in The New York Times, Vogue, and Architectural Digest, and the award-winning book Fresh Cuts. In 2024, she was named one of the top 50 Creatives in America by Wallpaper* magazine. She has served on boards and committees for a number of horticultural organizations and currently serves on the board of What Is Missing, Maya Lin's multifaceted media artwork about the loss of biodiversity, Longue Vue's National Council, and is a member of the Native Plant Trust's Council. Her awards include the LongHouse Visionary Award from LongHouse Reserve, the New York School of Interior Design's Green Design Award, the Isamu Noguchi Award, and Guild Hall's Academy of the Arts Lifetime Achievement Award for the Visual Arts.

Abby Lawless

Abby Clough Lawless is the founder and principal of FARM Landscape Design. Growing up on a working farm in New Hampshire instilled in her a strong passion for the outdoors. Her understanding and respect for the natural grace and rhythms of farm life informs the philosophy and approach to all her landscapes. FARM Landscape Design integrates human structures with native ecologies, topography, and the seasons to create seamless living landscapes that adapt and change. She works from the East End to New York City and designed the Town of East Hampton Community Pollinator Garden.

Cody-Marie Miller

Cody-Marie has been working in the conservation field for over 15 years. She has a B.S. in ecology from the University of Toledo and her career focus has been applied conservation ecology through restoration and land management. Cody worked briefly in the public sector before finding her home in the non-profit world in 2010. She spent five years managing an invasive species program for a small nonprofit in South Florida and the Florida Keys before coming to The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in 2015. While with TNC Florida, she was the invasive species manager for their Central FL team. This team oversaw the management of 23,000 acres. In 2022, Cody moved to Shelter Island to take on the role of Conservation and Stewardship Manager at Mashomack Preserve. In addition to her work at Mashomack, Cody is also the chair of TNC's North America Invasive Species Advisory Committee and is a founding member of the NY Prescribed Fire Council.

Tim Purtell

Tim has been an amateur gardener for four decades with a focus on native plants. His garden intermixes trees, shrubs, grasses, and flowering perennials with a primary goal of attracting and supporting insects and birds. There is no lawn. Instead, the garden's always-evolving natural form mimics wilder places on a small scale, while also providing the pleasures of color, texture, and fragrance from spring to fall. His garden has been featured on public tours, including three for The Garden Conservancy. Tim serves on the Town of Shelter Island Green Options Committee and the Community Preservation Fund Advisory Board. He is president of Shelter Island Friends of Trees, a member-supported nonprofit that plants trees in public spaces on Shelter Island. A journalist for 20 years at Entertainment Weekly magazine until his retirement in 2011, Tim lives full-time on Shelter Island, a place he has known since childhood.