doi:10.7916/qmkf-cp67Oral history interview with Kate Orff, 2022Orff, Kate, 1971-oral historiesmixed materialPresidents--United StatesLandscape architecture--Environmental aspects--United StatesHurricane SandyClimatic changes--United StatesEnvironmental protection--United StatesOrff, Kate, 1971-Obama, BarackColumbia University FacultyUnited States. Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task ForceKate Orff reflects on her development as a landscape architect and discusses her participation in Rebuild by Design, the design competition launched by the Obama administration's Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force in 2013 as part of its long-term Hurricane Sandy recovery effort. Orff recounts the origins of her interests in the natural world and political activism, and outlines her approach to landscape architecture practice, which involves the combination of community stewardship and advocacy with regenerative ecosystem interventions. Orff outlines the impact of Hurricane Sandy on the activities and perspectives of urban planners, landscape architects, politicians, and the government agencies and offices tasked with the management of New York's coastlines and waterways. She also narrates her experience of Rebuild by Design, providing details about the research, design, and implementation phases of the project; the development of her firm's Living Breakwaters proposal; the administrative and regulatory requirements associated with permitting, procurement, and construction in the New York harbor; the importance of alignment between local, state, and federal governments; and the shifting political contexts through which she guided Living Breakwaters to construction. Also discussed are the way that the federal government views and relates to the country's shorelines and coastal edges; the pace at which adaptation to the risks posed by anthropogenic climate change must occur; the long-term impact of Rebuild by Design on practice in landscape architecture; the growth of Orff's studio, SCAPE, and her participation in Rebuild by Design as the leader of a woman-owned small business; and Orff's receipt of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in 2017