Meet Our Team

Sam is a design professional and projective thinker dedicated to building urban landscapes that can meet the evolving needs of cities and ecosystems. His knowledge of emerging technologies within stormwater design and geospatial mapping and analysis provide a foundation for our practice. As Director of Operations, Sam coordinates our strategic planning efforts, project delivery, and landscape performance modeling.  Sam graduated from the University of Minnesota with Masters degrees in Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning.

sam@urbanecosystemsinc.com

Michael is passionate about plants, water, and how people interact with them. His knowledge of natural processes inspire the creation of dynamic gardens, landscapes, and green infrastructure systems. As Director of Design, Michael leads our site design projects and manages our field operations. Michael holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Landscape Architecture from the University of Minnesota.

michael@urbanecosystemsinc.com

Ryan is a registered landscape architect with a passion for modernism and bold design. Ryan came to Urban Ecosystems after 11 years with Oslund and Associates (Now O2 Design). At O2, he designed and managed projects ranging from rooftop gardens to 600 acre corporate campuses. Now at Urban Ecosystems, Ryan leads the process of developing elegant design solutions to complex projects. His ability to collaborate with both design professionals and contractors on any scale allows him to embrace any design challenge. Ryan has a sleek and minimalist design sensibility. He seeks simple, elegant, and lasting solutions to the complex questions that landscape projects pose. Ryan holds a Bachelors degree from Bethel University, and a Masters in Landscape Architecture from the University of Minnesota. He lives in Minnetonka with his wife Joanna, sons Jake and Javi, and dogs Dori and Senior.

ryan@urbanecosystemsinc.com

John Koepke is our Principal Landscape Architect and a Professor of Landscape Architecture in the College of Design at the University of Minnesota and the Department’s former chair. He has over thirty years professional experience in urban design, the planning and design of education centers, zoological gardens, interpretative centers for Native American sites, and community design workshops. His research interest focuses on culture and ecology in Native American and other communities. He currently oversees our design studio, creating dramatic drawings and visual communication, and innovative planting design and construction details.