“Ah ha!” moments. By their nature, “Ah ha” moments are unexpected revelations.
For Ruby Kabuiku, a recent graduate of Temple’s Landscape Architecture program offered by the Tyler School of Art and Architecture, her “Ah ha!” moment came in Dilworth Park.
“I was taking my Woody Plants class at the time, which was nerve wracking. I was initially not a fan of learning about plants — I was very nervous about it in my first class — but those initial foundation courses truly set me up for the successes that I would have for the rest of my college career,” she said. “I remember being in Dilworth Park and I saw some plants that I recognized — it all clicked. I was like ‘Wait, learning about plants is so cool!’ Now I know what is what; I can be outside with my friends and identify the plants growing around me.”
While it may have taken a little while to come around to the plant side of things, Kabuiku said she has had her eye on a degree in Landscape Architecture for almost as long as she had been thinking about the idea of having a career.
“I started thinking about architecture as a career at the age of 11. We’re trying to create this sustainable world — when you start taking classes like economics you really start to understand that the resources on the Earth are finite — which drew me toward landscape architecture,” she said. “I’m particularly interested in urban planning and design, though I haven’t decided yet if I’m more interested in the policy side or the design side — I’m looking into master’s programs that have a bit of both. I've always been very intrigued with the design of urban landscapes.”
Growing up in Geneva, Switzerland, Kabuiku said, “there is nothing like Philadelphia there.”
“If you compare it, it’s really like night and day. I fell in love with Philadelphia, which made me want to pursue urban design even more,” she said. “I chose Temple because I was very specific in what I wanted to study in terms of curriculum — Temple hit all of those marks. Temple was the only application I was really stressed about; when I got in I screamed. I just knew I was supposed to be here.”
According to Kabuiku it is the faculty in the Landscape Architecture program that provide students with a solid foundation for success.
“Everybody is coming into the program from different backgrounds, different schooling, but we are all given the same foundations in Landscape Architecture, which I really appreciated. Initially, I didn’t think I had the skills to be in the program, but you’re taught all of that,” she said. “Being at Temple Ambler, there’s nowhere else I’d rather be to learn landscape architecture. In terms of the planning aspect of the program, you have so many resources available to you right on campus — it is wonderful to have space dedicated to our major.”
Kabuiku was one of the student team members that worked countless hours to bringing Temple’s 2024 Philadelphia Flower Show exhibit — Piers, Progress and Processes: Charting a Course for a More Bountiful Future — from design to completion. The students’ work was honored with a treasure trove of awards, including a PHS Gold Medal, awarded to a major exhibit that receives 95 or more points out of 100 in the “criteria of design, horticulture, plantsmanship and educational value;” The Bulkley Medal of the Garden Club of America for a special exhibit in the field of horticulture, botany, or conservation; and the Alfred M. Campbell Memorial Trophy, given to the "educational major exhibit that demonstrates the most successful use of a variety of plants in a unique fashion.”
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience from the beginning stages of the design all the way through building it. I learned so much about myself and about design and what goes into actually constructing things,” she said. “The fact that we could represent our work on an international stage is a privilege that I do not take for granted. I told everybody that had ears that I was participating in the Flower Show. It was just incredible from an academic standpoint and personally as well — I created bonds with my classmates that will go well past graduation.”
According to Kabuiku, the hands-on experience that the Flower Show project provides “also teaches you resilience.”
“There were times where I didn’t think we were going to make it. There are so many things you have to account for and so many things that can go wrong, that when you see the final product it’s just like ‘Wow, we did that!,” she said. “The atmosphere at the Flower Show is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced — I don’t think I fully understood just how many people were going to be there and what their reaction to our exhibit would be. From beginning to end, it was an amazing experience.”
Back at Temple Ambler and Main Campus, Kabuiku was among the first people prospective Owls were likely to meet as an Owl Ambassador.
“For Temple Ambler, one of the things I particularly wanted to share with visitors was how closeknit the community is — everyone knows everyone, and you never feel alone. This space offers so much to students, whether it’s exploring or conducting research in the gardens or just finding a nice spot to read and get away for a bit,” she said. “I love coming to Temple Ambler and seeing people just enjoying the campus — the programming at the Ambler Campus is quite frankly the best I’ve experienced. I live at Main Campus and the inter-campus bus is a super convenient way to get from campus to campus.”
As a Landscape Architecture major, Kabuiku also had the opportunity to study abroad at Temple Rome during her senior year.
“It is an experience that teaches you so much independence. I like to talk about Temple as a launchpad into the real world and the opportunity to study in Rome definitely did that,” she said. “Between Rome and the Flower Show I feel like I can pretty much do anything, I feel like I can build anything now! My time at Temple has been character building, there has been so much growth in my academics and my personal life, and now I’m going on to my career.”
Degree in hand, Kabuiku is exploring multiple possibilities as her next step.
“As an international student, things are a bit different. I would love to stay in Philadelphia and potentially get a job, but I’m also applying to a couple of master’s programs in Europe — the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, and a couple in the Netherlands and Italy as well,” she said. “I feel like a master’s program may be my next step, but the possibilities are wide open.”
Kabuiku said if she had the opportunity to talk to her younger self when she was just starting out at Temple “I’d tell myself not to be scared and just take a leap of faith in everything you do.”
“I think I played it kind of safe in my freshman and sophomore years. Then I realized my whole life was just beginning,” she said. “So just go to that club meeting, go to that restaurant, talk to that person. Just put yourself out there and see where life takes you!”