For more than 40 years of creating sustainable architecture, environmental architect Sim Van Der Ryn has been at the forefront of integrating ecological principles into the built environment, creating multi-scale solutions driven by nature's intelligence. He will present the final presentation of the North Dakota State University Department of Architecture and Landscape Architecture speaker series for 2010 on Wednesday, April 28, at 4:30 p.m. at the Fargo Theatre Off Broadway.

Van Der Ryn will speak about "Design For Life," the title of his latest book, which illustrates how he came to see the shifting patterns in nature and how these patterns affect how people live and work in the structures we build. Van der Ryn explores how architecture has created physical and mental barriers that separate people from the natural world, and how to recover the soul of architecture and reconnect with natural surroundings.

Questions and book signing will follow the presentation. The event is free and open to the public.