Who we are

BORDER’s Make Something Beautiful® studio uses an inclusive design process to make the most of every opportunity. We’re curious. We look forward to the unexpected that comes from creativity. A color, pattern, or nearby landmark can jump start our imagination of developing a unique story. Most of all, we love what we do, which helps us go above and beyond to provide personal service and create lasting relationships.

Duane Border has been practicing and teaching landscape architecture in Los Angeles for over two decades with a personal approach to project visioning and design that has built strong relationships with clients and collaborators.

In 2012 he founded Duane Border Design (DBD) with a bold vision to make landscapes that connect people to the environment, and to one another, in urban environments. In 2018, DBD was acquired by BMLA Landscape Architecture, under which it operated until early 2021.

BORDER is the evolution of a studio built around the restorative properties of landscape design.

Leadership

Duane Border ASLA, PLA
Principal / Landscape Architect

Duane Border is an award-winning landscape architect and Principal at BORDER, a boutique studio in Los Angeles that combines lifestyle, sustainability and art to create unique design solutions and interactive environments. 

  • Duane developed a connection to landscape during his youth in Indiana as part of a family with agricultural roots where the environment, land, and horticulture are a way of life. This combined with his love of art, and incessant doodling in the margins of his algebra notebook, landscape architecture was a perfect fit. 

    As an intern at a firm specializing in zoological and botanical gardens Duane learned the power of immersive landscape design and has carried these lessons throughout his career designing civic, education, residential, and hospitality projects.

    BORDER is an evolution of Duane’s philosophy of providing contemporary, urban landscape solutions that maintain the romance of the garden. This approach was used in founding of his previous firm, Duane Border Design, in 2012. BORDER elevates this philosophy to include a focus on the restorative properties of landscape design.

    Duane has served on the American Society of Landscape Architects Southern California Chapter Executive Committee, including as president for two years, and is a member of the ASLA Annual Conference Education Committee. He has also been a featured speaker at ASLA Annual Conferences and an instructor at the UCLA Extension Landscape Architecture Program.

    When he’s not at the drawing table or in a project meeting you can find Duane following the Foo Fighters on their latest tour or watching the Lakers strive for banner number 18.

Studio team

Darren Shirai, ASLA, PLA
Landscape Architect

  • Darren Shirai brings a passion for design and nature to BORDER as a landscape architect and Education Studio Leader. His experience includes a variety of award-winning civic, education, and mixed-use projects throughout Southern California.

    Education is at the heart of Darren’s work, in practice and approach. His engaging design process has created a long list of enthusiastic collaborators, clients, and designers whom he has mentored. Darren’s interest in creating engaging and restorative landscapes, combined with his thoughtful communication skills, make him a popular design leader in and out of the studio.

Rachel Ison, ASLA
Landscape Designer

  • Rachel Ison brings her passion for research and community driven design to BORDER as a landscape designer. Her interest stems from a background in Anthropology and Environmental Studies, where she studied the relationship between the natural world and the people who inhabit it. This intersection of disciplines, along with a penchant for art, led her to landscape architecture, where the influences of culture and ecology play a significant role in creating engaging and resilient designs.

    As a native of Southern California, her understanding of the environment and history of the place continues to inform and guide her through the design process on a variety of projects in the Los Angeles region. Through thoughtful analysis and exploration, Rachel strives to create immersive, inspiring, and ultimately, beautiful landscapes. 

Dora Kortvelyesi
Landscape Designer

  • Dora brings her experience of civic, commercial, and residential projects in Europe that focus on the dynamics between landscape design and its intended users to her work at BORDER. A native of Hungary, Dora delivers a unique view of landscape design to the studio.

    Dora believes all people have a right to quality green, open space and uses her personal experience with European urbanism to address the challenges facing urban environments in Southern California and beyond.

    Dora’s passion is creating human-centered landscape design in urban environments.

Make Something Beautiful®

© 2025 BORDER, Inc.