Tell me more about “Multiple Victories”?

I profoundly believe that the best solutions solve many problems at once.

Much of my work is focused on the idea of “Multiple Victories”. We always asked the question: how can our project serve not just one but many goals? Can it be environment friendly, serve economy, be good for children, good for seniors, good for our health.

How do you define a gathering place?

During my time at Pomegranate Center, my vision was to reinvent the commons. We coined the term “Gathering Space” to encompass more than just a park that a city inserts without the input of the citizens.
Our model was to involve community members from initial design to construction to eventual programming and stewardship. Our gathering places took into account the needs not just of the people, but the land around it. In our definition, a gathering space is one of “multiple victories” where each element solves not just one problem, but many.

Just like Habitat for Humanity involves people in construction of homes, we involved them in construction of the spaces between our homes — gathering places.
Projects usually logged between 1,000 and 2,000 volunteer hours. This created pride and ownership. We promoted the generous use of hands, or things handmade.
Whenever possible, we invited young people to work with us and, in the process, introduce them to topics as varied as participatory democracy and consensus processes, art, crafts, dignity of hands, etc.”

Our gathering places took into account the needs not just of the people, but the land around it. In our definition, a gathering space is one of “multiple victories” where each element solves not just one problem, but many.

For example, we used straw bale, round-wood (wood too small to cut into dimensional lumber), salvaged materials, nontoxic stains and paints, rocks and salvaged trees from the site, so instead of bringing materials in from elsewhere to create benches, we used the salvaged materials from the local site. So we had less waste, a connection to the history that came before the place, and a spot to sit! On top of that, by involving the folks who would be eventually using those benches, we were infusing them with ownership so they would be the stewards for the park and there would be less of a need to spend money on someone else looking after it.