Joy Crossing
the art of manufacturing. synthesizing. joy from air. from whatever is left. from whatever remains. after. this is a holy magic.
~nayyirah waheed
Natanya shares a story of some of the lesser known work the WholeHeart team is engaging in.
The City of South Burlington (a small town in VT) is in the early stages of designing a pedestrian and bicycle pathway over I-89 at Exit 14. The current bicycle and pedestrian route over interstate 89 crosses dangerous high speed interstate ramps, and city leadership believes a safer and more functional design is a matter of environmental and transportation justice.
WholeHeart (WH) is excited to be working in collaboration with the Peace & Justice Center (PJC) and VHB, an engineering firm located in South Burlington on this initiative. We are part of inviting public and stakeholders to engage in providing comments on design attributes of the East-West Alternative Transportation Crossing.
WH and PJC are building opportunities to engage folx, increase accessibility, and center voices of local populations historically underrepresented in project design, including community members that are differently abled, youth, lower income households, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, non-native English speakers, and transit-dependent people. Through one-on-one conversations and small focus groups, listening to and welcoming voices is essential to creating community.
The first of three public meetings to gather community input on the design was on June 16th. As a part of a 20 member design team, I was asked to actively listen to community feedback, ask generative questions, and take notes as the brainstorming process unfolded. As we met to prepare in South Burlington's City Hall, one of the lead designers, urban designer and architect, Etty Padmodipoetro, began by reminding us to center joy in our listening and engagement! The creative process is meant to be fun. Of all the pieces to remember before the public meeting began, I was struck that joy was what we were asked to hold.
What does it look like to center joy in our work and daily practices? When we are task-oriented or in our heads, how might an invitation to joy be a reminder to include our hearts and bodies?
WholeHeart steps into this project with an intention of inclusion, increased access, and relational engagement. Etty’s reminder to center joy sent ripples of purpose and grounding that I in turn share with you. May we hold the presence of joy and listening in all the spaces we inhabit.
Natanya Vanderlaan is the Director of Development and Community Engagement at WholeHeart, Inc. She lives in Burlington, VT, with her husband, Jason, and baby, Luther.