Wednesday, June 1, 2011

ELP 2011 Civic Leadership (Group Discussion)- May, 13, 2011


In May class with Dr. Pete,  we grouped into teams of three.  One played Dr. P.W. Roland, another played Dr. H.P. Jones, and last person was an observer.  Dr. Pete himself played Mr. Cardoza, a fruit exporter. Both Dr. Roland and Dr. Jones who are biologists for pharmaceutical firms are urgently seeking purchase of Ugli oranges to save lives. The oranges are only available from Mr Cardoza. How they can resolve this situation?   Some team found the solution easily and some struggled with no solutions but yelling to each other “ I need all of the oranges”.  There was simple solution which was only available when both provide honest and open information to resolve the problem together.   The team who engaged in honest dialogue soon realized that they need a different part of orange.  Dr. Roland needs rinds of orange and Dr. Jones needs Juice of orange.  It means they can buy orange together and take only what they want at half of the cost. The team who just wanted to win and secure all the oranges available without making effort to understand each other and the situation had no winners. Also, there was no team shared the reason why they needs orange with Mr. Cardonza.  Who knows he can give all of his oranges at no or lower cost?

Dr. Pete further explained with two mental models in terms of resolving conflict. Model I,  you must win no matter what it takes and control everything. Model II,  you are making open and honest dialogues and willing redirect your direction with new information.  As we leaned in this role play, only open dialogues with honest questions and answers can lead you to the right direction.

As an architects, we always have to discuss with other team members, consultants, clients and others to resolve conflicts. Are we settling with compromised solutions or truly seeking for win win solutions?

Jae Lee
Beck Architecture

ELP 2011 Civic Leadership (Panelist Discussion)- May 13,2011















For the May 2011 AIA Emerging Leaders Class, our group met at Jubilee Community Center near Fair Park.  Our previous ELP speaker, Walter Humann played a key role in founding and building the Jubilee Community Center. In addition to this project, we were able to see several of the homes on Congo Street that our classmate, Benje Feehan worked on with bcWorkshop.

In addition to the great architecture we experienced during our May meeting, we had two speakers focused on Civic Leadership: Craig Holcomb and David Whitely.  Craig Holcomb, a former Dallas City Council member and Executive Director of Friends of Fair Park spoke about the history  and hurdles faced with saving Fair Park and the development of Katy Trail. He explained that the City constantly struggles with balancing the big projects with “filling the pot holes”. When asked how one would get involved with civic leadership, he suggested first finding out what you are interested in and doing something you enjoy.

David Whitley, Associate Director of Dallas CityDesgin Studio discussed how the CityDesign Studio was formed and what they are involved in.  He spoke about the Trinity River Project and west Dallas development.  David reminded the group, that our design practice is a form of civic endeavor, because we are shaping the city.

Jacquelyn Block
Perkins & Will