What is at the root of creativity? Is it love or the need to solve palpable challenges, or something else?
My first ever visit to New York was one to remember – very diverse and contrasting experiences as the city itself is – diverse and contrasting. It pulsates with so much energy day and night. I was curious how the city will resonate with me? Introverted and naturally reflective by nature I felt overwhelmed at times.
And… having said that there are places where you can feel more connected with nature and yourself, find a quiet spot to read or have a lovely conversation. Of course! You think of Central Park, right? It is the iconic park for New Yorkers to retreat and regroup.
There is a hidden jewel which was born only 15 years ago. The High Line – where creativity meets love for nature and people.
In 1999, the High Line was a forgotten industrial relic that had set unused for almost 20 years and was slated for demolition. That year, a happenstance meeting of two local residents at a community board meeting would change the former railway’s destiny – inspiring a community – led campaign to save the structure and transform it into much-needed green space.
Inspiring example! It is easier to destroy and demolish but love, creativity and community work can transform an old train line – reborn into a thriving garden that brings so much joy to people and so many benefits to a city like New York.
What else? ‘People need trees & trees need people’. In an interview the renowned arboirist* and author Bill Logan, shares fascinating information about the High Line creation. He sees it as an ecosystem and names ‘holobiont’**. The High Line really acts as a holobiont and is treated as a whole. This type of biodiverisity in one place makes people happier. And the focus of work of so many experts led by Logan is to create a more diverse palette of tree species in the garden that will, hopefully, attract other organisms.
“A big part of the High Line’s mission is to build that relationship, creating a space where New Yorkers can be in nature…bringing more and more woodlands into cities makes people healthier and happier. Not only because of the ecosystem services but also because of that sense of relationship to the natural world that trees provide.”
Lots to learn from the amazing work between the local community and experts who gave birth to a purposeful life of a forgotten industrial relic. In the end, we are all interconnected, we are part of a whole ecosystem and our conscious choices can support it thrive.
How can I support you and your team to thrive on purpose? Curious to learn more? Let’s have a conversation.
*Arboriculture in its simplest definition, is taking care of trees in service of people.
**Lynn Margulis, an important evolutionary biologist, was studying the eukaryotic cell – the modern cell out of which all of the higher animals and plants are made – and she proved that that cell was itself a community. So, her idea is that even at the cellular level, we’re not talking about individuals, we’re talking about communities. And she called that cell a ‘holobiont’.
