The Planning Lady

Multisolving is exactly as it sounds, its a way to solve multiple problems by approaching an issue with the understanding that it is part of a complex interconnected system. This method is discussed in detail by Elizabeth Sawin in her book Multisolving: Creating Systems Change in a Fractured World. What I love about her book is that at the end of each chapter she asks you a series of questions to reflect on the content and how it applies to your day to day world. As a kid that created my own read to learn goals for fun, this was perfect for me. So in this and a series of posts to follow, I’ll be sharing my lessons learned from each chapter.

First, one of the the problems that worries me (because there are too many to choose the one most concerning) is the demolition of old buildings. Some communities are better than others at protecting historic buildings for future generations, but others have a clear the slate approach to community development that is causing cascading impacts.

Other Problems that would be improved if the main problem, tearing down historic buildings, were solved (dreaming big here is encouraged) include:

• Greenhouse Gas Emissions: by saving historic buildings we are preserving their embodied energy and reducing emissions
• Waste: the amount of waste that goes into the landfill from a building renovation is a fraction of demolition
• Housing Affordability: Old buildings make great affordable housing reuse projects, converting old mills into new housing for example
• Small Business Viability: older buildings have cheaper rents than new construction and support small, local businesses

Problems can be solved by understanding systems which are an interconnected set of elements that function together. We all participate in multiple systems each day. Our bodies are systems. I struggled to come up with systems that I participate in daily, but some that I think qualify as a system include:

• Driving to and from work
• Working at the office
• Commenting on social media
• Checking out a book from the library

Multisolving is designed for complex systems. Reasons to multisolve include:

• Make efficient use of investments of time and money
• Build power and overcome resistance to change
• Use synergy to prepare for the future while tending to the present
• Embed justice
• Avoid misguided solutions that create harm
• Act from a worldview of connection and interdependence
• Boost adaptability
• Live your values

While all the above are good reasons to approach problems with a multisolve mindset, for me, the reasons that resonate the most are efficient use of investments and overcoming resistance to change. These come up over and over in my work. For example, getting funding and buy in to take roadway space for bicycle infrastructure was a battle every time a project came up. Key to this was resistance to change. Transportation planning for decades was centered around the car, so changing to a mindset where multiple modes of travel should be planned for was a challenge.

Mutlisolving would seem to be a no brainer, but there are of course obstacles to this approach. The first five obstacles listed below appear most often in my personal life and work and impede meeting goals.

• Siloed disciplines
• Budget silos
• Time constraints
• Resistance to change
• Quest for control
• Established inequity
• Jurisdictional boundaries

The theme that ties many of these obstacles together is the antithesis to multisolving, having a singular approach to your work. If you are siloed in your department or budget, unwilling to work together because your individual project can’t wait, or you refuse to change because your idea is the only way, it all boils down to an inability to see beyond your singular mindset.