Hudson Valley Parent

HVP April 2020

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30 Hudson Valley Parent n April 2020 with Naomi Hersson-Ringskog A s founder of Newburgh's Dept. of Small interventions, dos- mallinterventions.com, community planner, Naomi Hers- son-Ringskog, develops inspired concepts into unified move- ments. You might say the expectant mom is now creating a different kind of project, from inception to birth. HVP: What was the inspiration in establishing the Dept. of Small Interventions in Newburgh in 2016? Naomi: I gave a lecture to some Columbia University graduate students about community engagement and they were studying Newburgh. I visited Dia: Beacon and Newburgh. I was intrigued about the architecture and diversity. Newburgh in some ways is a very post-industrial city. It's a microcosm of New York City. As a community planner, it is the perfect-sized city. HVP: Your forte is bringing community partners together to ad- vance an ideal. Where does that fit with your work in Newburgh? Naomi: I started doing some work in New York City, but here, what I found to be so magical was there is so much history, and I want- ed to immerse myself in it. The Dept. of Small Interventions is a vehicle for exploring and sharing that interest and doing something together. HVP: How have your projects, like Welcome to Newburgh Sign's en- hanced signage campaign and Reimagine Lake Street Corridor's improve- ment initiative, come together? Naomi: Those types of collaborations are rooted in history. We have amazing cultural assets. Collaborations with city historians, libraries, regional councils -it's taking the same cultural assets that we have, and together amplify- ing them through diverse platforms. HVP: You've said the name, the Dept. of Small Interventions, gives the organiza- tion latitude to touch on different elements. Can you explain? Naomi: Small is beautiful. Incremental progress is important. There's an in- creasing capacity where government and community come together, like a public ombudsman; a coordinated response with the city. It's very project-based ap- proach. HVP: How will being a a new mom affect your work? Naomi: It will give me a new perspective on the city. It has already manifest- ed in the sense of real interest of how we can implement sidewalk improvements. There's a natural coalescence of young mothers joining together for social and sup- portive groups. That might evolve into something else -others against violence. I'm going to embrace that. I've been inspired by other mothers. Sponsored by

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