Welcome to the Fold: Getting to know our team
EDITION 1: INTERVIEW WITH BROOKE WILLIAMS
“I began to realise that despite good urban design thinking and the best intentions, the places we were building did not have the vibrant social life we had intended and promised. ”
This blog is the first part of a series to help you get to know Fourfold. To start us off, let’s meet our Founder and Director Brooke Williams. Brooke is known to many as a global leader in the field of placemaking. But like many, Brooke’s path to the world of placemaking was anything but straightforward. In this interview, we ask her a little about her daily work life, her journey and the things that inspire her.
Hi Brooke! We’re curious, what does a typical day look for you?
Our team has always worked well remotely so while we have an office in Teneriffe, I often start my day at home. This gives me the flexibility to juggle running my business and family life. Any given day will probably involve a little desk time, lots of meetings (either in person or via Zoom), phone calls, emails, occasionally running workshops with community and stakeholders then wrangling three young children into bed.
Why do you do what you do?
I’ve always been interested in what it is that makes places thrive. I didn’t necessarily set out to become a ‘placemaker’ but rather placemaking found me. My career within placemaking has been shaped by my tertiary education, but importantly also by my other life experiences; the opportunities, extracurricular activities and people I met along the way. Most notably, I co-founded a not-for-profit organisation called U.R.BNE Collective and co-hosted the international Diner en Blanc event in Brisbane for 7 years. I was out to discover the ‘gap’ in our typical design and planning process. Through the U.R.BNE Collective we experimented with tactical urbanism and public space activations to draw attention to our City’s underutilised places. We discovered the journey is as important, if not more, than the output. By facilitating collaborative processes we increase local pride and connection to place, enabling communities to actively participate in creating places that are loved by all.
Have there been any pivotal moments that changed the direction of your career path?
I began as a graphic designer within an urban design team, where I quickly found myself specialising in map and infographic production. It wasn’t long before curiosity got the better of me and I wanted to be more involved in the process of designing the places my graphics featured. This led to my first career path change where I went back to Uni to complete a masters in Urban Design. My second career change occurred as I began to realise that despite good urban design thinking and the best intentions, the places we were building did not have the vibrant social life we had intended and promised. It is only within the last six years that I have been able to align my multidisciplinary career pathway with my other personal interests. I am now lucky to work in a position that bridges the gap between the creative and built environment industries and brings communities together to shape and activate their local neighbourhoods and places.
What’s your favourite thing about working at Fourfold?
I love seeing public places brought to life by locals. There is something incredible about helping stakeholders at all levels connect over the common goal of improving places they love. When we empower these stakeholders with skills and resources they will draw on the interests, creativity and culture of their local community to create a place that is authenitic. This can’t be fabricated by experts sitting in the office. I also love that no two days are ever the same. Each place and project at hand requires a tailored response. That means that no two projects we complete are ever the same and I love this variety.
Who do you look to for inspiration or as a career role model?
So many people! I am lucky to have incredible career and business mentors within the design and placemaking industry all of which are incredibly generous with their time. I love that as an industry, placemakers adopt a collaborative approach where we are always exploring opportunities to learn from one another and grow as a collective industry. A couple of key people that have inspired me in a less typical way, have helped me to pull down the typical barriers women face. Without their support and encouragement, I may never have taken the leap to start my own business while juggling a young family. They proved that while it is hard, we live in a new flexible world where we can shape our lives to allow us to do the things we want to do without needing to put our careers on pause.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Good question! Probably that creative thinking will be the foundation for your success regardless of where life’s journey takes you. I put so much pressure on creating the creative output or product. Graphic design and urban design skills are still incredibly valuable to me, and I use them daily, but any success I have had has really come down to my ability to approach every situation with a creative process.
What are your top 3 tips for new placemakers?
Good placemaking takes a collaborative effort across many disciplines. Draw on ALL your skills and life experiences. Fourfold as an organisation are successful as each of our team members bring something different to the table and we leverage this to ensure great project outcomes.
Advocacy and communication is important. You will be successful if you master your ability to curate discussions and speak passionately about what you love. This is something I am constantly working on.
You don’t have to know all the answers. This is different for our industry. Many industies expect you to have all the answers, however being in placemaking is all about constant growth, change and innovation. Our role on projects is to facilitate and uncover the answers that already exist in a community. Be a good listener!
