Balance is about seeing beyond yourself to the world around you. This is true on a community level too. We (as individuals, companies, communities, etc.) often turn inward in attempts to achieve balance, but true balance comes from understanding and awareness of the surrounding context.

Denise Grabowski, AICP, LEEDAP, is an urban planner, sustainability advocate, native Georgian, and mother of two. She founded her firm, Symbioscity, as a reflection of her interests in the relationships between the built and natural environments. Denise serves on the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Board of Directors and is a co-founder of Designing4Health, a collaborative working to increase the understanding between public health and community design. She has a B.S. in Environmental Science from Furman University and a Master of City Planning from Georgia Tech. In 2009, she was named to Georgia Trend’s “Top 40 Under 40" list.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx