DW Legacy Design® Values

DW Legacy Design® is a comprehensive approach based in four elements which encompass the traditional elements of landscape architecture (art and environment), but also include community and economics. These four values broaden the more traditional concept of triple bottom-line accounting by including art or aesthetics as essential to human meaning.

• Environment: Human existence depends on recognizing the value of natural systems and organizing its own activities to protect them. Design should fit purpose to the conditions of the land in ways that support future generations, driving value long-term.
  
  
• Community: Connection among people supports the culture of family, groups, towns, cities and nations and is the foundation on which they prosper. Design should organize community to nurture relationships and mutual acceptance.
  
  
• Economics: The flow of capital that is required to develop a project and the capital generated over its life defines economic viability. Projects need long-term economic mechanisms to promote and protect the integrity of a place.
  
  
• Art: Beauty is a timeless quality. It helps create real destinations that bring us meaning and act as a restorative on the human spirit. It boosts economic value, supports viability and attracts capital, helping to ensure a project's longevity.

DW Legacy Design® acknowledges the temporal character of design and the idea that such work should endure and sustain itself over a long period of time. The idea is symbolized by four overlapping circles, one for each element. The center of these rings, where the four are in balance, is the ideal profile for a project. If the work begins with a heavy emphasis on one element, the process seeks to move it as close to the center as possible.