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The Pacific Science Center has a new exhibit called "Block by BLOCK: Innovating from the Ground Up," highlighting the BLOCK project, a unique approach to the homelessness crisis in Seattle. The organization builds small homes that are completely off-grid and self-sufficient, and designed with functional amenities for people experiencing homelessness.
But what really sets the BLOCK project apart is where these houses go. Unlike other tiny home communities, BLOCK homes are placed in the backyards of volunteers who agree to use their land to welcome a new neighbor. The project's ultimate goal is to place a BLOCK home in the backyard of one single-family lot on every residentially zoned block within the city of Seattle.
The Pacific Science Center exhibit features a model BLOCK home, as well as details about its sustainable credentials. Visitors can watch a video where Bobby, the first BLOCK home resident, takes viewers on a tour of his space. Displays throughout the exhibit feature black-and-white photos of people experiencing homelessness, as well as information on issues tangential to homelessness in Seattle, like employment or perception of the homeless population.
You might be asking yourself - why is there an exhibit about homelessness at the Science Center? According to vice president Dianna Johns, who helped bring the exhibit to the museum, the cross-sector, community-based solution is just the type of discussion of innovation and critical thinking the Science Center seeks to inspire.
"We tend to think of innovation as technology, not writ-large as the social sciences. But innovation can look like a lot of different things," Johns said.
The BLOCK project's innovation draws from its multi-faceted approach. Using space that's already available, in addition to sustainable development, minimizes the resources required. It also forces the community - ranging from neighbors and local community organizations to engineers and developers - to band together, literally saying "yes...