My name is Alessandra Sider. I am the Community Engagement Librarian at Harvard Kennedy School and today I'm recommending The Power Broker, Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert Caro. This book I think is one of the most valuable books in terms of understanding the importance of having democratic participation in public infrastructure processes, but it's masquerading as a biography. It tells the story of one man, Robert Moses, who had a 40-year reign over the city and state of New York.
He built more urban highways, parks, a hydroelectric dam than any other person in the history of New York, perhaps in the history of the country. And he really shaped the built environment. But he also did so by destroying a ton of communities and evicting almost a quarter million residents at one point. And he did not have any sort of care for the actual lived experience of the people who lived in New York. He only cared about executing his grand vision.
of what New York City should look like with enormous bridges and urban highways. And if you consider yourself to be a public servant, I think you should really read this book to understand how easy it is to do harm for the people that you're trying to serve if you don't have a strong sense of empathy or a strong feedback mechanism to actually get buy-in from the people who you're trying to serve.