In the first phase, we learn to pause and take a closer look at where we are: the people around us, the relationships that shape us, and the spaces we share every day. We begin to notice what supports us, what weighs us down, and what in the community may often go unnoticed.
This is a time for careful listening — to ourselves, to others, and to the place where we live or work. Through attentive observation, we discover what people truly need, where a space functions well, and where it calls for more care and attention.
Before moving on to analysis and ideas, it is important to form a clear picture: what the community looks like from the inside, how we feel within it, and which small changes could make a meaningful difference.
This phase lays the foundation for all the steps that follow — understanding that grows out of presence and respect: for people, for space, and for what already exists.
рема људима, према простору и према ономе што већ постоји.
Tool 1:
Frustrations & Joys Wall
This tool provides an initial picture of how the group experiences the system in which they live and act. Frustrations reveal where the system loses energy or fails to respond to people’s needs, while joys highlight existing resources, relationships, and moments that already work well.
It helps the group recognize patterns: what is personal and what is shared, where tensions lie, and where points of support exist. In this way, it lays the groundwork for regenerative design — frustrations become signals, and joys become starting points for further strengthening the community
Tool 2:
Reading the Space
This tool invites the group to see a space as a network of relationships, flows, and signals. Through silence and mindful presence, participants develop the ability to observe without interpreting or searching for solutions. They pay attention to who uses the space, how people move through it, where they stay, and what messages the space sends about belonging, visibility, and access.
The space is not seen only as a physical location, but as a place where people, norms, architecture, and invisible forces interact. Observations are recorded through maps, symbols, and short notes, and later integrated into shared insights that become the basis for further work.
Tool 3:
Community Photovoice
This tool allows participants to explore how they experience their community through photography, rather than only talking about challenges and values. Through selecting and interpreting images, the group uncovers patterns of presence, exclusion, potential, and informal spaces that shape community life.
Download the full DLAG toolkit! The DLAG toolkit includes a complete overview of the methodology, all phases, tools, supplementary materials, and additional resources.