Ed Gavagan

Ed Gavagan is a New York City-based designer, builder, and storyteller who leads PraxisNYC, a design and construction firm specializing in boutique residential architecture. Gavagan’s work spans four continents and has been featured in newspapers, magazines, and books, reflecting a focus on sustainable, habitable, and durable design. In addition to his design practice, Gavagan co-founded Design Starts Here, an architectural collaborative that provided free design services to the public from a pop-up storefront in Manhattan. Following the earthquake in Haiti, Design Starts Here organized a fundraising effort, and Gavagan traveled with a team to support relief missions.

Gavagan’s personal experience as a survivor of gang violence has shaped his approach to storytelling and mental health advocacy. After surviving a near-fatal stabbing, Gavagan has addressed post-traumatic stress disorder by sharing his story publicly, emphasizing the role of storytelling in trauma recovery.

Gavagan began collaborating with The Moth, a nonprofit organization dedicated to live storytelling, where his talk titled "Whatever Doesn't Kill Me" gained widespread attention. He has participated in The Moth StorySlams, MainStage events, and the Peabody Award-winning Moth Story Hour on NPR. Gavagan has also appeared on the A&E Biography channel and delivered a TED Talk, speaking to audiences ranging from at-risk youth to professionals in the financial sector about risk management and resilience.

Gavagan is featured in "Procession," a Netflix documentary that follows him and other survivors as they use drama therapy techniques to process trauma. Through documentary and dramatic retellings, Gavagan explores themes of resilience, healing, and the impact of trauma. His work in architecture, storytelling, and trauma recovery has established him as a prominent voice in the fields of design, mental health advocacy, and narrative therapy.