These are the slides which I used is a 3 day workshop which I gave to university students in Brazil. Any feedback, and additional material that I could use (text, pictures, cartoons or videos), very gratefully received.

1. Sustainability: a
systems/complexity approach
Dr. Andrea Berardi
Lecturer in Environmental Information Systems
Communication and Systems Department
The Open University

2. Unibanco Tecnológico – comerical W/Brasil, 2000.

4. Ivan Illich (1973) ‚Tools for
Conviviality‛
‚Elite professional groups . . . have come to
exert a 'radical monopoly' on such basic
human activities as health, agriculture,
home-building, and learning, <. The
result of much economic development is
very often not human flourishing but
'modernized poverty,' dependency, and
an out-of-control system in which the
humans become worn-down mechanical
parts. ‚

8. Albert Einstein:
“We can't solve
problems by using
the same kind of
thinking we used
when we created

10. The dominant worldview:
reductionism
• Things can be understood by reducing them to
their constituent components – by studying “the
parts”, you will understand “the whole”.

12. Reductionist implications:
• detaching emotion from rationality;
• detaching humanity from nature;
• citizens unable to see the ‚bigger picture‛;
• citizens unable to see the ‚greater
purpose‛;
• ‚learned helplessness‛.

17. “India: Pollution Fine Sought Against Coca-Cola”

18. What is a ‚System‛?
A system emerges from< ‚interdependent
components which regularly interact and form a
unified whole‛.
Um sistema consiste em< ‚componentes
interdependentes que interagem regularmente e
formam um todo unificado‛.

19. Systems have ‘emergent properties’
• ‚the whole is
greater than the
sum of its parts‛.

20. System structure, processes and
purpose

21. What connects/flows across system
components?
• Energy;
• Matter;
• Information.

22. What is the difference between
energy, matter and information?
• Energy and matter are ‚causal inputs‛ to
systems – they directly affect system
processes.
• Information is instead a ‚sensory input‛
and is used to predict the occurrence of
causal inputs or other sensory inputs
(sometimes at a later time or another
place).

23. System structure: ‘individualistic’
architecture

25. System structure: ‚egalitarian‛
networks

27. System structure: ‚hierarchical
networks‛

29. Think of a simple system, and<.
•<..map its structure;
•<.. describe its processes;
•<.. identify its purpose/emergent
properties.

30. Nested systems

31. Simple systems
"Reductionism produced a
"machine view" of the world, a
view captured in the work of Sir
Isaac Newton. Metaphorically the
world was likened to a sealed
clock, a closed
system, perpetually running on
fundamental laws like "to
• Predictable; everything action there is an
equal and opposite reaction."
• Mechanical; Hutchins, Systemic
Thinking, 1995

32. The impossible hamster

33. Complicated Systems

34. Reinforcing feedback

35. Tipping points

36. Balancing feedback

37. Gaia Theory –
James Lovelock

38. Feedback and Control

39. Plan Act
Action
Learning
Cycle
Evaluate Observe

40. Delays

41. Complex Systems

42. Chaotic, irregular, unpredictable
behaviour
Butterfly effect: a small perturbation can
result in significant impacts.

43. ‘Problems’ are Systems
• ‘Tame’ and ‘Wicked’ problems (Rittel &
Webber, 1973);
• ‘Difficulties’ and ‘Messes’ (Ackoff, 1974).
• ‘Simple’, ‘Complicated’ and ‘Complex’
problems (Glouberman & Zimmerman,
2002)

44. Tackling ‘wicked problems’
Roberts (2000 )identifies the following
strategies to cope with wicked problems:
• Authoritative;
• Competitive;
• Collaborative.

45. ‚The Power of Networks‛ - Manuel Lima

46. Who should lead on transforming
society towards sustainability?
Enterprise Governments
by developing green by establishing strong
technologies and regulation.
mobilising consumers
No one! Communities
Enterprise is only out to by creating local self-
make money, governments sustaining lifestyles.
are corrupt, and
communities no longer exist.

47. Michael Thompson – Cultural Theory
Individualism Hierarchy
Fatalism Egalitarianism

48. Robert Costanza – Future Scenarios
Star Trek Big Government
Mad Max Ecotopia

49. System Cycles

50. Creative Destruction -- Joseph
Schumpeter

51. Adaptive cycle

52. Characteristics of systems during different
phases of the adaptive cycle
• Renewal phase: new organisational forms; innovation;
creativity.
• Growth phase: increasing organisational complexity;
diversification.
• Conservation phase: organisational complexity stable;
optimisation; specialisation; efficiency; resistance.
• Release phase: breakdown of organisational complexity;
survival.

53. ‘Hard’ systems approach
• Expert led, quantitative, rational.
• Great for predicting the state of simple/complicated
systems;
• Positivist epistemology;

56. ‘Soft’ systems approach
• Ideal for working through highly complex
problems where there is uncertainty and
conflict.
• Better for understanding the less tangible
elements of problem situations – things
like human motivation and interaction.
• Constructivist epistemology.
• Qualitative.
• Participatory.

57. March (1994) argues that we have:
– problems of memory;
– problems of attention;
– problems of comprehension;
– problems of communication;

58. Problems of memory

60. How many can you remember?

61. Problems of memory
(experience)

62. Group 1 Experience

64. Group 2 Experience

66. What do you see?

70. Problems of attention

71. Problems of communication

73. Shanon-Weaver Enhanced
Communication Model

74. Problems of comprehension

77. Iain McGilchrist –
„The Divided Brain'

78. Theory of Multiple Intelligences

81. Are you analytical or
intuitive?
If 1 = 5, 2 = 25, 3 = 325, 4 = 4325, 5 =
?

82. Soft systems approaches try to
accommodate human limitations
and differences in perspective

83. ‘Complexity Thinking’
approach
• Self organising: encouraging a system which
will spontaneously emerge as the actions of
autonomous participants come to be interlinked
and co-dependend on each other.
• Evolutionary: the system will be able to change
its structure and processes as it adapts to
maintain its viability within a changing,
dynamic context. In other words, the system will
be designed to learn from its experiences.

84. Complexity thinkers:
Kevin Kelly (1995) Out Of Control – The New
Biology of Machines:
‚As we shape technology, it shapes us. We
are connecting everything to everything,
and so our entire culture is migrating to a
"network culture" and a new network
economics.‛

85. Complexity thinkers:
Manuel Castell (2001) The Internet Galaxy -
Reflections on the Internet, Business, and
Society:
" the Internet is the technological basis for
the organizational form of the Information
Age: the network."

86. Will complex adaptive machines
rule the world?

87. Systemic, Systematic and Evolutionary approaches
Systematic Systemic Evolutionary
Philosophy Mechanistic, Holistic, relational Natural selection,
reductionist and and ecological survival of the fittest
atomistic
Process Authority/Expert led Participatory, Self-organising
facilitated, consensual
Reasoning Rational, linear, Intuitive, synthesising, Simple rules
focused, analytic non-linear
Communication Measure, categorise Participatory, beyond Interaction limited to
and reason with language, instrumental needs
written and metaphorical, visual.
mathematical symbols
Problem solving Remedial solutions Preventative design Creative and innovative
Attitude Objective, Subjective, pragmatic Instrumental, goal
perfectionist oriented, risk-taking

90. Systems methodologies and
techniques
• ‘Hard’ Systems:
– System Dynamics Modelling;
– Qualitative System Dynamics (Systems Archetypes);
– Viable Systems Model;
• ‘Soft’ Systems:
– Soft Systems Methodology;
– Critical Systems Heuristics;
– Systemic Action Research;
– Systemic Grounded Theory and Action.
• ‘Complex’ Systems:
– Network Analysis;
– Agent-Based Modelling

91. Common characteristics of systems
methodologies and techniques
• Start with an unstructured exploration;
• Multi- and inter-disciplinary;
• Blend expertise and participation;
• Blend of written, numerical and visual
information;
• All require the construction of a systems model;
• Interventions through identifying points of
leverage within the system of interest;
• Emphasis on social learning;
• Iterative

92. T863 Environmental Decision-
Making Framework

93. Explore the situation
• Decide on which rung of the ‚ladder of participation‛ to
involve stakeholders (Arnstein, 1969).

94. Explore the situation
• Unstructured, intuitive, visual exploration
often using diagramming techniques such
as the ‘rich picture’ and/or ‘spray
diagrams’;

96. Explore the situation
Facilitator(s) and participants need to be
explicit about their values, experiences
and interests;
– What is the nature of your stakeholding?
– What role do you play in the situation?
– Are you a beneficiary? Victim?

97. Formulate systems of interest
• Establish system boundary, components,
structure and processes.
• Use diagramming techniques such as
systems map; influence diagram; multiple
cause diagram; and causal loop diagram.

99. Identify feasible and desirable
changes
• Creative problem solving entails an innovative
ability to make connections between wholly
unrelated perspectives or ideas.
• Identify points of leverage within the system of
interest and at various system scales.
• Change system structures and processes.
• Introduce new system(s).
• Assess feasibility and negotiate desirable
options.

101. Take action
• The impact of interventions within
complex systems are rarely predictable.

102. Iteration
• Always collect data/opinions on the impact of
actions, including perspective from
stakeholders.
• Always start with an unstructured exploration,
even if you think you know the system.
• Ideally, bring in new perspectives.
• Tendency towards rationalisation – remember to
keep a balance between right and left brain!

103. How would you implement
systemic action learning within
your classroom?
• Problem-based learning.
• Multi-, inter-, trans-disciplinary lessons.
• Learning outside of the class in the ‚real world‛
• Practice what you preach: non-hierarchical,
egalitarian structures and processes.
• Promote relational, visual forms of
communication.
• Complex systems never produce simple ‚right‛
answers.

104. Stafford Beer, 1974, Designing
Freedom, pp 60-61
• "Every pupil is a high-variety organism, and the process of education
essentially constrains variety. In other words, the pupil is capable of
generating many responses to the question: what is six multiplied by seven;
the educator will seek to attenuate this potential variety to the single
answer: forty-two. But if we take a different kind of example, we may find
ourselves saying something significantly different. The pupil is capable of
generating many responses to the question: how should a national health
service be organised? This time, however, we may hope that the educator
will not attenuate potential variety to the singular answer: like this. No, we
say; education is a word coming from the Latin: e-ducere, "to lead out". It
does not mean "to push in". And yet it remains true that in any case the
process of education constrains variety. Anyone who thinks over this little
paradox for a few minutes can see that, in the second example, the hope is
that we can teach the pupil ways of attenuating his own variety. We want to
offer him ways of finding answers, not of enforcing our own."

105. Activity
• Identify a wicked problem in your
community which you can work through
with your class.
• Explain why it's a wicked problem
• Propose a systemic framework for how
you would tackle the problem
• Provide a brief worked example
illustrating how you would apply your
framework to the problem.

106. “Leite materno contaminado por
agrotóxicos em Lucas do Rio Verde”

113. Priority interventions?