Approaches and Implications of using Complexity Theory for dealing with Social Systems

There exist an increasing awareness within the scientific community for the need
to deal with the complex dimension of social systems. This paper examines three
approaches to incorporate complexity theory into the practice of social sciences. The first
approach consists of supplementing the modernist program with chaos theory. The
second one proposes a metaphoric application of complexity theory to describe social
systems. The third approach is based on Post-Normal Science. Both the first and the
second try to fit complexity theory into the paradigms used up to now in social sciences.
Although this exercise can provide some interesting methods for understanding of social
systems, it is argued that a fundamental change in the way Western society conceives
science is necessary. Complexity analysis (or synthesis) should not only consist of adding
more or different syntactical rules to the mathematical formal systems used to model the
causal relations perceived in the outside world. Rather, it should imply a generalization of
the scientific formalisms in order to include semantic relations, subjectivity, and context
dependency. Even more, this generalization should go as far as to include into the
umbrella of science a plurality of systems of knowledge in order to better understand the
multidimensionality of social systems. The legitimation of a broader spectrum of formal
systems of representation and communication of reality, will affect profoundly the
collective and individual way in which Western societies perceive the world, and the very
evolution of human beings as species.

Double coupling: modeling subjectivity and asymmetric organization in social-ecological systems.

Social-ecological organization is a multidimensional phenomenon that combines material and symbolic processes. However, the coupling between social and ecological subsystem is often conceptualized as purely material, thus reducing the symbolic dimension to its behavioral and actionable expressions. In this paper I conceptualize social-ecological systems as doubly coupled. On the one hand, material expressions of socio-cultural processes affect and are affected by ecological dynamics. On the other hand, coupled social-ecological material dynamics are concurrently coupled with subjective dynamics via coding, decoding, personal experience, and human agency. This second coupling operates across two organizationally heterogeneous dimensions: material and symbolic. Although resilience thinking builds on the recognition of organizational asymmetry between living and nonliving systems, it has overlooked the equivalent asymmetry between ecological and socio-cultural subsystems. Three guiding concepts are proposed to formalize double coupling. The first one, social-ecological asymmetry, expands on past seminal work on ecological self-organization to incorporate reflexivity and subjectivity in social-ecological modeling. Organizational asymmetry is based in the distinction between social rules, which are symbolically produced and changed through human agents’ reflexivity and purpose, and biophysical rules, which are determined by functional relations between ecological components. The second guiding concept, conscious power, brings to the fore human agents’ distinctive capacity to produce our own subjective identity and the consequences of this capacity for social-ecological organization. The third concept, congruence between subjective and objective dynamics, redefines sustainability as contingent on congruent relations between material and symbolic processes. Social-ecological theories and analyses based on these three guiding concepts would support the integration of curren

Heads of Climate Base Camps

The Heads of Climate Base Camp is a recurring immersive leadership program organized by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and led by Thomas Bruhn from the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS). Launched in 2023, the initiative brings together Heads of Climate from multinational companies for a multi-day, in-person experience designed to strengthen climate leadership, foster peer exchange and deepen collaborative capacity.

Hosted annually in Potsdam, Germany, at RIFS (2023, 2024 and 2025), the Base Camp combines strategic dialogue with experiential learning formats that encourage reflection, trust-building and systems thinking. The program creates a confidential space for senior climate leaders to share best practices, discuss common challenges and co-develop solutions that accelerate corporate climate action.
In January 2026, the concept expanded with the first APAC Heads of Climate Base Camp in Hong Kong.

Ostara

Ostara brings together communities of change-makers to radically reimagine our collective future.
Climate breakdown, ecosystem collapse, and growing inequality are deeply interconnected and systemic. Yet, despite decades of effort, progress has remained incremental.
We create spaces to dream beyond the limits of our current systems, and reimagine the world together. From business leaders, policy makers and scientists, to Indigenous voices, farmers and youth representatives — we convene diverse actors to address entrenched issues and incubate transformative solutions.
What makes our work distinct is how we hold the space between worlds: between inner and outer, Indigenous and Western, human and more-than-human, imagination and action. We draw credibility from decades within established systems while walking alongside those giving form to what is emerging.

FONA-Forum 2024

With the FONA Forum 2024, the BMBF deliberately moved away from the familiar event formats of lectures and panel discussions and turned listeners into genuine participants. The event was designed and implemented in collaboration with the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS).

Over three days, around 200 thought leaders from science, business, administration, politics, and civil society worked and discussed the following questions intensively in changing small groups.

– How can effective research for sustainability be achieved in a rapidly changing world?
– What does socially effective research mean?
– How does each individual’s research contribute to the sustainability transformation?

FONA-Forum 2024: Ein ko-kreativer Ansatz für Transformation

Das vom Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung geförderte FONA-Forum 2024 hat mit einem neuen Format experimentiert: Es lud die Teilnehmenden ein, aktiv mitzuwirken, und schuf einen ko-kreativen Raum für lösungsorientierte Diskussionen. In das Experiment sind Prinzipien und Erfahrungen aus der Gestaltung transformativer Räume und aus Dialogprozessen der inter- und transdisziplinären Forschung eingeflossen.

The Patterns of Aliveness Theory.

This chapter argues that approaches to navigating complex world making and transformative change for sustainability are more effective when they are anchored in a profound understanding of life processes. The chapter takes the concept of systems aliveness as a quality element of a pattern approach one step further. It advances 13 propositions regarding essential features of life enhancement in systems that can also inform a better understanding of enlivening human co-creation. The propositions lay the basis for the Patterns of Aliveness Theory, which shows how six essential organizing principles allow life to emerge, thrive, and re-create itself in natural as well as social systems. The chapter suggests that these principles must be taken into account in the practice of leading collectively and shows how they become the foundation of a conceptual architecture for stewarding sustainability transformations.

Systems Theory, Complexity Theory, and Radical Emergence

Systems theory, complexity theory, and emergence help biologists to understand the evolution of radical
novelty. Together they stretch traditional conceptions of science. This working group begins with the groundbreaking
contributions of Stuart Kauffman, who will be present. We examine these important resources in the biological sciences and
the new vision of the biosphere that they are producing.

Prof. Peter Kruse on Creativity – How It Is Suppressed and How It Emerges Description:

In this interview excerpt, Peter Kruse explains why creativity and innovation cannot be directly produced or commanded. Instead, he frames creativity as an emergent phenomenon that arises from specific systemic conditions rather than from individual effort or top-down control.

A core argument of the talk is the distinction between direct and indirect variables: culture, creativity, and innovation are indirect variables that cannot be managed through projects or instructions. They only emerge when appropriate enabling environments are created. According to Kruse, key enabling factors include diversity, internal tension, networks, and non-linear feedback loops. Systems that are overly harmonious and uniform tend to be stable but unintelligent, whereas systems that allow contradiction, disturbance, and difference can enter unstable phases where new patterns—and thus creativity—can emerge.

Drawing on systems theory, neuroscience, and swarm intelligence, Kruse argues that complex, dynamic problems can only be addressed by systems with an equivalent level of complexity (referencing Ashby’s Law of Requisite Variety). He highlights the importance of networking as a way to increase complexity and collective intelligence.

In the final part, Kruse describes three key roles within creative networks—Creators, Owners, and Brokers—and compares their interaction to functional components of the human brain. When these roles are effectively connected, the collective intelligence of the system exceeds the sum of individual intelligences.

The video offers a profound systems-theoretical perspective on creativity, innovation, organizational design, and collective intelligence, making it highly relevant for leadership, management, transformation processes, and social change.

Integration and Implementation Insights (i2Insights)

Integration and Implementation Insights (i2Insights) is a global initiative dedicated to advancing Integration and Implementation Sciences (i2S). It functions as a living, evolving toolkit and an open knowledge platform where community members contribute practical tools and conceptual reflections in the form of blog posts. These contributions are curated and stored in an accessible repository, fostering collective learning across disciplines and sectors.

i2Insights aims to strengthen the capacity to address complex societal challenges by improving how diverse forms of knowledge are integrated and translated into practice. It is particularly relevant for researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and boundary-spanners working at the science–policy–society interface.

The platform not only features new and highlighted contributions on its homepage, but also maintains a comprehensive archive of posts, alongside updates, statistics, and documented milestones that trace its development. Through partnerships and a global network of i2Insights Ambassadors, the initiative continuously expands its reach and supports knowledge exchange across regions and disciplines.

By streamlining administrative processes and fostering community-driven authorship, i2Insights sustains a collaborative and accessible environment. In doing so, it contributes to building shared methodological foundations for transdisciplinary research and implementation practice worldwide.

Daring to Do Scientific Conferences Differently

In this blog, Thomas Bruhn reflects on the limitations of conventional scientific conferences and explores how alternative, highly interactive formats can foster deeper exchange, collaboration, and collective creativity. Drawing on his experience designing and co-creating the reimagined FONA Forum with the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, he illustrates how conferences can move beyond information consumption toward genuine participation and community-building. The article invites researchers and organisers to experiment with bold, participatory formats that better support inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration in addressing complex societal challenges.

On Warriors and Heroes – Group Dynamics at the UN Climate Conferences

This blog analyses the role of psychosocial group dynamics in negotiations at UN Climate Conferences, based on participant observation at COP28 and interviews with negotiators. It examines how formal and informal negotiation settings shape communication, emotional dynamics, and power relations, using the metaphor of “warriors and heroes” to describe defensive and cooperative negotiation styles. The authors argue that the quality of negotiation outcomes is closely linked to the quality of interaction and call for improved facilitation, group-dynamic competence, and relationship-building formats to support more inclusive, trust-based, and effective climate negotiations—particularly for less-resourced delegations.

Safe Spaces in Unsafe Environments – Facilitating Dialogue and Reflection at the UN Climate Conference

This blog presents insights from designing and facilitating spaces for dialogue and reflection at UN Climate Conferences. Drawing on experiences from the Co-Creative Reflection and Dialogue Spaces (CCRDS) hosted at COPs, the authors show how relationship-building, embodied practices, and reflexive facilitation can foster trust, mutual learning, and constructive exchange across diverse stakeholder groups. The article offers practical lessons on transdisciplinary process knowledge and highlights the importance of relational and facilitative approaches for collaboration in politically contested and high-pressure settings.

COP28 in Dubai: Greenwashing or Genuine Ambitions?

This blog reflects on the tensions and contradictions experienced at COP28 in Dubai, asking whether the conference marked a genuine turning point in climate ambition or largely reproduced patterns of greenwashing. Drawing on participant observation, the authors examine the contrast between official commitments to climate action and the host country’s resource-intensive development model, as well as the ambivalent messages conveyed through the conference’s imagery and discourse. The article situates the COP28 agreement within broader debates on fossil fuel phase-out, innovation, and planetary boundaries, and argues for transparent, evidence-based approaches to assess the credibility of climate commitments and rebuild trust in global climate governance.

Organizational Transformation in the European Commission

This blog explores organizational transformation within the European Commission, focusing on emerging participatory leadership practices and new approaches to collaboration in political administration. Drawing on an exchange between the TranS-Mind research group and the European Commission’s Centre for Organisational Transformation, the authors reflect on how rigid administrative structures can be reshaped to better address complex sustainability challenges. The article highlights the role of dialogue, co-creation, and capacity building in fostering healthier, more resilient, and adaptive work environments within large public institutions.

Fear and trust in UN climate policy at UNFCCC COP27

This blog explores the role of fear and trust as inner dimensions shaping communication, agency, and collaboration in UN climate policy, using COP27 as a case study. Drawing on research and practical experience from the Co-Creative Reflection and Dialogue Spaces (CCRDS), the authors examine how political spaces can be designed to consciously address emotions, values, and worldviews that are usually sidelined in formal negotiations. The article argues that engaging with fear and trust through reflective and dialogic formats can strengthen collective agency, improve the culture of communication at UN Climate Conferences, and support more transformative approaches to climate governance.

Confronting fears – Strengthening trust

This blog introduces the Co-Creative Reflection and Dialogue Space (CCRDS) at UN Climate Conferences as an experimental format to address fear, mistrust, and emotional overload in climate negotiations. Drawing on experiences from COP24–COP26 and preparing for COP27, the authors reflect on how consciously designed spaces for dialogue, reflection, and co-creation can strengthen trust, agency, and collaboration among diverse stakeholders. The article highlights the importance of engaging inner dimensions such as emotions, values, and mindsets to improve the culture of communication and support more transformative approaches to global climate action.

On the culture of untapped potential

This blog offers a critical reflection on the communication and working culture at UNFCCC COP23, based on participant observation in the Bonn Zone. The author describes a prevailing atmosphere of consumption, superficial networking, and one-way knowledge transfer that, in his view, leaves much of the conference’s collective potential untapped. At the same time, the article points to emerging alternatives—such as dialogic and participatory formats like the Talanoa Space—and argues for a fundamental shift toward more reflective, interactive, and co-creative modes of engagement to better address the challenges of climate change.

The system within: Addressing the inner dimensions of sustainability and systems transformation

As part of the Earth4All project, collaborators have submitted deep-dive papers to delve further into the issues and solutions needed to transform our economic system and provide an equitable future for all on a finite planet. This paper highlights the overlooked inner dimension of system change, and offers systems thinkers the language to advocate for psychological, social and spiritual factors crucial to sustainable solutions.

Relational Leadership as a Leverage Point: a Transdisciplinary Collaboration for Climate-Related Transformation in Business

This blog explores relationship-oriented leadership as a powerful lever for climate-related transformation in business. Using the Head of Climate Base Camp as a case study, it illustrates how transdisciplinary collaboration, trust-building, and reflective dialogue can enable leaders to activate individual, organisational, and systemic leverage points for sustainability transitions, bridging research and practice.

Templeton World Charity Foundation

Templeton World Charity Foundation’s mission is to fund interdisciplinary research and innovations on what it means to be human to unlock our full potential. The Foundation catalyzes discovery and accelerates progress in the spiritual search for meaning, purpose, and truth. They promote scientific findings and religious exploration to inspire new perspectives on life’s deepest questions.

LEVER (Our sustainabLe futurE, the ValuEs that dRive it, and how to get there)

How can sustainability science support society in overcoming today’s global crises?

Between studying change and contributing to change, sustainability science seeks both to analytically understand sustainability problems, but also to design interventions that can contribute solution-options to these problems. However, knowledge about how to intervene in order to reach a desirable vision (i.e., transformation knowledge) is typically missing. Especially how to deliberately engage with values as places of intervention (leverage points), as proposed by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, remains a critical knowledge gap.

LEVER hypothesizes that the methods of traditional analytical frameworks that consider change and values are not sufficient to address sustainability transformation. It assumes that new transformative methods are necessary to generate transformation knowledge. To fill these gaps, LEVER aims to critically develop and apply a transformative theory and practice to support the (co-)production of transformation knowledge, including a focus on transformation knowledge necessary to unleash values as leverage points for sustainability transformation. To this end, LEVER weaves mode-2 and mode-1 science. It combines transdisciplinary research with empirical methods and experiments with novel transformative tools.

CIRCLE

CIRCLE at Stanford Psychiatry is a research and action initiative devoted to the advancement of Community-minded Interventions for Resilience, Climate Leadership, and Emotional well-being. We exist to address the mental health impacts of climate change in inclusive ways that support groups and communities, with a specialization in climate distress and the co-design and evaluation of interventions with impacted communities. We envision a world in which community members, clinicians, and other mental health professionals understand and feel capable of helping to solve the growing mental health crisis within the climate crisis.

Zubizarreta-Ada, Rosa

Rosa is currently a Senior Fellow at the Research Institute for Sustainability. The larger vision that calls her, is a world where humanity has developed immunity to divide-and-conquer tactics, through widepread literacy in “the Listening Arts”, including mediation, facilitation, conflict de-escalation, and conflict transformation. She sees a strong synergy between developing wide-spread lay communities of practice in these areas, and also, honoring the work and ongoing learning of professional practitioners.

Grand Theory of Societal Advancement

Grand Theory of Societal Advancement
A comprehensive theory, a historic echo of our first version of civilization formed from the Neolithic package of upgrades. Comprised of specialized works from a broad spectrum of fields of study and independent researchers. The overarching goal of GTSA is to provide humanity with the necessary tools and systems for enhanced global cooperation, innovation, and unity, particularly in navigating the challenges of the 21st century and the Anthropocene. The Anthropocene is a major adaptation in our evolutionary journey of civilization:
a. Civilization 1.0: Marked by the stability and developments of the Neolithic Package, representing the dawn of structured human society.
b. The Industrial Age: Characterized by significant technological and industrial advancements.
c. The Great Acceleration: A period of rapid development with both benefits and challenges, marking a significant leap in human capability and impact.
d. Civilization 1.95: Defined by persistent crises, highlighting the need for a significant shift in societal management.
e. Civilization 2.0: The ultimate goal of GTSA, aiming for enhanced societal functioning and problem-solving.

Boa Foundation

We work in alliance with indigenous communities to preserve and protect sacred land, culture, and ancient wisdom. We support projects including strategic land buybacks, restoration of native ecosystems, cultural exchange, and sustainable living solutions.

Our planet is a miracle. Life has evolved for millions of years, creating a rich and diverse ecosystem, an intricate web where all life can thrive. The climate crisis is the result of a deep man-made imbalance on the Earth. Our species has been extracting, producing, and polluting without much consideration for other forms of life, even our own. This imbalance is a symptom of our alienation from natural rhythms, cycles, and systems, and our lack of a caring relationship to our world. This also manifests in ever-increasing crises in mental health, breakdown of communities, and auto-immune diseases being diagnosed at alarming rates. The Boa Foundation works together with indigenous communities worldwide to address these issues holistically, supporting both cultural and natural diversity, and the healing of our selves and the planet.

TES Academy – International Academy Environment and Sustainability

In order to shape a sustainable future, we need people on all levels from local to global who are capable of implementing transformation processes for the environment and sustainability. Also, developing structures and networks of such people that deal with sustainability challenges in different contexts and with different knowledge are essential.
The TES Academy addresses these actors and accompanies them to jointly identify and address topics of transformations that have a high potential to increase their implementation by international knowledge exchange and joint learning activities across countries.

Fackenthal, Jeremy

Jeremy Fackenthal is an independent filmmaker and NGO director. After completing a PhD in Philosophy of Religion and Theology from Claremont Graduate University, he began using his philosophical background beyond the academy to raise questions and craft narratives. In recent years, Jeremy’s work has included video content produced for clients and shorter independent documentary projects. Jeremy most recently served as Managing Director of the Institute for Ecological Civilization, and he is currently exploring new nonprofit possibilities that wed sustainability and storytelling.

the school of nothing

the school of nothing is investigating the realm of nothing.
As an applied research project it develops and implements artistic and scientific interventions in the public space and open performances | workshops for people being interested into exploring the qualities conntected to nothing, e.g. nothingness, silence, emptiness, darkness, pause, serenity, Lassenskraft, waiting, withdrawing, contemplation, doing nothing, leisure

The Communities of Practice Playbook

Working through communities of practice has never been more encouraged in organisations than it is now. Better gathering, sharing and using of data, information and knowledge in public organisations such as the European Commission are essential to deliver integrated policy work and overcome silo mentalities. This is highlighted explicitly in European Commission President von der Leyen’s work guidelines stipulating transparency and the ambition to become a digitally transformed, user-focused and data-driven administration. Communities of practice are an excellent instrument for fostering collaboration among internal and external stakeholders: they can bring groups with different knowledge perspectives together and can strengthen their capacity to work and learn creatively together. Thus, communities of practice harness the collective intelligence in organisations and help improve performance.

Buen Vivir SchoolHouse

We want a Good Life in Togetherness.
Individualism, isolation and fear are among the plagues of western societies. They could be overcome by living a sense-making, happiness-oriented, future-building community life.
But where to start? We are convinced that the first step to salvation is knowledge. Not just our own knowledge, but the wisdom that comes from relying on the collective knowledge of the people we know and we are close to.
And we also think that we need to learn to be brave showing our vulnerability when we ask others for help or support.

Our dream is to use this place as a permanent laboratory of conviviality and reciprocity, where we can…
… learn, together with others, to share and develop manual skills, techniques and abilities.
… deepen our knowledge in reciprocity, to respond to the challenges of the future in an exportable and networked way.
… shape the opportunities to slow down, reflect, think and understand reality and ourselves in a continuous and deep way.
… re-learn to trust others and ourselves.
We believe that “exchange without money as a mediator should be a daily component of everyone’s life“. 
This is why we propose to our visitors to explore together how to regulate our exchange of space and time in order to avoid the use of money as much as possible and lay the foundations for a relationship of true reciprocity (barters can be circular, not necessarily dual). 
In case guests want to reciprocate the hospitality, they can:
1.Choose a way to help us maintain or manage these spaces, by picking from the list of objects and works still needed in the house.
2.Consider expanding our respective network and skills, by offering a workshop (or think of someone they know that could offer one).
3.If nothing we to exchange falls within their possibilities or preferences, then they can help us cover some running costs (for example leaving a “suspended fee” as cash offer for a future offer or some works or bringing a bag of pellets) or propose other exchange possibilities.

Beyers, Felix

Felix is a transdisciplinary researcher

Hafner, Judith

Her context of languages (German, Italian, English, French, Chinese) and professional experiences (business, international cooperation, community building) speaks of her longing to connect spaces through listening.

Her body-felt and mind-opening experience of flow in different trainings (Presencing Institute, Seele und Sein, Thomas Hübl, Art of Hosting) shifted her deeper into inner alignment and availability as basic drivers for growth.

She coordinates, together with four other women, the network future.bz.it in Nortnern Italy around the Agenda 2030, and tries to stay in service of the emerging field, driven by simplicity, curiosity and a sense of connection.

Zeng, Yilan

After demolition and resettlement in 2017, we are still in flux. During the slow recovery, we first focused on the establishment of a visualized online community, hoping that by finding like-minded partners, we can once again restore and rebuild the green art entrepreneurship park on the earth.

Choutko, Alexandra

Beyers, Felix

Felix is working as a research associate in the TranS-Mind Research group at RIFS after finalising his PhD at Leuphana University on “Political challenges of a textile transformation”. He focussed on interaction and learning spaces in collaborative governance initiatives between market, civil society and industry actors. Today he …

Martin, Laura

Center, Athena

We are a center bridging science, business, and “ancient wisdom” from different traditions to bring sustainability and equality to the (business) world.

Walk, Heike

Kay, David

Initially trained as an economist, I work as a senior outreach faculty member at Cornell University. I am affiliated with the Community and Regional Development Institute in Cornell’s Department of Global Development. I am interested primarily in community decision making and governance; the institutional, policy and personal changes needed for an energy transition in the US; and the responses of individuals and communities to the increasing risks posed by climate change.

Specking, Heiko

specking+partners advises on sustainability issues, and engages with corporations, charitable structures, wealthy individuals and their families. In this respect we support the enhancement of responsible behaviour both for business related and personal activities. As an independent Swiss-based company, we ensure that value-based practices can become part of the DNA of a project or an organization.

Together with our clients, we build long-term, holistic strategies for responsible engagement, philanthropic activities, sustainable investment and social entrepreneurship. We then work to support implementation of their strategies and to realize the desired impact.

Fostering Reflection, Dialogue and Collaboration among Actors at the UN Climate Change Conferences, IASS Policy Brief

Creating space for reflection and dialogue: Examples of new modes of communication for empowering climate action

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.” This quote by Albert Einstein highlights our need for new formats of communication to address the knowledge-action gap regarding climate change and other sustainability challenges. This includes reflection, and communication spaces, as well as methods and approaches that can catalyze the emergence of transformative change and action. In this article we present and reflect on experiments we carried out at international climate negotiations and conferences.

(Taken from www.ingentaconnect.com/content/oekom/gaia/2021/00000030/00000003/art00010;jsessionid=bc027khsn74t1.x-ic-live-02)

Connecting to Change the World: Harnessing the Power of Networks for Social Impact

Something new and important is afoot. Nonprofit and philanthropic organizations are under increasing pressure to do more and to do better to increase and improve productivity with fewer resources. Social entrepreneurs, community-minded leaders, nonprofit organizations, and philanthropists now recognize that to achieve greater impact they must adopt a network-centric approach to solving difficult problems. Building networks of like-minded organizations and people offers them a way to weave together and create strong alliances that get better leverage, performance, and results than any single organization is able to do.

While the advantages of such networks are clear, there are few resources that offer easily understandable, field-tested information on how to form and manage social-impact networks. Drawn from the authors’ deep experience with more than thirty successful network projects, Connecting to Change the World provides the frameworks, practical advice, case studies, and expert knowledge needed to build better performing networks. Readers will gain greater confidence and ability to anticipate challenges and opportunities.

Easily understandable and full of actionable advice, Connecting to Change the World is an informative guide to creating collaborative solutions to tackle the most difficult challenges society faces.

(taken from https://islandpress.org/books/connecting-change-world)

Co-Creative Reflection & Dialogue Space at UNFCCC COP

The IASS first hosted a Dialogue and Reflection Space at the climate conference in Katowice in 2018. The space attracted participants from a diverse range of professional backgrounds, countries and age groups and offered a safe space for discussions in smaller groups as well as in-depth conversation and reflection in the midst of this major event. Many of the participants praised the space for providing a supportive setting that generated valuable insights.

“The space provides a setting for genuine encounters that inspire creative thinking and broaden perspectives. The delegates to the conference bring a substantial and diverse potential with them, but opportunities for genuine exchange are often few and far between. The Dialogue and Reflection Space provides a framework for cooperation in which new ideas and effective strategies can emerge. This is an important contribution to achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement,” says IASS researcher Carolin Fraude.

Over the course of the two-week climate change conference, the IASS will be offering “Learning Journey” workshops twice daily. The two sessions, which can also be attended separately, build on each other and feature a co-creative approach spanning three phases in which the following three questions are addressed:

1)   Why does a culture of cooperation need to be cultivated and developed further at the COP?
2)   What culture do we need to make the COP more effective?
3)   What can we do to promote this culture?

The programme at the space will be supported by a research team from the IASS in collaboration with colleagues from Chalmers University of Technology, Lund University and the University of East Anglia.

The results will be published on Twitter and a blog. The programme also includes unstructured time for personal conversations and diary-keeping.

Invitation_R&DSpace Invitation_RDSpace2019 Concept-note_RD2019

Concept note_R&D_1

Björkman, Tomas

My name is Tomas Björkman and I am an applied philosopher and social entrepreneur.

One of the strongest personal drivers in my life has always been to unlock the hidden structures of the world around me. Curious and exploring, I constantly strive for a better understanding of science, people and social phenomena. Based on my understanding of human and societal needs in a world that is in many ways falling apart, I have committed myself to facilitating the co-creation of a more conscious society.

I want to give momentum to the right kind of changes

I am by no means the only person trying to become more conscious about the problems in the world. Many are also actively doing something about it. My main contribution is to bring change-makers together by creating arenas and initiatives with the goal of stimulating the right kind of development at both an individual and a societal level. The overall goal is to co-create a future at a higher level of individual, cultural, societal consciousness.

In 2008, I started my personal journey by founding Stiftelsen Ekskäret (Ekskäret Foundation) together with a number of future-oriented thinkers, social entrepreneurs and change-makers who became members of the board or creative partners. The Foundation’s strategic vision is to “support a sustainable world where people are creating more well-being for themselves, each other and the planet”. I strongly believe that personal development is a prerequisite for societal change.

Under the umbrella of the Ekskäret Foundation, we have created primarily two venues for events, Learning Labs and exploratory meetings etc.: the workshop facility at the island of Ekskäret (literally: the island where the oak-trees grow), located in the Stockholm archipelago, and the co-working space Ekskäret Klustret in central Stockholm.

The workshop facility on the island of Ekskäret welcomed its first curious and creative visitors in 2011. The facility provides a breath-taking venue and is a perfect arena for exploring existential questions and personal development – for teenager as well as adults. All activities on the island are carried out according to the principles of the Foundation. Ekskäret Klustret, a creative, activity-based co-working space located in the very heart of Stockholm city centre, opened its doors in 2016.

I believe that providing physical and digital meeting venues will create fertile soil for change. Gathering change-makers under one roof will stimulate sharing of ideas and creativity and lead to the co-creation of new initiatives and projects. It will also expand the networks of all participating entrepreneur and generate greater momentum for their important work.

I like to think of these two arenas as important incubators for co-creating positive changes. They are physical manifestations of the idea that a more conscious and sustainable society is possible, and we do watch and guide the ripple effects that result.

More recently I have taken the initiative to create K9 Co-living, Stockholm; Perspectiva Institute, London; the Co-creation loft, Berlin and the digital initiatives 29k.org and ‘Emerge’: www.whatisemerging.com.

Ragnarsdottir, Kristin Vala

I am originally an Earth Scientist with emphasis on geothermal systems and behaviour and fate of pollutants in the natural environment. Since 2000 I have been working on issues related to sustainability.

Voggenreiter, Valerie

Sustainability – Self – Silence
Silence Spaces is a collective of four people, which resulted out of sustainable higher education at the Eberswalde University for sustainable development. During the M.Sc. program we realised, that the inner dimension is under represented when sustainability efforts come into action. Hence, we created a space for the self to empower sustainable behavior in silence and finally helping to transform mindsets and societies. Silence Spaces are physical as well as symbolic spaces. They are free of cyber activities, talking, reading, writing or any kind of input as long as there is not a a conceptualized learning journey taking place. In Silence we learn how to drop into ourselves, observe, reflect, relax – deep learning can take place and this environment can help us to deal more sustainable with ourselves instead of exploiting our own resources. Finally, Silence Spaces want to empower each single individual to invite inner change in order to initiate and shape sustainable outer change – and Silence is the container where this processes can origin from. Silence allows to LISTEN to our inner needs, become more empathic and caring towards oneself as well as the surroundings.

Silence Space

What is sustainability? Often, environmental aspects are in the foreground, while the social dimension is neglected. A transformation towards a more sustainable society, though, needs to consider the social and individual dimension as inner change causes outer change – and vice versa. We see the inner dimension underrepresented in public spheres.
We raise the awareness, that we need more than a technological understanding of sustainability, which cares primarily about the ecological consequences of our actions. We call for a shift in consciousness, too, which influences our thinking and action.
To think critically and acting according to it, is asked from each one of us. We believe that these capacities can be found in Silence. It offers a container for subjective transformation processes – by pausing consciously and taking part at learning journeys on (self)transformation. Deep inner change towards sustainability can’t happen in times of overwhelming stress and acceleration.
Silence Spaces in public places allow a transformation on both levels with the emphasis on internal spaces. The potential to become a part of the solution of grievances lies in every one of us and is able to unfold here. Silence Spaces are physical as well as symbolic spaces. They are free of cyber activities, talking, eating or any kind of input as long as there is not a learning journey taking place. In Silence we can drop into ourselves, observe, relax and reflect. We can gather strength and become observers when we exploit ourselves or witness exploitation of others and the environment. We need an economic and political shift and therefore promote spaces where critical thinking can happen, which is needed to bring along system change. The time for cool headed action is now.

Co-Creative Reflection & Dialogue Space at COP25

The results will be published on Twitter and a blog. The programme also includes unstructured time for personal conversations and diary-keeping.

Invitation_R&DSpace

Concept note_R&D_1

Fraude, Carolin

Sadhana Forest

“Sadhana Forest started its ecological revival and sustainable living work on December 19th 2003.

The vision of its founders, Yorit and Aviram Rozin, is to transform 70 acres of severely eroded, arid land on the outskirts of Auroville. In a spirit of human unity, their aim is to introduce a growing number of people to sustainable living, food security through ecological transformation, wasteland reclamation, and veganism. Our energy and resources are focused on the creation of a vibrant, indigenous Tropical Dry Evergreen Forest (TDEF).

Sadhana Forest won the third place in the Humanitarian Water and Food Award (WAF) 2010. The ceremony took place in the Marble Hall of the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, on November 25th, 2010. Shri Ashok Kumar Attri the Ambassador of India to Denmark honored Sadhana Forest by attending the ceremony.
This award is an international recognition of the quality of the ecological and humanitarian work done by Sadhana Forest in India and Haiti.”

(source: https://sadhanaforest.org/about-us/)

Tomorrow

“WHY THIS FILM ?

TODAY, we sometimes feel powerless in front of the various crises of our times.
TODAY, we know that answers lie in a wide mobilization of the human race. Over the course of a century, our dream of progress commonly called “the American Dream”, fundamentally changed the way we live and continues to inspire many developing countries. We are now aware of the setbacks and limits of such development policies. We urgently need to focus our efforts on changing our dreams before something irreversible happens to our planet.
TODAY, we need a new direction, objective… A new dream! The documentary Tomorrow sets out to showcase alternative and creative ways of viewing agriculture, economics, energy and education. It offers constructive solutions to act on a local level to make a difference on a global level. So far, no other documentary has gone down such an optimistic road…
TOMORROW is not just a film, it is the beginning of a movement seeking to encourage local communities around the world to change the way they live for the sake of our planet.

Start small to grow big, and write a new story for the generations to come.”

(source: https://www.tomorrow-documentary.com/)

The Bridge

RESEARCH EXCHANGES IN AUROVILLE

Auroville is the largest and longest-standing intentional community in the world, practically researching into the evolutionary potential of humankind, developing award-winning transformational practices across fields of culture, economics, governance, education, environment, and health, recognized by UNESCO, the Indian Government, and major industries such as Tata. Visiting researchers can bridge this future-facing body of experimentation with developments in their fields worldwide, for the benefit of humanity as a whole.

WHO WE ARE

The Bridge promotes exchange between Auroville and visiting researchers similarly dedicated to the progress of human society.
We curate presentations and forums that facilitate exchange and the intiation of collaborative projects between Aurovilian and visiting experts.

WHO ARE YOU?

Are you an Aurovilian or visiting expert – in any field? We invite you to offer a presentation of your work.
Contact: thebridge@auroville.org.in
Are you an Auroville community member, volunteer, or visitor? You are welcome to attend our public events series!

Omann, Ines

Since I have been a teenager, the environment and the way we deal with it, has been important to me. After school I was searching for studies, where I could combine environmental and social sciences. Well, I did not find it then, therefore I started together with a group of other students and young assistant professor to develop a new study program, called environmental system sciences. It is based on systems and integrated thinking and the idea to study one major subject (in my case economics) plus courses in natural sciences, systems theory, interdisciplinary thinking. Now it is a big program with 1000s of alumni and students (see here: https://umweltsystemwissenschaften.uni-graz.at/). After having obtained my Masters in 1997, I started to work as junior resarchersin research institutes such as the Wuppertal Institute, later at the University of Graz, where I was also teaching. I came across the scientific community of Ecological Economics, where I found my scientific home base. I got active in this society and started a PhD at the Universities of Graz and Leeds, which I finished in 2004. Since then I have been working as project leader in sustainability projects at different research institutes (more than 10 years at SERI in Vienna, which I co-founded, the UFZ in Leipzig, or the Vienna University of Economics). My research developed continually towards transformation research, quality of life/good life. There inner processes became more and more important. It was with my dear colleague Felix Rauschmayer that we started to work on links between needs, wellbeing, sustainability, the good life or capabilities. Through him I met Thomas from IASS and other people working on inner change. My projects are mainly transdisciplinary, because I am convinced, the challenges, we face, cannot be solved by science alone. I have started to take courses in moderation and facilitation, such as Circle, Dialogue, Art of Hosting, Dynamic facilitation etc. to be able to integrated all relevant actors in an appropriate way. Personally I would say I am on a journey bringing me more and more to myself and to the “größeres ganze”. I am on a spiritual path, practice meditation for many years, and try to live a life that is more and more sustainable, outwards and inwards.

Pacific Integral

Pacific Integral is a developer of educational and social change technologies and a global community of leaders and practitioners of transformative change. We aim to support the emergence of a sustainable, equitable and beautiful future for humanity and all of creation. We believe that humanity is in the midst of a profound period of change, and that addressing the opportunities of our time require that we embrace universal human values and ethical action, awaken to and engage in our evolutionary potential, and enact more conscious, integral forms of leadership and collective action in the world, grounded in our deepest wisdom. To this end, we endeavor to impact human development, leadership, and social change at the emergent edge of consciousness and action.

We serve individuals and organizations who see their life and work as an opportunity to make a positive contribution to the future of our world. Our clients are curious and committed. They know they are evolving as people and tend to already have experience in their own development. Our individual clients have a passion for their own growth and for engaging in life deeply and ethically. Our organizational clients tend to have a social purpose or see themselves as serving multiple bottom lines, and have leaders who are interested in working novel and emerging leadership and organizational approaches to foster healthy, transformative work environments.

taken from https://www.pacificintegral.com/about

Evolution at work

Evolution at Work offers over a decade of experience in guiding personal and organizational journeys into self-organization

The shift to self-organization is a transformational and multi-dimensional journey. No two journeys are the same, and this work requires differentiated approaches to learning and development. Everything Evolution at Work offers includes the following three approaches:

Teaching: Presenting a unique combination of theoretical background and practical stories drawn from real-life experience, we help you gain a deep understanding of the Whats, Whys, and Hows of your experience.

Facilitation: Taking a holistic approach to learning, we guide you through exercises that cultivate an embodied confidence with the processes, exercises, and practices that support sustainable self-organization.

Holding Space: We commit to being fully present with what is needed now, without judgment. Love, care, and compassion are at the heart of our work.

taken from https://www.evolutionatwork.org/about

Emerge

Emerge is an independent, non-profit media platform highlighting the initiatives, individuals and ways of thinking that are sowing the seeds of a new civilisation.

We are exploring how to act wisely in a world that seems out of control. We aim to explore the emerging cultural narratives of our time by collecting useful content from across the web, profiling change makers and thinkers, publishing thought-provoking commentary and producing original videos and podcasts.

We are living in times of profound transition where our ways of working, communicating and governing are quickly transforming. Many of our received wisdoms, habits and perspectives are becoming obsolete. What will emerge in the vacuum created by this disruption is not yet clear, but some critical questions hang in the balance:

Will we manage to avert ecological crisis? Will our new technologies enable powerful collaboration, or create intense polarisation? What does it mean to live a meaningful life in relationship with ourselves and others?

Nobody knows what the world will look like in 20 years time. At Emerge we believe that we all have a part to play in weaving a new story for humanity and our planet.

In fact, we are already doing it.

By combining live events with the power of the internet, Emerge is a hub for people and initiatives searching for solutions to pressing global challenges, asking the question: What new patterns of living, working and existing together are currently emerging?

We are a network and a movement that celebrates people and projects, and we offer an invitation to each of us to discover our role in this new story.

What We Believe

The challenges facing our world today are more complex and species-threatening than ever before in human history. The global threat of climate change and the social impacts of digitalisation and globalisation are currently far more complex than our collective capacity to comprehend. In order for us to move forward, our thinking about global problems has to evolve to match their complexity.

Our personal psychology is of huge consequence to the outside world. If we are going to transform as a society then the personal development of individuals must be taken seriously as a societal, as well as an individual, concern.

There is no one ‘true’ way of seeing the world. In order to move forward we need to transcend binary thinking.This means moving beyond left and right political divides, thinking in terms of individual and collective responsibility, national and global identity, honoring individual identities and recognising the need to focus on a greater “we”.

Our world is socially constructed in more ways than we habitually tend to think. Human beings are dependent on and connected to the natural world, but when it comes to human society we are the creators. This means that we have more power than we realise to change it.

The emerging future will be co-created by all of us. The world is learning to come together in new ways and each of us has a vital role to play. Emerge is a place where all are called forth to bring our gifts to the greater circle.

Across the world, there are hundreds of initiatives, projects and persons who are already tackling real world problems from this place of deeper awareness. Our aim is to bring awareness to this growing movement and connect the dots between the people and projects contributing to this emergence.

This is a time of profound collaboration and we see you as a vital part of this mission. We’d love to weave your voice and vision into all that is being created and keep you updated on the launch of new projects, events and initiatives around the world.

Text from http://www.whatisemerging.com/about

A Mindset for the Anthropocene

The AMA project is a science-based reflection and empowerment hub for change agents engaging in inner transformation in the context of socio-ecological transformation. Institutionally the AMA project is operating as a transdisciplinary research project at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS) in Potsdam. Beyond its research work, the AMA project acts as a network catalyst for an emerging global community that aims at cultivating ethical and virtuous qualities of the human mind as drivers of socio-ecological transformations to sustainability.

Berkana Institute

The Berkana Institute and our partners share the clarity that whatever the problem, community is the answer. We prepare for an unknown future by creating strong & sustainable relationships, by wisely stewarding the earth’s resources and by building resilient communities. We rely on our experience that most human beings are caring, generous and want to be together. We have learned that people can get through anything as long as we’re together. Berkana was founded in 1991 to create communities of support and inquiry for those working to create a future of promise and possibility that benefits all people. We are based in the U.S. and operate as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

We work from an evolving, coherent theory of change. Since 1991, we have been learning from life (living systems) about how to create systems that are interdependent, adaptive and resilient. Everything we do is a conscious experiment to better understand two of life’s robust capacities: self-organization–life’s process for creating order (effectiveness) without control, and emergence–life’s means for creating system-wide change, taking things to scale. Read Lifecycle of Emergence: Using Emergence to Take Social Innovation to Scale by Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze.

We work at the level of community. The Berkana Institute works in partnership with a rich diversity of people around the world who strengthen their communities by working with the wisdom and wealth already present in their people, traditions and environments. Berkana and our partners share the clarity that whatever the problem, community is the answer. We prepare for an unknown future by creating strong and sustainable relationships, by wisely stewarding the earth’s resources and by building resilient communities. We rely on our experience that most human beings are caring, generous and want to be together. We have learned that human beings can get through anything as long as we’re together.

We focus on four key activities. In many ways, Berkana’s work is quite straightforward. We name trailblazing leaders and communities, connect them to one another, nourish them with relationships, learning, resources, and support, and illuminate their stories as important examples of the future taking place right now

Hüther, Gerald

Bruhn, Thomas

As the initiator and coordinator of AMA, I feel a deep commitment to the project‘s original intention and ambition. I care particularly about community building and see my conceptual work as a support for community empowerment. I love the diversity of perspectives that we aspire to integrate and the challenges that this aspiration means for my own development. I believe in the intrinsic goodness of all humans and tend to see the unity and connectedness behind apparent cultural or disciplinary differences.

My Background and Expertise:

PhD in Physics (self-assembly in nano-structures)
Facilitation & Moderation (Art of Hosting, Design Thinking…)
Complex systems dynamics (self-organization, emergence)
Transdisciplinarity & co-creation
Anthropocene, earth-system science
Climate change, geoengineering

My responsibilities:

Facilitating the team; creating structures, containers and visuals
Coordinating the website, database, and board of curators
Vision and strategy development
Holding space for the formation of trusting relationships & networks
Presenting AMA to the public
Administrative and strategic coordination within the IASS