General Introduction to Systems Thinking

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General Introduction to Systems Thinking
Sustainable Development Online Course

• The Green ChangemakersJuly 2007

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Outline

• I. The Systems View of Life
• II. A Need for Paradigm Shift in Thinking
• III. Systems Thinking Skills
• IV. Wisdom for Sustainability
• References

"How we think is how we act, is how we are, and
determines the results we get".
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The Systems View of Life

• Life itself is made up of complex and
  interdependent systems.
• When one key element of a system in our lives
  changes, it simultaneously affects many other
  elements in our lives.
• "Reductionism and holism, analysis and synthesis,
  are complementary approaches that, used in proper
  balance, help us obtain a deeper knowledge of
  life". - Fritjof Capra
• UNITY through DIVERSITY

We are merely a strand in the web of life.
Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.
Picture source http//www.dreamwolvez.com/DREAMB
OYZ.html
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Systems within systems

• Each system interrelates and reacts to other
  living systems at higher and lower levels
  (subsystems), in addition to other systems at its
  own level.
• Living systems are organized as holarchies or
  natural hierarchies.

• Picture source www.russiandolls.co.uk

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12 Characteristics of Living Systems

• The first six of these characteristics apply to
  the living system as a whole, while the last six
  describe the inner workings of a living system.
• The Whole System Living Systems Characteristics
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• (1) Holism Living systems are whole entities
  with unique characteristics. A system is a
  collection of related parts that interact in an
  organized way for a purpose.
• (2) Living systems have defined boundaries.
• (3) Living systems are open systems.

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12 Characteristics of Living Systems

• (4) Living systems transform inputs into
  outputs.
  Industrial Agriculture simple linear machine
• Ecological Agriculture complex cyclic
  organism
• (5) Living systems require feedback to continue
  living. Ex evolution.
• (6) Living systems pursue multiple outcomes.

Pictures adapted from John M. Gerber, 2007
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12 Characteristics of Living Systems

• The Inner Working of Systems Living Systems
  Characteristics 712
• (7) Living systems display equifinality (the
  principle that the same results can be
  achievedvwith different initial conditions and
  through different ways).
• (8) Living systems are subject to entropy
  (gradually breakdown). However, entropy can be
  arrested in open systems.
• (9) Living systems are hierachical.

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12 Characteristics of Living Systems

• (10) Living systems have interrelated parts.
• (11) Living systems tend toward dynamic
  equilibrium (a natural state of balance and
  stability).
• (12) Living systems produce internal elaboration
  that leads naturally to greater complexity.

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Outline

• I. The Systems View of Life
• II. A Need for Paradigm Shift in Thinking
• III. Systems Thinking Skills
• IV. Wisdom for Sustainability
• References

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Why is systems thinking valuable?

• Systems thinking is founded on some basic,
  universal principles.
• It can help you design smart, enduring solutions
  to problems.
• It gives you a more accurate picture of reality.
• It also encourages you to think about problems
  and solutions with an eye toward the long-term
  and bigger view.

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We sometimes fix on our part of the system, and
miss the whole.
Two halves of an elephant is not an elephant!
Slide adapted from John M. Gerber, 2007
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The solution of one problem may cause another
problem (unintended results)
Ex The Green Revolution agricultural
technologies were introduced into Asia in the
late 1960s as a solution for food insecurity.
Decades later, they have proved detrimental in
terms of biodiversity loss, increased use of
agro-chemical based pest and weed control, water
logging, salinization and land degradation.
Artist Gary Larson
Slide adapted from LEAD International and
Sustainability Institute
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In complex systems, cause and effect are often
distant in time and space
We may act to produce short-term benefits and
long-term costs.
Slide adapted from John M. Gerber, 2007
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Then, systems thinking help us...

• to see cause and effect over long periods of
  time and far away in space, (avoid actions that
  are favorable now and harmful later).
• to recognise solutions that will cause more
  problems.

• to see the whole.
• to find the powerful leverage points for
  systemic change.

Picture source http//thwink.org/sustain/glossary
/LeveragePoint.gif
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Systems Thinking is...

• Environment or contextual thinking thinking in
  terms of connectedness, relationships and
  context.
• Network thinking emphasizes on the relationships
  among objects more than separate objects
  themselves. Small catalytic events can cause
  large change in a system.? Systems thinking
  promotes organizational communication at all
  levels.
• Process thinking focuses on processes more than
  outcomes as a way of managing. Every structure is
  seen as the manifestation of underlying
  processes. ? If we want to change the
  results, we must first change the process that
  led to the results.

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Systems thinking is a tool to begin finding root
cause!

• The iceberg model of systemic relationships is
  a simple tool to begin to unravel complexity and
  discover root cause of behavior.
• Lets look at it..

Slide adapted from John M. Gerber, 2007
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The Iceberg
Events
Patterns of Behavior
Systemic Structure
Mental Models
Slide adapted from John M. Gerber, 2007
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Systems Thinking...

• ? Moves the focus away from events and patterns
  of behavior (which are symptoms of problems) and
  toward systemic structure and the underlying
  mental models
• Holistic thinking widens the circle of
  understanding to comprehend connections that
  exist between all things.
• ? A strategy for handling complexity.
• Backward thinking involves testing assumptions
  and asking many questions to get to the root of
  the problem.
• ? A core of where to start in systems
  thinking.

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Outline

• I. The Systems View of Life
• II. A Need for Paradigm Shift in Thinking
• III. Systems Thinking Skills
• IV. Wisdom for Sustainability
• References

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DESIGNThe organizing principle in Systems
Thinking.

• Design the organization based on its ideal
  desired future vision.
• First focus on outcomes, and then to think and
  work backwards to identify numerous potential
  pathways to reach the desied outcomes.
• ? Easier to find solutions that best fit and
  optimize all the parts and relationships within
  the system.

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5 strategic questions underlie the Systems
Thinking Approach

• The questions begin with the future environment
  and the end in mind and work backwards from there
  to trace possible paths to those desired
  outcomes.
• Phase A Where do we want to be?
• Phase B How will we know when we get there?
• Phase C Where are we now?
• Phase D How do we get there?
• Phase E What other factors could change in the
  future environment that we need to consider?
• Systems are circular, so is the Systems
  Thinking Approach. After phase E, we come back
  around to phase A.

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The Simplicity of Systems Thinking
Backward Thinking Diagram
Picture adapted from Stephen G. Haines, Gail
Aller-Stead, and James McKinlay, 2005
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The Systems Thinking diagram

• provides an elegantly simple way to reduce
  complexity by focusing attention on
• The system as a whole
• Its outputs/outcomes
• Feedback within the environment
• Its inputs
• Its throughput

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Steps in the Systems Thinking Method
Picture adapted from The Thinking in Systems
Thinking
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Table adapted from The Thinking in Systems
Thinking
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Systems Thinking and the 7 Skills
Picture adapted from The Thinking in Systems
Thinking
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Guiding Principles

• Systems are multiple-goal-seeking organisms. ?
  What are the desired outcomes?
• Be flexible and adaptive (the Feedback Loop) ?
  How will we know weve achieved our goals?
• The Whole is more important than the Parts. ?
  What is the relationship of X to Y?
• Focus and strengthen the system of organizations
  (Holism). ? Are we dealing with means or ends?
  ? What is the purpose of each level of the
  system and how does it relate to the system as a
  whole?

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Guiding Principles

• There are many different ways to achieve the same
  desired outcomes involvement of the right people
  in planning and implementing the solutions and
  actions is key (Equifinality).
• ? What do we need to do to ensure staying,
  and perseverance over time (to reverse the
  entropy)?
• Systems within systems within systems are too
  complex to fully understand and manage
  centrally. ? What do we centralize (mostly
  ends) and what should we decentralize (mostly
  hows and means)?

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Guiding Principles

• Root causes and effects are usually not linked
  closely in Time and Space. ? What are the root
  causes? Caution Dig deep, and dig again. The
  root causes are rarely obvious.
• Problems cant be solved at the level at which
  they were created go to the next higher systems
  level and its desired outcome in order to
  succeed.
• ? What is our common superordinate goal
  here?

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Outline

• I. The Systems View of Life
• II. A Need for Paradigm Shift in Thinking
• III. Systems Thinking Skills
• IV. Wisdom for Sustainability
• References

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Dancing with Systems

• Expand the boundary of caring. The real system
  is interconnected. No part of the human race is
  separate either from other human beings or from
  the global ecosystem.
• Celebrate complexity and respect diversity.
• At the system level, the overwhelming force in
  nature is cooperation, not competition.

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Systems Intelligence in Everyday Life

• A philosophy of life, a way out of
  egocentricity.
• ? Systems approach starts when you see the world
  through the eyes of another person.
• Appreciation No judgements
  Interest Humor Listening Thanking
  Encouragement Friendliness
• ? Systems Intelligence is about the betterment
  and improvement of human life.

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Wisdom in effect is systems thinking

• Think from the perspective of the whole system
  rather than the individual.
• Caring for the whole mostly means caring for
  future generations for our children.
• See the big picture to understand and act upon
  the interconnectedness of all things to operate
  in harmony with others and with nature.? live a
  more satisfying and effective life.? better able
  to deal with the growing complexity of modern
  society.

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Together, we build!
Picture source http//www.heartfeltcharitycards.c
om
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References

• Dancing With Systems, Donella Meadows, 2001.
• System Change, Frank Dixon, 2006.
• Systems Intelligence, Raimo P. Hämäläinen and Esa
  Saarinen.
• Systems Thinking Introduction, presentation by
  John M. Gerber, 2007
• The Turning Point (1982), The Web of Life (1996)
  by Fritjof Capra,
• The "Thinking" in Systems Thinking, Barry
  Richmond

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