Do you sometimes have the feeling that you are alone on the barricades and you need tools to motivate people to live, live, work, …
This visionary lady Donella Meadows has sadly passed away. But her insights into how ‘The System’ works are so enlightening that you are guaranteed to gain new insights. A society based solely on “growth” is doomed to be unsustainable. When is it enough and should the ‘mission statement’ not revolve around meaningful, morally responsible goals from now on? If we make the goals of all our companies ‘sustainable’, then we lay the most important foundation for a sustainable society. But to measure is to know. This method can be a tool to make things tangible. Let’s dance with the system.
But this video says it all. More info about Donella Meadow can be found here.
Attention, after seeing this video you will never think the same again.
How about those ‘Feedback loops’ again.
…… We are cannibalizing the systems that keep us alive every day. At a certain point they will no longer be able to regenerate sufficiently. Then it stops …. When is enough enough when it comes to growth? …
Donella Meadow
Where and when do you have to intervene to get a grip on ‘The System’. It seems abundantly clear when you read about it . But those are always smart solutions in retrospect. Now Donna Meadows has also made it clear that there is no magic bullet. But they are insights that can help to make a difference where necessary.
Measure and know the tipping point.
We can use systems thinking to know and measure when we cannibalize our ‘natural resources’ or when we stimulate regeneration. Positive feedback loops and negative feedback loops must be balanced. If that is no longer the case, the balance skips. Increasing the cost price of ‘scarce raw materials’ has no effect. There is always someone ‘rich enough’ to consume that last extinct species.
Information should be clear and correct.
The price of a product no longer reflects the cost. More than ever, media is a way to ‘entertain’ and has long ceased to be a channel for collecting correct information. Access to correct information is essential.
Our nature is sacred
This shouldn’t be a discussion. We should regard our nature and planet as sacred. If that were one of the values of our culture, then nothing is up for discussion.
Social equality
Social equality is critical to success. Whoever has money today makes even more money. Success drives success. It also creates an unbalanced system.
But what does that have to do with food forests, I hear you think?
Well, this is an example of what happens when you use this kind of thinking to map out a mini biotope. Or why biodiversity is important.
