| | | Newsletter: March 2022, Vol 1:3 | | |
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Regular features:
Message from the President
SIG in focus: Crises and disasters
Meet our Systems Writing Group
Book Club
Interesting article to read: This month we feature 2 papers from Steven Wallis
Interesting article to read: The Grammar of Systems: From Order to Chaos & Back Patrick Hoverstadt
Welcome to new Editorial Member: Louise McCulloch
She is a PhD student from Ireland with an interest in action research and systems.
Thanks to all the contributors! Roelien Goede Editor
Please take note of the request to become part of the newsletter team!
To receive this newsletter you must sign up on our main isss.org page under "Newsletter Sign Up".
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Message from the President Greetings Systemists, This month we will be hearing from two past presidents during our Saturday/Wednesday mini-symposia series. Over the coming months I hope we can have more sessions like this in which the past presidents can reflect on their views regarding the history, current state, and hopeful future of the ISSS. I will continue to invite one or two past presidents (Trustees of the society) up through May. These sessions will be particularly valuable to newer members, giving them a chance to get to know the historical leadership.
With respect to those Saturday/Wednesday sessions, several people reported a problem with the link for the Feb. 23 session. We think we know what caused the problem and will take steps to fix it. But I wanted to alert everyone to this page on the ISSS website: https://www.isss.org/members-mini-symposiums/ where, toward the bottom of the page you can find the permanent links to those sessions. We will still send out a reminder email a day or two before the sessions, but you can reliably get access via this page.
As we head steadily toward the conference in July, I am hoping to take a bit of a pivot in the mini-symposia to begin to focus on what I think of as the dual (opposite) to the Global Problematique. I strongly believe that humanity finds itself in this predicament for a lacking of sufficient consciousness. This isn't just a matter of awareness; it is a matter of understanding. And the level of consciousness has to do with the scopes in space and time that one's mind can entail. The understanding has to be global and it has to extend into deep history in order to see where our species went wrong. And it must extend into the deep future in order to consider what kind of social arrangement humans can have to be in balance and harmony with the whole planet.
My conviction that a key component to the raising of consciousness in this way is rigorous systems thinking based solidly on an integrated systems science. This is not in contradiction with other practices that help boost one's mental capacities; it is a complement. But even more than that, it could provide us with a common language to communicate between our individual consciousnesses and provide a societal consciousness.
The work we do in research, theorizing, and practicing interventions, etc. is of inestimable worth for humanity and the planet. George |
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| | | SIG in Focus: Crises and Disasters
This SIG uses a systemic approach to look at demographic characteristics, risk, sensitivity, social ties, and then the concern over risk coping ability, attitudes towards risk, and examining threat behavior, hazard characteristics and situational constraints.
The SIG research is concerned with characteristics of people responding to crises and disasters including prior beliefs, experience, education, adaptive plans, personal traits, and personal resources. Situational factors to elaborate in terms of physical cues, social behavior, and miscommunication, and then risk information are suggested areas of inquiry.
The conflict, crises and disasters SIG evolved from the initial applied systems and development SIG which was used as an umbrella title to accommodate the twenty folk from Lincoln management school who contributed to the 2000 systems congress held in Toronto. Len Troncale complained that it was too broad and I agreed. With a colleague from Sri Lanka and one from Korea we decided to focus on conflicts of which they had direct experience. They have since moved on. My own experience was rather based on natural disasters and the crises that often follow.
So the situation in Ukraine at present fits well with the origins of the SIG. Some would suggest that the current conflict arises from a crisis in the relationship between the present Russian Regime and the neighbouring states that were part of the former USSR. It is further suggested that the ending of the so called Cold War with the fall of the Berlin Wall was not followed up by a peace conference and agreement such as those that followed the first and second World Wars…..Now one is still needed …so how could that play out ….do we as systems thinkers have anything to offer ….lack of a settlement acceptable to all the stakeholders will probably mean further festering crises and related humanitarian disasters. Can we rise to the challenge?? Dennis Finlayson
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| | | Systems Writing Group Many of us in ISSS actively work to publish ideas about the systems sciences, for a variety of audiences. Some of us find that writing benefits from good company.
A Systems Writing Group has begun, with dedicated times throughout the week when people log onto zoom, say hello, share briefly what they're working on, and sit down to write. At present, members from Canada, the US, Ireland, and New Zealand join in when they can, and more ISSS members would be warmly welcome.
Presently, the following time periods are set for the Systems Writing Group: Mondays 2:00-4:00pm EST Tuesdays 2:00-4:00pm EST Fridays 9:00-noon EST Sunday 2:00-5:00pm EST
Depending on who wishes to join, it is certainly possible to modify these times, or add others.
Any interested ISSS writers are welcomed to contact Pamela Buckle: buc...@adelphi.edu. | | |
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| | | News from the Book Club In our last meeting we had a wonderful and lively discussion with Victor MacGill about the Introduction and first chapter of his soon-to-be-published book, From Violence to Love: Using Systems Wisdom to Co-create Compassionate Futures. It is a real treat to have authors join us in our discussion.
The book is available in both pdf and Word versions, although the Word version is usually the one that it most up-to-date. Here are the links:
The PDF version of the book (8MB)
Here are the reading assignments: Mar. 17: Chapter 2 Apr. 21: Chapter 3 May 19: Chapters 4 & 5 June 16: Chapters 6 & 7
Please join us! Just email Marty Jacobs at marty.ja...@gmail.com to be added to the Book Club email list.
Happy reading!
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| | | New papers from the work of Steven Wallis | | |
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| | | Recently published book of special interest
The Grammar of Systems: From Order to Chaos & Back Patrick Hoverstadt
Detail copied from the Systems and Complexity in Organisation webpage RRP: £12.99 Paperback: 245 pp: Publisher: SCiO; ISBN: 979-8414307754 If you feel as though the world has become more complex, you are not alone. There is a growing realisation of the need to deal with the complexity, uncertainty and speed of change of our world. These systemic factors increase the challenge for all of us and expose some traditional approaches which are unable to handle those challenges. This book sets out the fundamentals of Systems Thinking, a discipline developed specifically to grapple with complexity and uncertainty. It builds a compelling and useable guide to change the way you think about the world around you, for those wanting to understand or change systems, managers, policy makers and systems specialists alike.
Part One illustrates the nine thinking patterns involved in thinking like a systems thinker, which collectively form the core of Systems Thinking. Each pattern is contrasted with conventional thinking and shows the power of thinking differently, alongside practical ways to develop these patterns in yourself and your organisation. If you want a different way to be able to think about the world, the thought patterns in this book will give you that.
Part Two describes 33 Systems Laws and Principles on which Systems Thinking as a discipline was founded. These Systems laws show how both order and chaos are created in systems and the dynamic between them. The Laws and Principles provide the insight on how, when and why systems remain stable and change at the same time, and what happens when they don’t, instead collapsing into new forms or disintegrating. These powerful insights are vital for anyone designing a change or transformation.
The Grammar of Systems presents a very clear, coherent guide to the discipline of Systems Thinking.
Patrick Hoverstadt is a veteran systems practitioner, and chairs the professional body for Systems Practitioners. | | |
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| | | Systems Science Events in March | | |
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Invitation to join the Newsletter Editorial Team
We started the newsletter in the final quarter of last year to provide a vehicle for monthly reflection on the activities of the society. The first three issues were well received and the Board of Directors supports the newsletter as a means to support the purpose and objectives of the society. As stated in the by-laws, the purpose of the society is: The overall purpose of the ISSS is to promote the development of conceptual frameworks based on general system theory, as well as their implementation in practice. It further seeks to encourage research and facilitate communication between and among scientists and professionals from various disciplines and professions at local, regional, national, and international levels. The newsletter seeks to support the final sentence of this statement. To encourage contributions, we started regular features in order to provide guidance on the type of information we want to communicate. These are listed on the first page of each newsletter and members are invited to provide information to the editorial team. To ensure sustainability and equal opportunity, it is important to form an editorial team for the newsletter. I hereby invite any ISSS member to become part of the editorial team of the newsletter. Editorial team members should be especially enthusiastic about the latter part of the purpose statement quoted above. Please contact me at newsl...@isss.org if you are interested in joining the team. Roelien Goede Editor and President-Elect
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Thanks to all the contributors! Roelien Goede Editor
To contribute to event lists or any other section, please send an email with sufficient detail to: newsl...@isss.org To receive this newsletter you must sign up on our main isss.org page under "Newsletter Sign Up".
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International Society for the Systems Sciences
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