## Resilient Koan 15 - Speaking and Silencing (The Ethics of Tipping) ### Koan: What is not said in what is said in theories of tipping points, leverage points and systems change. ### Discussion: It's frequently the stated intent of the profession to support, create or catalyse systemic change in organisations, communities, or whole sectors of society. There are professional communities focused on specific aspects of this sort of change, from community-based social marketing for sustainable transport to coaches working on organisational development for sustainability to landscape-scale rehabilitation. These groups are usually acting based on a theory of change. The theory may emphasise the importance of individual leadership, building a social movement, shifting mindsets, or changing the economic rules within the system. Beyond simply assuming there is only one always-appropriate means to contribute to systems change, there are some commonly-cited meta-theories of systems change. Those that I am familiar with include Meadow's Leverage Points, Gladwell's Tipping Points, Scharmer's Theory U, Mintzberg's Strategy Safari, Wilber's Integral Theory, Moyer's MAP Model, NESTA's Social Innovation Toolkit, Torbert's Developmental Action Inquiry or The Natural Steps's Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development. Some of these compilations or integrations of change models carefully examine the context in which different approaches are appropriate and more likely to be effective. ### Inquiry: While these theories usually have emerged from specific contexts, and are general, it is a useful exercise to understand what it is that is not said in the theories. From a re-read of my notes relating to each of the aforementioned books, I noticed limited attention to the following aspects (in some, not all): * What are the limitations of this theory/model approach e.g. geographical or cultural context where it has been shown to be appropriate * If you are an advocate of this theory, or you have picked up this book, what are some pitfalls you are likely to be prone to * Exploring the motivation or intent of the person intending on 'shifting the system' * When, and how to tell when, continuing to pursue a particular approach may yield diminishing returns and may become more harmful than useful * Just beacuse you can, you can see how, have 'right' motivation, should you (intervene)? While I recognise that just missing one sentence of those books could have meant I missed that critical factor, and that the books' audience and purpose probably mean that extensive discussion of those topics is not a priority, some of those questions seem fundamental for any practitioner. So, if what is not said is that 'context, and the practitioner are what really matter', then I wonder what my observations of others, and reflections on my own approaches reveal. In recent experience I have: * Spoken with Transport Planners reluctant to investigate whether their proposed changes to infrastructure and behavioural change were actually the most effective way to achieve their stated goals of healthy people and reduced climate and energy risks. * Participated in planning of a major region-scale community engagement process where the actual outcomes, or relationship between the engagement process and real change in ecological, social or economic outcomes was 'blurry', and where it seemed more important to use the techniques and have the events than to understand how they would genuinely contribute to systemic change. * Provided comments on a sustainability book for post-graduate students where it was 'new' that an inquiry into the real motivation of the participants was part of the course. The question of "Do you really care about future generations?....Or is there something else that is motivating you?" was challenging in this context. * Observed my own perspective and approach to working within an organisation and community vary widely, and continue on a trajectory that was not necessarily aligned with my espoused theories nor its effectiveness tested relative to alternative approaches. ### Insight: In proposing any paradigm of practice there are some underlying assumptions that are not said. Some do not need to be (i.e. Integral is about partialness, Sustainability is about sustaining what is, Development is about deficiency in learning levels etc.) because they are inherent in the problem definition. Yet there are others, and these are the unspoken ethics of change. If our ethic does not come naturally from the methodology and is fully formed and enacted merely by the signature on the course certificate, from where ... or from (in) whom, will appear? I am also aware of making conclusions about what is included or left out of a particular meta-theory based on my quick judgement of the worldview or 'stage' that it arose from. There is something there about the genuine spirit of inquiry, an attention to detail (adn dare I say 'lineage') and consciousness about what I am actually reading and looking at that stands out. Similar to what was described here: http://resilient-koans.blogspot.com/2010/03/koan-8-truth-and-truisms.html Lastly, during exploration of this particular koan, I really noticed the degree to which I share my thinking and the process by which I came to the conclusions. The fact is that much of this is not interesting, of limited help, and should probably be edited from my communication in favour of sharing what is truly useful to others. ### Resolution What is not said in what is said in theories of tipping points, leverage points and systems change includes the ethic, approach and context in which these theories arise and may be usefully applied. What is not read when reading theories of change includes the difference between the assumptions of the writer, the reader and the other actors that are co-contributors to the creation of the system and the process of its change. What may not be experienced when inducing a system change may be the psychological, phsyical, cultural and spiritual trauma of the individuals and communities being 'tipped'. ### Practice Listen and enjoy for what is said, and notice what is not. Read and connect with what resonates, and pay attention to what you ignore. Act in service of the whole and experience it as one. --- This is one in a series of 25 'Resilient Koans' documenting "an apithologue into the koans of practice discovered while creating resilient sustainable communities", in 2010.