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"ESM combines the conceptual systems thinking behind zonation, bioregionalism and social planning, as a simple yet powerful matrix for integrated design where the macro provides a practical and realistic context for the details." "

Design with Dialogue (DwD) is an open Toronto-based community of practice for dialogue as co-creation. DwD has the ultimate purpose of facilitating change and meaningful action in our organizations, communities, collaborative projects and as individuals. We learn and play together through participatory design, strategic dialogue, creative arts and emerging facilitation methods.

A few years ago, the need of tackling increasingly complex projects pushed Namahn and shiftN to collaborate on a Systemic Design toolkit. At the RSD5 symposium in Toronto (2016), the two partners presented the first version of the toolkit and assessed its fit for purpose during the conference workshop. Since then, the original authors have collaborated with Peter Jones (Systemic Design Association) and Alex Ryan (MaRS Discovery District) for continued development of the toolkit towards a mature version, ready for use.

If you are a systems thinker, you might sometimes feel you are going a little crazy. We still live in command-and-control land and our assumptions haven't caught up to the realities of the world. If you have begun to act and talk like a systems thinker, you may be treated a little like the court jester. Actually, I'd say it was closer to the boy who declared the emperor wasn't wearing any clothes. Nonetheless, this is what it's like being a systems thinker. You see and say things that others think are a little crazy. Alternatively, people hear your words, but you realise after a while that they are processing them with an analytical mindset and so misunderstand the whole thrust of thinking systemically. We are all prisoners of our own flat-earthisms, after all. So you are either side-lined because your ideas seem a little far-fetched ("If there is no hierarchy, how do you control people????") or what they think they understand is not what you intended.

Knowledge wants to be free! 1We've decided to produce world-class educational materials by elite professors and elite designers. And give them to you for free. 2 We think you deserve free access to materials written by the world's foremost authorities - worth thousands of dollars - whether you are from New York or New Delhi. In fact, we wrote a mission statement about what we want to continue to do for you and the rest of the world. 3 In short, we do it as a labour of love and because we know you will help us in return!

I like to think that in Melbourne a debate like the Zunz lecture would be couched in different terms. At the very least, the proposition might be something like "great urban design makes great cities" or, preferably, "great urban design makes a better city". They both recognise that it's not individual buildings that make a difference but the overall feel of the city. The latter also acknowledges that the physical environment is only one factor that contributes to making a city great.

Listed below are our design principles and examples of how we've used them so far. These build on, and add to, our original 7 digital principles. 1. Start with needs* 2. Do less 3. Design with data 4. Do the hard work to make it simple 5. Iterate. Then iterate again. 6. Build for inclusion 7. Understand context 8. Build digital services, not websites 9. Be consistent, not uniform 10. Make things open: it makes things better

The Transition Design Framework provides a logic for bringing together the transdisciplinary knowledge, skillsets and practices relevant to understanding, seeding and catalyzing systems level change. It is comprised of four key mutually reinforcing and co-evolving areas of practices, knowledge and skill sets relevant to understanding, seeding and catalyzing systems-level change:

Our Philosophy & Guiding Principles Social systems work as they do because of how we work - how we think and interact. Our habitual ways of thinking and acting typically lead to change efforts shaped by mechanical problem solving and unproductive competition, often among otherwise well-intentioned interveners. In effect, we try to control complex processes that cannot be controlled, and in so doing miss the real opportunities for deeper and more long-lasting change. By contrast, natural systems demonstrate harmony, balance, integration, and ongoing evolution. The new knowledge we see emerging in the world shapes organic processes of change that result in social systems that are more resilient, sustainable, and adaptive. These "integral" learning and change processes knit "inner" and "outer" change, and are both deeply personal and inherently collective.

nef (the new economics foundation) is an independent think-and-do tank that inspires and demonstrates real economic well-being. We aim to improve quality of life by promoting innovative solutions that challenge mainstream thinking on economic, environment and social issues. We work in partnership and put people and the planet first. nef was founded in 1986 by the leaders of The Other Economic Summit (TOES) which forced issues such as international debt onto the agenda of the G7 and G8 summits. We are unique in combining rigorous analysis and policy debate with practical solutions on the ground, often run and designed with the help of local people. We also create new ways of measuring progress towards increased well-being and environmental sustainability.

An initiative of Peter Block and friends, Restore Commons aims to curate the ways of thinking and practice towards the common good. The move to the commons is well underway. We simply want to document it. Restore Commons is designed to be an online gathering place for stories and radical ideas strong enough to build the social capital and engaged community required to restore the common good. The website features a variety of content including stories, articles, videos and podcasts that highlight inverted and radical thinking that is essential to an alternative economy, a connected neighborhood, and ways of dealing with the end of the so-called consumerist middle class. This is what is required to restore compassion, civility and interdependence that is disturbingly fragile in today's world. The focus is on place-based, localized and grassroots initiatives that are alternatives to the tools of empire.

I love systems thinking - it's one of the best tools we have to develop a more detailed, dynamic and divergent perspective of the way the world works. I hope that these words and insights from my years of working with and teaching systems, sustainability and design can help you develop a systems mindset as well.

We live in a world relentlessly pushed forward by the velocity, volatility, uncertainty, disruption, and disequilibrium of constant change.  As the pace of change accelerates, so does the shelf-life of our strategies, processes, frameworks, and systems.  The rapidity of change now requires an expanding and continuously evolving breadth and depth to our repertoire of problem-solving strategies and leadership skill-sets.  Yet, even in the face of this rapidity of change and the disequilibrium it creates, too often, we find ourselves as individuals and organizations siloed in and dedicated to only one way of doing and working.  

We're doers, storytellers, problem solvers, and community builders on a mission to design change. If you've got superpowered skills and shared passion, we'd love to meet you.

We do not claim expertise in any specific business area. Rather we work to bring to the table our deep systems expertise (concepts and tools); our clients bring deep understanding of their environment; together we find a heightened level of perception and new ways to think about issues. The result is often amazing in terms of results and accomplishments.

Climate Interactive is a not-for-profit organization based in Washington DC. Our team helps people see what works to address climate change and related issues like energy, water, food, and disaster risk reduction. For example: We're long-time partners with the U.S. State Department and analysts for the Chinese government. Our tools have helped them assess and communicate the impact of their government strategies. We've helped NGOs and businesses improve their thinking and communication in the UNFCCC climate negotiations. We're helping development agencies in East Africa design better strategies to reduce the number of people displaced by extreme events and slow onset disasters, like droughts. We work alongside the scientific community to build an understanding of what climate change means for society and the impacts our actions have on finding solutions.

The Creative Learning Exchange was founded as a non-profit in 1991 to encourage the development of systems citizens who use systems thinking and system dynamics to meet the interconnected challenges that face them at personal, community, and global levels.

"Our Mission: to bring economic, social and environmental systems into closer harmony with the realities of a finite planet and a globally powerful human race by using the disciplines of systems thinking, system dynamics, and collaborative learning that were pioneered by our founder, Donella Meadows."

The Smart Urbanism Research and Development Collaborative was established five years ago as an independent, free-thinking, open-source organisation. It focuses on what a better, appropriate 'new normal' for urbanism might look like in an increasingly complex, informal and local world. Massive Small is our way of showing how we can do this. Our team has collaborated on a number of groundbreaking publications from writing national policy, urban design guidance and a range of polemics on the subject of urbanism.

The Guide shows how to get your school working with Participatory Budgeting (PB). The PB process creates an experiential learning environment for community engagement at a local level. Students are challenged to think about community needs and issues, exploring their environment. They are then empowered to design and implement a solution, taking shared ownership of their school community. They will gain a new attachment to their community; a sense of pride that comes with civic contribution. And they will build a stronger, more collaborative relationship with school administration, one another, and the community at large.