A Dialogue: How Impact & Evaluation are Shifting
A lively dialogue between trailblazers in networks & systems change on how we can re-conceptualize our approach to evaluation & impact
We all know we're doing it wrong. Creating outcomes that don't capture the richness and complexity of the context. Extracting data to report to those who have the most power but the least skin in the game. Trying to predict an unpredictable future.
This session will bring together some great minds to engage in a participatory discussion on how impact evaluation is shifting. We'll look at questions like who is doing the evaluation and why, what data we are and are not collecting, and how the analysis is and isn't being used for the benefit of those who have a stake. We'll also explore how we might start moving from top-down to participatory processes, predictable data to unpredictable outcomes, project-based approaches to systems thinking, and extraction-based assessment to shared learning and action.
The super impressive line-up includes:
- June Holley, Network Weaver
- Glenn Page, SustainaMetrix
- Motaz Attalla, Garfield Foundation
- Charles Kojo Vandyck, West Africa Civil Society Institute
- Gurpreet Singh, Skoll Foundation
- Mark Cabaj, From Here to There
- Liz Weaver, Tamarack Institute
- Habiba Nabatu, Lankelly Chase Foundation
Hosted & facilitated by Brendon Johnson, inHive
Wed, November 10, 2021
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM EST
REGISTER HERE
Energy Network Literacy: On Care-full Dis-Connection, Dis-Entanglement and Regenerative Flow Management
“i think of movements as intentional worlds, or perhaps more accurately as worlds designed by and for intentional people, those who are able to feel the world not as an unfolding accident of random occurrences, but rather as a massive weaving of intention. you can be tossed about, you can follow someone else’s pattern, or you can intentionally begin to weave and shape existence. and yes, the makeup of your web is the same matter as all that already exists, but your direction and pattern can be new, unexpected, agitating new growth. what results from your efforts depends on your intention.”
– adrienne maree brown
I recently returned from a week-long vacation with family to the so-called Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, and a particular location that is deeply nourishing and meaningful for its landscape, its link to family history on my wife’s side and (perhaps for these times) an unusual sense of community. I count myself privileged to have had the time and the opportunity to be in that place with those loving people, with that sense of multi-generational connection.
Heading back “home,” I could feel the tension mounting as my wife and I talked about re-entry. Before thought, my body tightened in anticipation of the return to the mundane daily tasks, to-do lists and un-answered emails/phone messages. The morning after our return, I somewhat absent-mindedly dipped toes into social media and felt my blood pressure rise. “What am I doing?” I wondered, even as I continued to wade in, pulled by questions about what happened while we were away and what new opportunities might be presenting themselves – FOMO (“fear of missing out”) in full effect. When I closed the laptop, perhaps 30 minutes later, I was aware of my stiff neck, shallow breathing, hunched shoulders, and whirling brain. Saved by a 12 year old daughter almost yelling, “Dad, c’mon, let’s get outside and play ball!”
As much of a proponent as I am of collaboration and networks, I am struck by how I can get a bit caught in the approach/avoid loop of connection, and mired in questions of “How to connect?” and “How much is enough connection?” and “What kinds of connection do I really need?” As I engage with others, I realize that these are pretty fundamental ponderings for navigating a more viscerally entangled world.
“When our ancestors spoke about a web of life, they were describing what Western science calls quantum entanglement. They understood that we all originated from the same seed of life, and when that seed exploded and carried life across our universe, we remained connected. Quantum entanglement tells us that any matter once connected physically can never be disconnected energetically (or spiritually).”
– Sherri Mitchell (Weh’na Ha’mu’ Kwasset, “She Who Brings Light)
More and more is being written, spoken and (re)-presented about the fundamentally interconnected nature of our lives, and of Life writ large. In a beautiful essay in Emergence Magazine (“When You Meet the Monster, Anoint Its Feet”) , which weaves connections between climate change, race, racism, evolutionary biology, ecology, myth and narrative, Bayo Akomolafe offers …
“Perhaps most important about this time is that the image of the human is being composted—or, we are experiencing great difficulty determining where the nonhuman stops and the human begins. Everything touches everything else in the Anthropocene—an observation that is supported by, say, current thinking about ‘holobionts,’ assemblages of bodies within bodies within bodies, or intersecting communities that toss out notions of separable individuality. We are holobionts. We live and are lived through; we are composite beings, companion species, emerging within and among assemblages.”
And, as Akomolafe later shares from his indigenous and experiential knowledge, bodies and beings transcend time. More recent research into intergenerational trauma (see the work of Resmaa Menakam and Thomas Hubl) shows that our bodies indeed know the score, not only of our own individual pain, but the suffering passed through our ancestral lines. Husband and wife, and astrophysicist and physician, team Karel and Iris Schriyver, in their book “Living With the Stars,” add that our bodies are always in dynamic exchange with … the wider universe! Our cells die and are replaced by new ones, renewing our entire biological makeup, using food and water as both fuel and construction material. This rebuilding happens by using elements captured in our surroundings and cycled through geological processes, all extensions of galactic explosions and ripples and atoms that formed through collisions with our planet’s atmosphere eons ago.
We are entangled in a multiplicity of ways, containing and residing within multi-dimensional multi-scalar multitudes. I find this simultaneously liberating, dizzying, humbling and dumbfounding. Knowing that everything is interconnected can inspire a profound sense of belonging and ease, yes, and sometimes it can make it a bit hard for me to plan or get through the day!
And so here we are, exquisitely entwined, and yet also individuals, or at least bounded organisms with a sense of individuality, of distinction, of the need to preserve the integrity and dignity of something called “me” or “self.” And the question of these times would appear to be how we can honor a healthy sense of self/individual, whole communities, and Life, all at once.
“To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything, is to succumb to violence. The frenzy of our activity neutralizes our work for peace. It destroys our own inner capacity for peace. It destroys the fruitfulness of our own work, because it kills the root of inner wisdom which makes work fruitful.”
– Thomas Merton
While there have been understandable and important pushes to get beyond the individualistic and atomistic view, I have the feeling that some of this emphasis, as with all pendulum swings, can go a bit too far. Seeing the world as profoundly interconnected might drive a strong desire to reclaim a kind of forgotten birthright, and in my experience, it can also result in getting lost, especially if it is guided by an underlying desire to fully understand, grasp and/or control it all (colonial mindset?). Or if that drive is purely to belong to something, anything, no matter its underlying values, to spare the pain of felt/perceived separation.
A certain view in contemporary physics holds that the world, the universe, is entirely made up of an infinite amount of information, a vast expanse of sensory inputs that all taken together would be utterly overwhelming to our individual apparatus. And so we have our human senses as filters to sift through, make sense and identify/assemble what is most … useful, interesting, advantageous. The point is, there is always more than meets (or at least is taken in by) our eyes, ears, nose, tastebuds, touch, etc. This calls to mind the ladder of inference, a framework we teach at IISC that helps people remember that we are often recycling conclusions we have drawn from a very partial understanding of reality, and that it might behoove us to expand our “view” to reach more helpful (just, prosocial, sustainable) conclusions and actions.
That said, simply taking in more, or making more connections, may not lead to a better place, if it results in overwhelming nervous systems. So it seems there is a balancing act here. Just as we often can’t do something new without letting go of something old, there is a need to modulate what one takes in – news, ideas, people, and possibilities. Connection and flow management. Energetic discernment. Intentional dis-connection and dis-entanglement.
What might this look like in this networks upon networks networked world? A few thoughts …
“Between you and me, now there is a line. No other line feels more certain than that one. Sometimes it seems not a line but a canyon, a yawning empty space, across which I cannot reach.
“Yet you keep reappearing in my awareness. Even when you are far away, something of you surfaces constantly in my wandering thoughts. When you are nearby, I feel your presence, I sense your mood. Even when I try not to. Especially when I try not to. . . .”
– Donella Meadows
In a previous post, I shared some of the wisdom of network science as taught by Danielle Varda and colleagues at Visible Networks Lab. They make the point that when it comes to creating strong (resilient and regenerative) networks, more can be less in terms of the connections a person has. Connectivity and related flows can be ruled by a relentless growth imperative(capitalism?)that is not strategic or sustainable. More connections require more energy to manage, meaning there may ultimately be fewer substantive ties if one is spread too thin. Instead, the invitation is to think about how to mindfully maintain a certain number of manageable and enriching strong and weak ties, and think in terms of “structural holes.” For more on this social network science view, visit this VNL blog post “We want to let you in on a network science secret – better networking is less networking.”
Over the last several years, I have been playing with a set of about a dozen principles (give or take) for network thinking and action. One that seems quite helpful here is the saying, “Do what you do best and connect to the rest.” As ecosystems become more robust and complex, individual participants are invited to carve out more specific niches, and be oriented towards synergistic and supportive relationships with others. In other words – stop trying to do it all, or connect to it all! It’s not possible, it can create unnecessary competition, overwhelm and inhibit “collaborative efficiencies.” This also aligns with a metric of energy network and systems science (see below), which focuses on the importance of a diversity of roles in healthy living systems. Share and spread the wealth!
As just alluded to, the emerging field of “energy systems science” points to a number of different factors or indicators that contribute to long-term living system (including human systems) health and thriving. Four of these indicators fall under the heading of “measures of flow.” Thinking about how these apply to our own and/or collective in-take and sharing of information/energy might be helpful for knowing what is “sufficient:”
- Robust cross-scale circulation: How rapidly (too fast?/too slow?) and well do a variety of resources reach all parts of an individual/social body?
- Regenerative return flows: To what extent does the individual/social body recycle resources into building and maintaining its internal capacities? Is there too little (depletion)? Is there excess (hoarding)?
- Reliable inputs: How much risk and uncertainty is there for critical (health promoting) resources upon which the individual/social body depends?
- Healthy outflows: What impacts do the individual/social body’s outflows have externally?
On a more personal tip, I have been married for almost 20 years. What has perhaps been one marriage from the outsider’s perspective has been many from the inside, as other long-standing intimate partners can surely appreciate. We have learned and grown over the years. One important lesson has been knowing when we are too enmeshed and need to separate for some time. There is a point of diminishing returns in many of our heated discussions/ arguments, and if we do not dis-entangle or dis-connect, we have learned, we can do damage to the relationship.
Along the same lines, two of our daughters are identical twins, now twelve-years old. What we have observed about them is what we have heard about many twins – they are truly uniquely connected. There are many times when we quietly watch with fascination as they, seated on opposite ends of the room, engage in similar gestures (scratching their heads with the same hand at the same time, for example) seemingly without direct awareness. Quantum entanglement in full effect! And they can get themselves enmeshed at times and in ways that drive each of them, and the entire family system, to the edge. They are learning that they need and how to differentiate and take space, even as they have a natural gravitational pull to their other half.
Knowing when to create a bit of a boundary (what Buckminster Fuller once called, “a useful bit of fiction”), a separate amniotic sack if you will, and when it is optimal to connect more fully often requires attention and discernment, for all kinds of relationships.
“Beware of the stories you read or tell; subtly, at night, beneath the waters of consciousness, they are altering your world.”
– Ben Okri
The movie The Social Dilemma and the work of Douglas Ruskhoff (see Team Human) both point to the perils of getting caught up in our increasingly socially mediatized world. The algorithms behind these powerful tools are designed to capture our attention, pressing our buttons oriented towards hedonism (“likes”) and fear/outrage. A recent article in The Atlantic Monthly (“You Really Need to Quit Twitter”) points to how difficult it can be to break this habit. This is not to say that these tools are inherently bad or evil. They are certainly formidable, and require considerable attention and intention. Social media fasts and limited dips can help, as well as being mindful about what and why we are both sharing and consuming (see this other recent post for some considerations on this – The Wisdom of W.A.I.T.ing: Mindful Sharing in a Network Age.
If dis-engagement is not an option or ideal, there are a number of practices I have been learning and using that can help to manage energy exchanges, both in-person and virtual:
- From the Rockwood Leadership Program, I learned the practice of imagining that my body is like meshwork (think a fishing net), when something intense is coming at me, so that it can pass through me, and I don’t use too much energy resisting or having it get stuck in my body/psyche.
- From a couple of local trauma therapist who focuses on racialized trauma, I have learned the practice of using imaginative “shields” (in my mind’s eye) on the outside and inside of my body, to allow for energy coming in or going out. Silver shields on the exterior repel unwanted energy, and on the inside they keep precious energy in. Grey shields allow some energy in or out.
- From a number of practitioners, I have learned the practice of slowing my breath to manage energy flow, in-take and circulation.
- From Qigong Master Robert Peng I have learned how to use a “circuit breaker” for the life force (or “chi”) moving through me by enclosing my thumbs with the fingers on each hand, which can diminish intense energy flows when engaged with others.
- From The Weston Network/Respectful Confrontation community, I have learned the practice of being aware of my own personal space, surrounding my body, and respecting that boundary when engaged with others.
- Also from The Weston Network, I have learned about the practice of embodied energetic balance when reaching out to make contact with others, while not over-extending, and also maintaining a firm sense of grounding and dynamic flexibility. I have also been reminded, helpfully, that balance is never static. We are constantly in motion, if we are alive, and when “most balanced,” are actually able to recover quickly from being extended or engaged in some way. So a question to carry is “What supports my ongoing ability to recover?”
- From Harold Jarche, I have learned many ways of managing personal knowledge development through mindful connection to different networks in ways that ideally make them all “smarter” and don’t simply ask them/me/us to work “harder.” Of particular help is knowing what one can reasonably expect in terms of energetic flow and return from work teams versus communities of practice versus one’s wider social networks (see image above).
- Especially in work that may be emotionally challenging and draining, I have learned from both Acceptance and Commitment Therapy/Training, as well as teacher Tara Brach, the idea of “tending and befriending” otherwise unwelcome feelings that inevitably come up, so that rigid resistance does not make those emotional visitors stronger.
- And in general, I am embracing and making space for more silence, solitude and stillness, challenging some of my deep seated anxieties about losing connection and a sense of belonging in the world (what some would say FOMO is really about – for more about this, see this informative talk by Tara Brach).
And there are SO MANY teachers out there and much wisdom to glean that I certainly welcome others to share! It is my hope that many more of us can become adept energy and flow scientists/artists/healers/workers as we intentionally weave patterns that are the basis of the better world we sense is possible and know is necessary.
“The point of solitude is to give yourself time to grow in your own way, while the ultimate goal remains the difficult task of love and connection.”
– Damion Searls (from the introduction to a new translation of Rainer Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet)
oringially published at Interaction Institute for Social Change
Curtis Ogden is a Senior Associate at the Interaction Institute for Social Change (IISC). Much of his work entails consulting with multi-stakeholder networks to strengthen and transform food, education, public health, and economic systems at local, state, regional, and national levels. He has worked with networks to launch and evolve through various stages of development.
The Web of Change
Creating Impact Through Networks
The following post is excerpted from the introduction of Impact Networks: Create Connection, Spark Collaboration, and Catalyze Systemic Change, now available in print, as an audiobook, and as an ebook.
“We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
— Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail
Since the beginning of our species, humans have formed networks. Our social networks grow whenever we introduce our friends to each other, when we move to a new town, or when we congregate around a shared set of beliefs. Social networks have shaped the course of history. Historian Niall Ferguson has noted that many of the biggest changes in history were catalyzed by networks—in part, because networks have been shown to be more creative and adaptable than hierarchical systems.[1]
Ferguson goes on to assert that “the problem is that networks are not easily directed towards a common objective. . . . Networks may be spontaneously creative but they are not strategic.”[2] This is where we disagree. While networks are not inherently strategic, they can be designed to be strategic.
When deliberately cultivated, networks can forge connections across divides, spread information and learning, and spark collaborative action. As a result, they can “address sprawling issues in ways that no individual organization can, working toward innovative solutions that are able to scale,” write Anna Muoio and Kaitlin Terry Canver of Monitor Institute by Deloitte.[3] Networks can be powerful vehicles for creating change.
Of course, networks can have positive as well as negative effects. Economic inequality and the advantages and disadvantages of social class, race, ethnicity, gender, and other aspects of individual identity are in large part the result of network effects: certain types of people form bonds that increase their social capital, typically at significant social expense to those in other groups. Much of the world has become acutely aware of the harmful network effects arising from social media and the internet. This includes the proliferation of online echo chambers that feed people what they want to hear, even when it means rapidly spreading misinformation.
In our globally connected and interdependent society, it is imperative that we understand the network dynamics that influence our lives so that we can create new networks to foster a more resilient and equitable world. The choice in front of us is clear: either we can let networks form according to existing social, political, and economic patterns, which will likely leave us with more of the same inequities and destructive behaviors, or we can deliberately and strategically catalyze new networks to transform the systems in which we live and work.
A case in point is the RE-AMP Network, a collection of more than 140 organizations and foundations working across sectors to equitably eliminate greenhouse gas emissions across nine mid- western states by 2050. From the time it was formed in 2015, RE-AMP has helped retire more than 150 coal plants, implement rigorous renewable energy and transportation standards, and re-grant over $25 million to support strategic climate action in the Midwest. RE-AMP’s work is necessary in part because other powerful networks are also at play to maintain the status quo or to enrich the forces that profit from pollution and inequality.
We can look to the field of education for another example of a network creating significant impact. 100Kin10 is a massive collaborative effort that is bringing together more than three hundred academic institutions, nonprofits, foundations, businesses, and government agencies to train and support one hundred thousand science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) teachers across the United States in ten years. Founded in 2011, 100Kin10 is well on track to achieve its ambitious goal and has expanded its aim to take on the longer-term systemic challenges in STEM education.
The Justice in Motion Defender Network is a collection of human rights defenders and organizations in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua that have joined together to help migrants quickly obtain legal assistance across borders. Throughout the ongoing family separation crisis created by US immigration policies during the Trump administration, this network has been essential in locating deported parents in remote regions of Central America and coordinating reunification with their children.
Or consider a network whose impact spans the globe, the Clean Electronics Production Network (CEPN). CEPN brings together many of the world’s top technology suppliers and brands with labor and environmental advocates, governments, and other leading experts to move toward elimination of workers’ exposure to toxic chemicals in electronics production. Since forming in 2016, the network has defined shared commitments, developed tools and resources for reducing workers’ exposure to toxic chemicals, and standardized the process of collecting data on chemical use.
Networks like RE-AMP, 100Kin10, the Defender Network, and CEPN—along with many others you will learn about in this book—were not spontaneous or accidental; rather, they were formed with clear intent. These networks deliberately connect people and organizations together to promote learning and action on an issue of common concern. We call them impact networks to highlight their intentional design and purposeful focus, and to contrast them with the organic networks formed as part of our social lives.[4]
We think of impact networks as a combination of a vibrant community and a healthy organization. At the core they are relational, yet they are also structured. They are creative, and they are also strategic. Impact networks build on the life force of community—shared principles, resilience, self-organization, and trust— while leveraging the advantages of an effective organization, including a common aim, an operational backbone, and a bias for action. Through this unique blend of qualities, impact networks increase the flow of information, reduce waste, and align strategies across entire systems—all while liberating the energy of multiple actors operating at a variety of scales.
All around the world, impact networks are being cultivated to address complex issues in the fields of health care, education, science, technology, the environment, economic justice, the arts, human rights, and others. They mark an evolution in the way humans are organizing to create meaningful change.
To learn more about what impact networks are, how they work, and what it takes to cultivate and sustain them, check out the new book Impact Networks: Create Connection, Spark Collaboration, and Catalyze Systemic Change.
[1]: Niall Ferguson, The Square and the Tower: Networks, Hierarchies and the Struggle for Global Power (London: Penguin Books, 2018), xix.
[2]: Ferguson, The Square and the Tower, 43.
[3]: Anna Muoio and Kaitlin Terry Canver, Shifting a System, Monitor Institute by Deloitte, accessed December 17, 2020, https://www2.deloitte.com /content/dam/insights/us/articles/5139_shifting-a-system/DI_ Reimagining-learning.pdf.
[4]: June Holley has called them “intentional networks” in Network Weaver Handbook: A Guide to Transformational Networks (Athens, Ohio: Network Weaver Publishing, 2012). Peter Plastrik, Madeleine Taylor, and John Cleveland have called them “generative social impact networks” in Connecting to Change the World: Harnessing the Power of Networks for Social Impact (Washington, DC: Island Press, 2014).
Originally published at Converge
David Ehrlichman is a catalyst and coordinator of Converge and author of Impact Networks: Create Connection, Spark Collaboration, and Catalyze Systemic Change. With his colleagues, he has supported the development of dozens of impact networks in a variety of fields, and has worked as a network coordinator for the Santa Cruz Mountains Stewardship Network, Sterling Network NYC, and the Fresno New Leadership Network. He speaks and writes frequently on networks, finds serenity in music, and is completely mesmerized by his newborn daughter.ehrlichman@converge.net
Rising Through Resilience: Dr Froswa’ Booker-Drew On The Five Things You Can Do To Become More Resilient
Watch your thinking. One of my favorite quotes is “Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits.” Everything starts as a thought. Pay attention to what you think about yourself and the situations you face. It can determine your results/outcome.
Resilience has been described as the ability to withstand adversity and bounce back from difficult life events. Times are not easy now. How do we develop greater resilience to withstand the challenges that keep being thrown at us? In this interview series, we are talking to mental health experts, authors, resilience experts, coaches, and business leaders who can talk about how we can develop greater resilience to improve our lives.
As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew.
Froswa’ Booker-Drew, Ph.D. is a Network Weaver who believes relationships are the key to our personal, professional and organizational growth. She has been quoted in Forbes, Ozy, Bustle, Huffington Post, Modern Luxury, and other media outlets, due to an extensive background in leadership, nonprofit management, philanthropy, partnership development, training, and education. Froswa’ graduated with a PhD from Antioch University in Leadership and Change with a focus on social capital, diverse women, change management, and relational leadership. She is the host of the podcast, The Tapestry and author of 3 workbooks for women, Fly Away, Ready for a Revolution: 30 Days to Jolt Your Life and Rules of Engagement: Making Connections Last.
Thank you so much for joining us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your backstory?
Iserve as Vice President of Community Affairs for the State Fair of Texas. I am responsible for our philanthropic giving, community initiatives and partnerships and some of our educational programming. I am also the co-founder of HERitage Giving Circle and Power in Action, two amazing organizations focused on giving in the Black community of North Texas. Lastly, I’m an adjunct professor at Tulane University and a research affiliate at Antioch University. I am also an author of three books and finalizing a fourth.
Can you share with us the most interesting story from your career? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘take aways’ you learned from that?
I remember very young in my career having a boss that I looked up to and wanted to emulate. She was brilliant, well-respected, and gifted. I spent a lot of time with her due to the long hours of the position. Our families even spent time with one another. As I began to thrive in the work and began to receive recognition for the work, she changed. I moved from a brainstorming partner to being micromanaged and criticized for everything. Sadly, her superiors even commented on the unfair treatment I received but they did nothing to address the mistreatment. I finally decided to walk away because the toxicity was overwhelming and while others were afraid of her and chose not to cross her, I left on faith to start my own business. I learned several lessons. Sometimes difficult experiences occur to show you what you are made of, but they also can serve as a catalyst to push you from comfort to creating your destiny.
What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
I’m fortunate to work for the biggest and best State Fair in the country! The State Fair of Texas in twenty-four days not only has more than 2 million visitors but the event supports my work to providing funding to nonprofits in the local area (so proud of how we are changing the narrative in philanthropy), our signature programming that includes building the capacity of nonprofits and businesses in our area, and supporting initiatives in our area that impact education, social justice, economic development, or nonprofit growth. I don’t think people are aware of the many things we do outside of the event year-round which is unique for the industry. In addition to my work at the State Fair of Texas, I am an author and I speak at a variety of events. I also provide training and consulting to a limited number of organizations. I think what makes my work unique is the decades combined of education and experience that contributes to my ability to understand organizational culture, community development, philanthropy, and DEI.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?
I am forever grateful to my mother. My mother endured a lot of hardships and loss. She instilled in me the importance of an education but also the importance of pursuing your dreams. She has been my biggest cheerleader and when I forget who I am, she reminds of not just what I’ve accomplished but the endless possibilities that exist within me. It’s a gift to have a mother that you adore but one who is also your friend and confidante.
Ok thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of this interview. We would like to explore and flesh out the trait of resilience. How would you define resilience? What do you believe are the characteristics or traits of resilient people?
Resilience is the ability to bounce back after difficult situations. I think resilient people are courageous and determined. I think at times, we practice resiliency without necessarily equating our actions with being resilient. For many of us, we do what we must because the situation requires it. In some circumstances, we have limited choices, and we choose to push through it because the other options are either limited or non-existent.
Courage is often likened to resilience. In your opinion how is courage both similar and different to resilience?
I think it is important to note that although resilience requires the ability to push through situations, sometimes, we are pushing through because our choices don’t allow for anything else. Resilience is important but I don’t think we talk enough about trauma and that many of us are pushing through very difficult situations without acknowledging the scars that we’ve endured to get through. I’ve heard resilience compared to a fork being bent out of shape only to resort to its original state. Yet, depending on the intensity of the bend, is the fork ever back to its normal state? I think the same can be said about many of us — we bounce back but the bend is so deeply now a part of our consciousness. We aren’t the same, we’ve just persevered and moved on. Is it really courageous or a commitment to doing something we must do even when it doesn’t feel good?
When you think of resilience, which person comes to mind? Can you explain why you chose that person?
Simone Biles is a person that epitomizes resilience. Here is a young woman who smiled and performed in the midst of a traumatic experience that was ignored and yet, was expected by the public to continue to put her body through such intensity while she struggled both mentally and physically. She decided to step back and take care of herself despite the unsolicited comments from others who knew nothing about what she went through, and she placed her needs first. I think she exemplifies that for many of us, we continue to bounce back despite the need to stop, slow, down and process our pain instead of always pushing through. That’s resilience as well.
Has there ever been a time that someone told you something was impossible, but you did it anyway? Can you share the story with us?
I remember in high school meeting with my guidance counselor to sign up for Latin. She told me that “you people don’t take Latin”. What could have easily served as discouragement, I laughed and told her that I was one of those people who would take Latin. I took Latin in High School and was a few hours from a minor in it in college. I didn’t allow her racism or thoughts about me to stop me from doing something I knew I could do. I also recognize that everyone doesn’t do this. There are so many obstacles and barriers and after repeated blocks, it’s easy to get frustrated, give up and get discouraged. It has nothing to do with weakness. I think we all have our breaking points and it’s imperative to understand that what works for me may not apply for you. We can all learn from one another, but we must be aware that our experiences, upbringing, and other factors can impact our ability to bounce back.
Did you have a time in your life where you had one of your greatest setbacks, but you bounced back from it stronger than ever? Can you share that story with us?
There have been a lot of setbacks. I remember applying to a college that I really wanted to go to, and I didn’t get in or applying for a job that I wanted, and it didn’t work out. Those situations can be devastating. The college that said no actually did me favor. I ultimately attended the University of Texas at Arlington which opened so many doors for me to build my leadership and relational skills. At the time, I thought the ‘no’ was the end of the world but actually became the beginning of something special that changed my life for the best.
How have you cultivated resilience throughout your life? Did you have any experiences growing up that have contributed to building your resiliency? Can you share a story?
In February 2021, in Texas, we experienced Snowmaggedon. I moved in with a friend after the heat in my home dropped down into the 30s due to a loss of electricity. I recognize that other parts of the country are prepared for this type of weather, but we were not since cold weather doesn’t really last very long and we typically have heat when it does. I was so grateful for my friend’s hospitality and even while I was there, I was terrified of the same thing happening at her home and the possibility of moving again. This was difficult at a time when very few people had vaccines and we were still understanding COVID’s impact. After four days of this experience, we all went back to work the following Monday as if nothing happened. Some would call it resilience. I thought it was insane. Part of resilience is the ability to reflect and lament. I’ve learned that many times that we practice resilience are often a result of traumatic experiences. Moving on is expected and yet, we must take the time to process our pain and remember. It’s important to mourn because of what we experienced. That’s a lesson I’ve embraced not just during Snowmaggedon but throughout my life. We need to give ourselves the space to do this which can help us build our resiliency. It’s more than moving on. It’s really about learning and healing, too, as a part of the process.
Resilience is like a muscle that can be strengthened. In your opinion, what are 5 steps that someone can take to become more resilient? Please share a story or an example for each.
- Create the space to reflect from the lessons. Processing is important. Otherwise, it isn’t resilience anymore. It’s doing the same thing over and over without learning.
- You need a support system that reminds you of who you are. In the midst of challenges, it’s easy to have a warped sense of who you are. Having folks remind you of what’s in you is necessary.
- Bet on you. Challenges will come. Trauma isn’t always avoidable but what you can do is make sure that you always believe in yourself and your abilities.
- Recognize the traumas that you endure. I think as a society, we are so determined to move through situations and just as muscles need time for recovery to be stronger, you must know when to pause or even stop to heal before moving forward.
- Watch your thinking. One of my favorite quotes is “Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits.” Everything starts as a thought. Pay attention to what you think about yourself and the situations you face. It can determine your results/outcome.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
I would love to help people understand the power of social capital. My dissertation research is about the importance of building relationships and the role of change. In an environment that has a lot of polarization, I would love to bring groups together to understand the power of their narratives and their identities to create the change we’d like to see in our world.
We are blessed that some very prominent leaders read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them :-)
I would love to meet Oprah Winfrey to learn from her brilliance and journey; Brene Brown because of her research, and Reid Tracy, the CEO of Hay House because I’d love to work with him.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Check me out on LinkedIn, Instagram (@DrFroswa) or Twitter (@Froswa)
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
About Savio P. Clemente
Stage 3 Cancer Survivor, Podcaster, Writer, Founder of The Human Resolve LLC, & Board Certified Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC, ACC)
originally published at Rising Through Resilience
Featured image found HERE
event: Evolve 2021
Evolve 2021 is a collaborative gathering of people from around the world who want to come together and learn from each other ways that we can all make a difference in the world, starting with ourselves. Close to 80 conveners will hold space for exploring ideas, sharing practices that are working, and raising topics that don't get talked about all the time. Three days [ Oct 20 - 22 ] of amazing learning from both founders in the field and emerging practitioners, as well as non profit leaders and social justice advocates.
This is a conference you won't want to miss. It's a difference maker, acknowledging that today's world needs more people coming together, sharing their similarities and working out their differences. Why? Because we need to make changes to thrive! And those changes can only happen if we better understand one another and collaborate to make our world a better place to live ... for everyone. Change begins with each of us - each of us taking the steps we can. And to do that, we need to know "how." Evolve 2021 will put us in touch with one another so we can collaboratively work together to find that "how."
A pipe dream? Maybe ... but only if we choose not to take up the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities. Evolve2021 is a virtual conference and while virtual conferences have their disadvantages, they have one huge AD-vantage. It allows us to attract the best and the brightest from all over the world, keep costs lower, and include more people from more places and more backgrounds. Our presenters are excited to be a part of this unique gathering. Hear what Wendy Edmonds and Davitta Ealy or Fred Miller and Matt Minihan have to say about being involved with Evolve 2021. We believe that you will be excited too, and we know that our community can solve more issues when we have more hands making the work happen. Evolve gets better with every person who signs up to be a part of it.
We know that people's financial situations are different, and that COVID and 2020 have affected us all. The team at Evolve has made a number of efforts to mitigate registration costs, including offering half price entrance in exchange for moderating two or more 1-hour sessions. It's a great way to be involved, get to know some of the conveners, and learn along the way. If you really want to be a part of this gathering but are unable to meet moderator or other pricing, contact the team to see what we can do for you.
For information on how to register for this global gathering, check out our website: www.evolve4change.com.
You can also visit the Evolve 2021 LinkedIn page
Seed + Spark
Sam Chaltain produced the wonderful book Seed + Spark as part of a collaboration between 180 STUDIO and ECKENHOFF SAUNDERS. This is a gorgeous and magical tour, one that I encourage you to explore. I found so much new information here and found the many stories they included to illustrate each chapter’s theme inspiring and insightful.
Sam is offering the book to us at no cost in pdf format, but you may want to splurge on a paper copy - it’s that wonderful!
The Table of Contents reveals the breadth of topics covered:
The authors’ preface outlines the path they will take:
You can download the pdf of the book HERE.
THE WORLD IS CHANGING. WHAT IS IT SHIFTING FROM, AND TO? 180 IS A GLOBAL DESIGN STUDIO DEDICATED TO EXPLORING THIS QUESTION.
We design human-centered environments and curate stories that advance our understanding of the future of learning -- and, by extension, the future of humanity.
Eckenhoff Saunders is a Chicago-based, architecture, planning and interior design firm. Our work is defined by innovative problem solving, client-centered service, technical expertise and pragmatic experience.
We collaborate with diverse organizations in the healthcare, educational, hospitality, non-profit, commercial, financial and industrial markets to develop meaningful design solutions that enhance the lives of those who experience our buildings.
Creating a supportive network culture
Collective Mind hosts regular Community Conversations with our global learning community. These sessions create space for network professionals to connect, share experiences, and cultivate solutions to common problems experienced by networks.
Our June 16th Community Conversation welcomed Sé Franklin, a coordinator from MenEngage Europe, to share his network’s experiences around developing a core set of values and code of conduct while evolving their network culture in response to the global pandemic. MenEngage Europe is a regional network of MenEngage, a global alliance working toward advancing gender justice, human rights, and social justice and provides a collective voice to engage men and boys in gender equality and gender justice.
Highlights from the conversation
A network’s culture is the shared values, norms, attitudes, and practices of the individuals’ and groups’ behaviors that influence their interactions. The culture should maintain the network’s shared purpose and harness the nature of network practice — one of transparency, inclusivity, and collaboration — by cultivating shared norms and practices in ways that establish constructive dynamics across the network. Yet, much like our Community Conversation on equity articulated, establishing and holding each other accountable to shared norms comes with challenges. Defining, discussing, and modeling network culture can be uncomfortable, complex, and sometimes by necessity, dynamic. However, as highlighted by our co-host, it can also be rewarding and can create brave spaces that ultimately strengthen the network.
Sé discussed MenEngage’s “house rules” — a set of beliefs, values, and code of conduct that its members subscribe to and that can be used to hold each other to account, both in their work and, by extension, how they individually engage in the world. He also shared informal aspects of the network’s operating philosophies and how they have evolved over time. What emerged from the conversation was a number of important and necessary factors that go into holding up a networks’ culture.
When cultivating a network culture, one of the most important aspects is to support and encourage people to be real, present, and accountable and demonstrate this in practice. Many networks and network members are engaged in work that goes against the mainstream while also being geographically dispersed, contributing to a feeling of isolation. Network coordinators and managers can step in and build a ‘personal’ culture that provides care and support for members by creating spaces that feel safe, that acknowledge people’s struggles, and encourage people to be courageous. Alongside that is setting the expectation that participants in these spaces must also be prepared to challenge and be challenged, but to do so with care, sensitivity, and awareness.
Another theme that emerged was the necessity and benefit of network culture evolving and adapting to variable circumstances and becoming a place of care for members in the face of change. The move from in-person interactions to online engagement resulting from the pandemic can be viewed as a positive outcome for many networks, for example. In many cases, it enhanced access to and amongst members and created more supportive connections while also enabling people to engage from the comfort of their homes. A positive byproduct of this operating environment is having created a space in which participants can feel braver, more comfortable, and more reflective than they might have in person.
Just as with centering equity in networks, cultivating a network culture requires trust and the ability of network leaders to invest in efforts that will ultimately foster trust in its network relationships. During the pandemic, MenEngage initiated monthly check-ins centered on checking in on people’s well-being and listening to each other, while also using the time to reconnect with members, rethink the priorities of their canceled annual symposium, and discuss ways to model the culture they were trying to cultivate.
Network culture can be complex and manifest in different ways, as emphasized by our co-host. In some cases, a code of conduct can be documented and laid out as a formal set of rules. In other cases, aspects of the network culture take on a more informal shape, providing the flexibility to evolve under variable circumstances. In still another instance, accountability to a set of norms and attitudes can be linked to the network’s mission, for example, a formal commitment for MenEngage to be accountable to women-led feminist organizations. In other words, network culture is as complex as networks themselves, but a strong and intentional network culture that actively supports its members and maintains quality connections is necessary to harness the transformative power of networks.
Miss the session? View the recording here.
Thanks again to our co-host, Sé Franklin from MenEngage Europe!
Get involved
Have your own experiences with efforts to create a supportive network culture? Tell us about it in the comments below.
Join us for the next Community Conversation!
Or email Seema at seema@collectivemindglobal.org to co-host an upcoming session with us.
Originally published HERE
Featured image found HERE
Seema Patel has been working with mission-driven organizations and multi-stakeholder initiatives for more than 15 years - as a project manager, a volunteer, and an advisor. She has worked in the areas of domestic and global alternative energy, poverty alleviation, social and sustainable entrepreneurship, non-profit web strategy design, and U.S. government management consulting. In her work with Collective Mind, Seema specializes in network analysis, organizational design, knowledge management and learning, and operations.
PLEASE DONATE to help Network Weaver continue in it’s mission to offer free support and resources to networks worldwide.
Critical support for network leaders and managers
We could all use a little support, especially these days. At Collective Mind, we believe that we can best support network leaders and managers by providing them with evidence-based training and materials, and spaces in which they can connect and learn from one another. As the founder, my own personal experience of being a network manager was realizing early on that I didn’t understand the unique network environment and didn’t know how to do my job effectively. It sent me on a learning journey that started more than a decade ago and that now manifests in Collective Mind’s support to network leaders and managers. When network practitioners have the skills, tools, and approaches they need, they not only do their jobs well, they also make their networks more effective and impactful.
Collective Mind Academy is our latest professional development offering in the style of a semester-focused course. We’ll cover five critical topics over 10 weeks:
- Establishing your network’s shared purpose
Shared purpose is the visionary goal around which strategies are defined, people are mobilized, and activities are established and harmonized. We’ll consider how to set the scope of a network’s shared purpose, how it influences your membership, how to translate it into strategies, and more.
- Developing your network’s membership model
Along with shared purpose, membership is a foundational capacity of networks. We’ll consider the multiple components of your membership model including who your members are, the nature and size of your network’s membership, and criteria for membership as well as how to think about engagement, inclusion, and equity.
- Designing your network’s infrastructure
Network infrastructure is the structural design and components of a network, including externally visible structures and processes, that support collective action by members. We’ll consider how to structure your network to ensure key functions and roles including governance, management, and production of outputs and outcomes towards your network’s shared purpose.
- Building your network’s culture
Network culture is the network’s operating philosophy including the shared values, norms, attitudes, and practices of both individuals and groups. While often intangible, the network’s culture maintains the shared purpose and ensures ongoing collaboration. We’ll consider how to manage the range of dynamics that arise in a network (conflict, accountability, etc.) and how to foster effective collaboration.
- Embodying a network mindset
A network mindset recognizes, understands, and responds to the complexity of a network as well as appreciates the differences between a network and a traditional organization. A network mindset understands that we work through a network because the goal or challenge that we seek to address requires a complex set of stakeholders acting together. We’ll consider how to foster a network mindset within and across your network and how to embody it yourself.
Each topic will be covered during a two-week module through evidence-based readings, worksheets to reflect on your work, additional readings to reference as desired, and office hour sessions to access the expertise of both Collective Mind and your peers.
You can complete the course on the schedule and with the structure that is right for you. You can join the full Academy or pick and choose the modules most important to you. You can follow along with the course as we go, joining live office hour sessions, or you can review each topic on your own time accessing the materials and session recordings.
Whether you’re new to networks or a seasoned professional looking for new ideas and strategies, you will find the resources you need. For more details and to register, check out our website. We hope to see you there!
Collective Mind seeks to build the efficiency, effectiveness, and impact of networks and the people who work for and with them. We believe that the way to solve the world’s most complex problems is through collective action – and that networks, in the ways that they organize people and organizations around a shared purpose, are the fit-for-purpose organizational model to harness resources, views, strengths, and assets to achieve that shared purpose.
Principles For Ecosystem Governance
As we adopt Societal Platform Thinking towards working with the ecosystem to achieve the mission, there is a wide and diverse range of interactions that happen and generate value. Interactions that could be around programmes, solutions, infrastructure, and resources. Thus, it becomes important to establish governance mechanisms for balanced evolution of such interactions and their outcomes. Societal Platform partnered with Aapti Institute with the aim to articulate a set of principles that could guide in governing Societal Platforms. The attempt is to identify principles that account for societal values, and aspire to maximise societal impact with a focus on the agency of individuals and institutions.
The report and the included principles have emerged from desk research along with a set of interviews and a brief round table with a few societal missions.
Key Takeaways:
- Bias interactions to deliver impact by identifying and indexing all processes that deliver higher impact.
- Embed accountability by ensuring clearly articulated responsibilities indexed for context and establishing accessible grievance redressal processes.
- Design for evolvability by ensuring that governance processes adapt to emerging challenges and opportunities for the platform to be resilient and sustainable.
Report: Principles for Platform Governance
The principles articulated in this document aim to provide a framework for thinking about infusing societal values into governance.
Presentation: Ecosystem Governance Principles
In this presentation, you will find the 11 principles with a ‘pillar and lever’ framework. These principles seek to embed societal values - drawn from constitutionalism, democratic values and individual liberties.
Originally published HERE at Societal Platform
DOWNLOAD the package of all three resources HERE
Societal Platform is a community of curators, catalysts, and network weavers. They pool their individual strengths and channel their collective imagination to enable social change leaders to advance their missions.
PLEASE DONATE to help Network Weaver continue in it’s mission to offer free support and resources to networks worldwide.
Reimagining a Regenerative Future — Part 3
Creating narratives that are harbingers of life-affirming paradigm shifts
This is an extraordinary time full of vital, transformative movements that could not be foreseen. It’s also a nightmarish time. Full engagement requires the ability to perceive both. ~Rebecca Solnit quoted in Brainpickings
We live in a profoundly damaged world, a wounded and a bleeding planet. The ‘great acceleration’ of the Anthropocene founded on the human hubris of controlling and subduing nature, infinite growth driven by endless extraction and ecocide, and a deeply colonial and racist mindset has brought us to this cusp of simultaneous systems collapse — of economies, polities, societies, communities, ethics, values, and religions.
Polarization, fracture, and fragmentation are manifesting in all their destructive dimensions within and between nation-states. The ostensibly boundary-less, ubiquitously connected globalized world is erecting boundaries within national borders — between its own citizens, driving neighbors against neighbors, turning citizens into vigilantes. Growing injustice and inequality coupled with social, racial, communal, and religious rifts are tearing apart the fabric of most nations.
The richest 1% owns half the world’s wealth. Billionaires wealth rose an approximate of $10.2 trillion amid Covid crisis. “While the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is unknown, the World Bank estimates that an additional 88 million to 115 million people will fall into extreme poverty in 2020, with the total rising to as many as 150 million by 2021.” Mega-corporations like Amazon, owned by the richest man in the world, are known for its bruising work environment. Rich and powerful nations are blocking waivers for Covid-19 vaccine patent rights thus denying vaccination to millions in the face of a global pandemic. Global North nations are destroying less powerful nations for control over natural resources, cheap labor, and land. The cult of consumerism, accumulation, and excess are devastating the planet. Fundamentalism and authoritarianism are on the rise across the globe. All for the sake of power, profit, and privilege.
Is it any wonder that this pathologically unequal world is falling to pieces? The enforcement of deregulated capitalism with its associate free market ideologies have crashed the world’s systems — economically and ecologically. The imposition of structural adjustment programs on the global South countries have effectively destroyed the development that they had sought to make post colonialism.
A combination of austerity, privatization, and deregulation have destroyed the basic infrastructure in most countries. Corporations, freed of all regulations and responsibilities, are recklessly destroying the environment, scouring the planet for the most exploitable labor and that last drop of oil with ever more invasive and extractive technology. The world is literally going to hell in a handbasket.
It is easy to imagine that the world is being run by a handful of megalomaniacs and plutocrats. The underlying narratives of capitalism, free-market, globalization, and growth have created the fertile conditions and space for the rise of such totalitarianism. One wonders what happened to the story of development and progress for all. However, the truth is that the world fell prey to the dangers of a single story.
Since 1980, the global economy has grown by 380%, but the number of people living in poverty on less than $5 (£3.20) a day has increased by more than 1.1 billion. That’s 17 times the population of Britain. So much for the trickle-down effect. ~Jason Hickel, Forget ‘developing’ poor countries, it’s time to ‘de-develop’ rich countries, 2015
If we peel off the layers and go back in history, we can trace the roots of the narrative running the show for the past 500 years to imperialism and colonialism, Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, rise of capitalism and the free market. Today’s ‘universalized’ and homogenized story of development and growth was a western concoction imposed on the rest of the world as a part of the imperialist project of colonization and continued through globalization and neo-colonialism. The rest of humanity was forced to forfeit and forget other ways of being on and relating with this planet and all sentient beings.
However, as our civilization faces imminent collapse and the impending existential crisis of the sixth mass extinction, it is becoming clear that we must reclaim, re-member, and revive those lost and abandoned ways. For centuries, the indigenous people have been turned into fugitives in their own land in the name of development, rendered homeless in the name of growth, brutally persecuted when they claimed what was rightfully theirs.
Even as we teeter on the edge of unprecedented ecological disaster, it is worth remembering that while comprising less than 5% of the world’s population, indigenous people protect 80% of global biodiversity. One of the earliest forest conservation movement in India took place in 1973. Called the Chipko Movement, it saw primarily women hugging the trees to prevent them from being felled for logging. Sunderlal Bahuguna, a Gandhian activist, brought this nonviolent movement to the world’s attention with the rallying cry, “Ecology is the permanent economy.” This was 1973.
The single unifying issue facing Indigenous Peoples everywhere is how to protect their territories and stop the “asset stripping” that robs them of their livelihoods and the foundation of their cultures. Without land and control of their assets, Indigenous Peoples are destined to remain the world’s poorest communities — with the worst health, highest mortality rate and shortest life span. ~The Indigenous Movement
We know that life thrives on diversity. Any forest ecosystem is a teeming hub of myriad visible and invisible life forms from magnificent old trees to the minutest of fungi to the mycorrhizal networks beneath the soil. Yet, the narrative of Eurocentric development has continuously sought to eliminate all forms of diversity — from different cosmologies to unique ontologies and epistemologies, from diverse forests and farms to different economies. It constantly tried to subsume varied ways of being, seeing, and living into its mega-narrative of western universalism, ironing out all uniqueness through brute force.
The hegemonic narrative emanating from a mechanistic, dualistic, utilitarian, hierarchical, and colonial view of life, enforced a distorted and superficial homogeneity in the name of efficiency, productivity, and development on all of civilization. It also imposed a fabricated classification of humanity that impacts billions to this day. The sole aim was and is the accumulation of power and capital by a few at the cost of billions.
Under this industrializing force, thriving forests gave way to mega-monocultures for the sake of agribusiness. Homes of critically endangered wildlife became vast palm oil plantations. Supply chains expanded across the globe stretching from China to Walmart’s doors. Local ecosystems and economies (in the global South) were brutally destroyed to open up international markets in the name of free trade, rendering millions homeless and helpless thus adding to the pool of cheap and disposable labor. Indigenous tribes were rendered homeless as their land was expropriated for mining, logging, and other ills.
The economic, political, and social systems originating from this narrative literally went about exploiting, expropriating, and extinguishing life. Because the founding narrative never valued the web of life with all its abundance and breathtaking beauty, interdependence and inherent intelligence, there were/are no qualms about snuffing it out.
The mindboggling annihilation we have wrought in the name of development is truly unbelievable. The saddest part is that it is not within human capacity to bring back extinct species, to rewild the coral reefs in all their magnificence and multihued diversity, to prevent wildfires from consuming forests and wildlife. We are ‘gambling with what is irreplaceable and precious,’ to use Naomi Klein’s words. But nature is resilient, generative, and autopoietic. Minus human-made destruction, life will assert herself. But for that, we need to let go of our old narrative and embrace a narrative that is regenerative and pluriversal. A narrative that pays homage to life and thus becomes that catalyst and cornerstone for creating structures and systems that are conducive to life.
The globetrotting pandemic ripped apart the façade of progress and development to reveal the papered-over brokenness of our current planetary systems; it also underscored our ineradicable interconnectedness and interdependence with all sentient beings on this planet. However, this seems to have gone unnoticed by those in power. They are once again busy trying to use the crisis to push through policies and programs that people would not accept during normal times.
Naomi Klein in The Shock Doctrine: “In moments of crisis, people are willing to hand over a great deal of power to anyone who claims to have a magic cure — whether the crisis is a financial meltdown or… a terrorist attack.” Those at the helm of world affairs today are being driven by their basest instincts geared towards profit, privilege, and power for a few. We are experiencing a global crisis of leadership, a crisis of conscience, and a crisis of consciousness. And these multiple crises are manifested in the economic, political, and social structures and processes at play today.
However, ordinary people are no longer buying the narrative. From students to farmers, from housewives to indigenous tribal members, they are out in the streets demanding their right to a just, meaningful, and dignified life. The past decade has, therefore, also become the decade of movements. From #OccupyWallStreet to #ExtinctionRebellion, from #FarmersProtest to #FridaysForFuture, from #BlackLivesMatter to #DemocracyforMyanmar. These lists of movements from 2020–2021 are telling a story of an emerging civilizational order vastly different from the old one. They are showing us that the old narrative of European male hegemony and the privilege of power is dead. Those benefitting from it will use every arsenal at their disposal to maintain the status quo, but the war is already lost.
We are experiencing the collapse of the current narrative in the face of global crises. And when narratives collapse, revolutions happen, new shoots of hope arise, new stories are created. And a new world order emerges. It is in our hands to reimagine our civilizational narrative. To throw off the yoke of the old order with its narrow Western worldview and co-create a pluriversal narrative — one that encompasses many cosmologies, ontologies, and epistemologies. A cultural meta-narrative that recognizes and respects the innumerable ways of being, seeing, sensing, and knowing of humans and other-than-humans. One that resonates with the astoundingly diverse and stunningly beautiful web of life. It is time to reimagine new narratives for a civilizational evolution that is life-sustaining.
The new narrative is already arising from the grassroots, from the fringes, and the margins. They are harbingers of the voices of people who have been marginalized and delegitimized for centuries — the blacks, the indigenous, the women, the farmers, the students, the activists, the transgenders. The bearers of this new narrative are the rebels, renegades, radicals, and revolutionaries — they are the visionaries and the imaginal cells of a future taking shape in the present.
They are the ones the status quo is most afraid of. No wonder the privileged are doing all in their power to quell, suppress, and oppress the rising tides of discontent and truth. From incarceration to outright killing, every gruesome and chilling action is being taken to keep the truth from bursting through the carefully erected, centuries-old veneers of deception, duplicity, and deceit.
Those in power are afraid. They have too much to lose after centuries of accumulation and grabbing. They cannot let go with grace. As Otto Scharmer wrote: “The image of the Ever Given — needing to unload its cargo in order to get unstuck — represents in a microcosm the collective impediment that rich countries and Western civilization embody today: holding on to stuff and refusing to share with those who are on the other side of the social divide.” This applies to all those who are benefitting from the status quo.
“By refusing to risk its way of life, by rejecting the idea that the powerful might have to sacrifice for the common good, it clings to a set of social arrangements that allow it to monopolize progress and then give symbolic scraps to the forsaken — many of whom wouldn’t need the scraps if the society were working right.” ~Anand Giridharadas, Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World
Joanna Macy spoke about this period as the Great Turning — a transformational moment in human history — when the foundations of the Industrial Growth Society would finally totter and crumble, and a new Life Sustaining Society will arise. However, this new society will not be ushered in willingly by those benefitting from the old one. The shift will need to be envisioned and co-created by communities and collectives of individuals from all walks of life staking a claim to this planet and standing up for the right of all sentient beings.
Our civilization’s evolution has been a spiral of emergence from one level of convergence and complexity to the next order of evolutionary complexity. And with each evolutionary step, the fundamental narratives have shifted. The shifting of narratives has led to cultural and paradigm shifts — in perceptions, worldviews, beliefs, values, and norms — that have always challenged the status quo, often drawing the wrath of the powerful and the privileged.
Darwinism and evolutionary biology challenged religious believers; Galileo’s heliocentrism (Earth revolving around the sun) and Copernicanism (Earth rotating around the sun) dismantled the belief that the earth was the center of the universe; Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violence movement as a strategy for social change shifted the trajectory of British imperialism in India. Thus, narratives are extremely powerful. They can make or break nations, countries, societies, and our planet.
What if the new narrative we co-create is founded on the bedrock of life-affirming values and actions?
In this liminal space between stories where one world is dying and the other is struggling to be born, lie the potential and power to reimagine and rejuvenate. The power to break away from the hegemony of universalism and co-create a new narrative that counteracts all that is noxious in our old story. A narrative founded on the principles of Interbeing, Pluriversality, and Abundance need to be told.
Stories create our worlds and worldviews. They help us to make meaning in a seemingly random and arbitrary universe. Without stories to lean into, we would not be able to cohere with intentionality and collective energy. Stories become the basis of cultures; thus, new narratives have the power to shift cultures, and cultural forces have the power to drive political and systemic changes.
For good or bad — narratives shape and give rise to norms, values, structures, and processes, which when repeated often enough become the culture — of nations, societies, communities, organizations, groups, or teams. After a point, the underlying narrative is forgotten, and the culture becomes “the way things are done here”. These then go on to create the bedrock of societies, polities, economies, and ethics.
Hence, if we hope to bring about transformative, paradigm shifting change, we must replace the old stories with new ones embodying the beliefs, values, norms, and ethics of a regenerative future. We must move away from narratives legitimizing extraction, exploitation, expropriation, ecocide, and racism to ones that are regenerative and life-affirming. It is not enough to just highlight what needs to change. It is essential to collectively co-create a narrative that embodies ‘a world where many worlds fit.’
It is also crucial to define what such a narrative CANNOT be before we can define what it will be:
1. It can’t be a single, universalized narrative.
2. It can’t be about human centrality and male supremacy.
3. It can’t be a decontextualized model of development imposed on all.
4. It can’t legitimize the vested interests of a few individuals and nations.
5. It can’t marginalize or delegitimize any cosmology and ontology.
The new narrative reifying a regenerative future must be:
1. Contextual and pluriversal, and yet profoundly global.
2. Based on the principles of ‘reparative futures.’
3. Centered on decolonizing the future and the imagination.
4. Focused on generativity and thrivability, not on infinite growth on a finite planet.
5. Founded on our inherent and indelible interconnectedness with the web of life.
~What narratives do we want to tell now that will allow us to hold space for and co-create a regenerative future?
~What will be the edifices and mainstays of these narratives?
~What kind of leaders do we need to become amplifiers and stewards of these narratives?
~What do we, as individuals and collectives, need to do to actualize and manifest the regenerative future, ‘a world that works for all’?
Article originally published here in The Age of Emergence
You can read the first two parts of the article here:
Reimagining a Regenerative Future – Part 1
Reimagining a Regenerative Future – Part 2
Sahana Chattopadhyay — speaker, writer, facilitator, and story-seeker. A scribe to an emerging era, trying to make sense from chaos and collapse, holding space for fearless dialogues, and catalyzing transformation towards a pluriversal planet. For more of her work: https://linktr.ee/sahana2802
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