Washington, Iowa; Fairfield, Iowa; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Toronto, Ontario
HyVee Washington: Golden maple planted 2 years ago on farm not doing well, clerk advised more fertiizer. New tree half price, so DLH decided to get the last one there, barely fits into minivan. Main purpose of trip was for a haircut, went to 5 barbers and stylists, and none were willing to give service without at least an hour wait. (HyVee, Washington, Iowa) 20160804Dairy Bar: Hadn’t left the farm for a few days, so ice cream is a good excuse for a break. Picnic table is new, since the last time we were here. Still looking for better vegan options. (Dairy Bar. Fairfield, Iowa) 20160808Eastern Iowa Airport: Wooden blinds in skylight providing shade to sunny Iowa heat. Drive to airport routed past fields of tall corn, alongside the gravel road, the two-lane blacktop, and then divided highway. Returning home after 18 days in the U.S. of conference, then isolated writing and reviews, seems like a European tour, but the jet lag will be minimal. (Eastern Iowa Airport, Cedar Rapids, Iowa) 20160810Cassels Park: Ravine with steep rise north towards Gerrard Street East could be close to lost Tomlin Creek, water flowing underground south towards Ashbridges Bay. Large grassy area with playgrounds surrounded by residential buildings. City consultation in June convened citizens to resolve a swamp issue, towards developing a rain garden. (Cassels Park, Upper Beaches, Toronto) 20160815Cineplex Eglinton Town Centre: Still routing to movie theatres for 2D Star Trek Beyond, the big screen without 3D glasses is entertainment enough. Tuesday discount draws crowd for late afternoon show,. As we left, the ticket queues were really long for the evening show. Summertime somehow matches blockbuster movies. (Cineplex Odeon Eglinton Town Centre Cinemas, Toronto, Ontario) 20160816Hubbard Park: Staircase railings leading up to Old Don Jail building bright on late summer afternoon. Grounds were renamed in 2014, with the Bridgepoint Health hospital and research centre complex. (Hubbard Park, Riverdale, Toronto, Ontario) 20160817
Twice As Nice 5 Concrete Edition:
B-boy 2 vs. 2 footwork battle @JimmySimpsonRC, concrete floor of the skating rink on warm summer evening. Children and families observing the action. (Twice as Nice 5 Concrete Edition, Jimmy Simpson Recreation Centre, Riverside, Toronto, Ontario) 201610819
Leslieville: Mystery double fence with vines hid bitter melon. Garden inside had many dit gwa hairy melons over a foot long suspended overhead, pointed out to me by the Chinese lady of the house. Urban gardening alongside a busy city thoroughfare. Reminds me of the jungle that my grandmother use to grow behind the house in the 1980s. (Dundas Street East, Leslieville, Toronto, Ontario) 20160821Trinity Bellwoods Park: Bust of Simon Bolivar looking over Farmers Market on late Tuesday afternoon. Lots of bikes and baby strollers in the denser west end of town. I was riding the bike without baskets, so no shopping, just tourism. (Trinity Bellwoods Farmers Market, Dundas Street West at Shaw Street, Toronto, Ontario) 20160823Edward Gardens: Wedding rings on for the 31st renewal of vows at the original gardens from 1985. Entered the park from the west side of the river, saw the teaching garden with demonstration vegetables for the first time. (Edward Gardens, Don Mills, Ontario) 20160824Edward Gardens: Return to the fountain for the 31st time to renew vows. Prospect for next year is for a lot of change. (Edward Gardens, Don Mills, Ontario) 20160824The Power Plant: Installation @ThePowerPlantTO #FranzErhardWalther #CalltoAction fabrics stacked on floor and on wall isn’t activated with human interaction as intended, and shown in videos. Works include the red “The New Alphabet, Form G” (1993), “First Work Set” (1963-69) and “Yellow Moulding” (1985). Maybe we could schedule play days with art. (The Power Plant, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, Ontario) 20160826Toronto Eaton Centre: Two-below is now labelled as Level 1, and three-below is Urban Eatery. Brightness in open atrium and short elevator deceive the reality of being underground. Subway entrance is another escalator ride upstairs. Construction on the main floor above that is visible on Yonge Street. Walked into mall to escape summer heat. (Toronto Eaton Centre) 20160828Cherry Beach: Rowboat @TOBeachGuards watching swimmers doing laps around four pilons in the Outer Harbour, clear visibility into Lake Ontario. Swim strokes were steady, which team likes the freshwater lake? Lifeguard station had green flag, children and families were playing by the shore. (Cherry Beach, Outer Harbour, Toronto, Ontario) 20160829Sheraton Centre Toronto: Waterfall garden from second floor of conference hotel, a peaceful break from busy Queen Street West, just across from Nathan Phillips Square and City Hall. Morning commute on bicycle to meeting, circled around exterior looking for bike racks, settling for chaining around a lamp post. (Sheraton Centre, Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario) 20160831
For espoused systems thinkers who are predisposed towards towards finding an equilibrium (or maybe one amongst multiple equilibria), a discussion about entropy can raise discomfort. In the systems sciences, the second law of thermodynamics — as an entropic process — is often cited by the learned as a universal law applicable across physics, chemistry, biology […]
In the 4th year of an espoused 10-year journey, the Systems Changes Learning Circle reached a major milestone. With Code for Canada, the team conducted its first educational workshop based on the contextural action learning approach currently under review for publication. The client was the Canadian Digital Service . The presentation outlining the basic ideas and […]
Many might sequence systems thinking as (i) systems theory preceding (ii) systems practice. This is not always the case. There are situations where (i) systems practice has preceded (ii) systems theory, or the two advance in a tight learning loop. Jack Ring once pointed out that applied science (engineering) precedes science, because human beings often […]
System thinking, coming from roots in mainstream Western philosophy, tends to orient towards (i) thinking in space, before (ii) thinking in time. Structure is an arrangement in space. Process is an arrangement in time. A critical systems perspective leads us to think about inclusion within boundaries. Does this lead us to overlook boundaries in time? […]
The Systems Changes Learning Circle, formed in January 1999, has since been meeting at least once every 3 weeks. In many respects, the core group has exhibited great patience in our mutual learning towards an agenda of Rethinking Systems Thinking, from talks given in 2012, and published in 2013. In anticipation of a journal article […]
In the 1980s, ecological economics seemed to be mostly economists extending their work towards environmental and resource concerns. In the 2020s, ecological economics is seeing a new generation first schooled in other disciplines such as environmental studies or one of the social sciences, then coming into economics. Programs that encourage the new perspective include the […]
In conversation, @zeynep with @ezraklein reveal authentic #SystemsThinking in (i) appreciating that “science” is constructed by human collectives, (ii) the west orients towards individual outcomes rather than population levels; and (iii) there’s an over-emphasis on problems of the moment, and…Read more ›
In the question-answer period after the lecture, #TimIngold proposes art as a discipline of inquiry, rather than ethnography. This refers to his thinking On Human Correspondence. — begin paste — [75m26s question] I am curious to know what art, or…Read more ›
How might our society show value for the long term, over the short term? Could we think about taxation over time, asks @carlotaprzperez in an interview: 92% for 1 day; 80% within 1 month; 50%-60% tax for 1 year; zero tax for 10 years.Read more ›
For the @ArchFoundation, #TimIngold distinguishes outcome-oriented making from process-oriented growing, revisiting #MartinHeidegger “Building Dwelling Thinking”. Organisms are made; artefacts grow. The distinction seems obvious, until you stop to ask what assumptions it contains, about the inside and outside of things…Read more ›
In web conference, #HermanDaly says #EcologicalEconomics used to get attacked from the right, now it's from the left. Panel @revkin @jon_d_erickson @ktkish @sophiesanniti #TimCrowshaw #KatieHorner livestreamed #sustainwhat .Read more ›
Complementing the idea of a @longnow , @nfergus provokes the challenge of a #shortthen as the online social media platforms distract the larger perspectives on history.Read more ›
In this review of a philosophical work written in Chinese, a comparison is made between Chinese philosophy centering on the body, in comparison to Western philosopy centered on the mind. (I found a reference to this book, tracing back from Keekok Lee (2017) Chapter 9, footnote 8.
The translation from English "systems thinking" to French "la pensée systémique" misses meaning. "Approche systémique" has lineage to "Conférences Macy", "General System Theory (Bertalanffy)" and "Gregory Bateson"
When one chooses a guiding philosophy of life -- and the modern world has chosen humanism -- one becomes responsible for all the consequences that flow from that choice. (David W. Ehrenfeld, 1981)
“Rethinking Systems Thinking” (2013) is cited by #DaniloBrozović (U. Skövde), #MarcoTregua (U. Napoli Federico II): The level of complexity in current service ecosystems is rising, not least due to technology (Barile et al., 2020), with the effect of such increased complexity of service ecosystems being perceived as ‘simple’. On the other hand, some systems researchers […]
Jullien views propensity in Chinese philosophy, as a counterpart to causality in Western philosophy. Some unpacking of his writing in digests may be helpful. Jullien, François. 1995. The Propensity of Things: Toward a History of Efficacy in China. Translated by Janet Lloyd. Zone Books. Introduction How can we conceive of the dynamic in terms of the static, in […]
In his system of system concepts, Russell Ackoff made the distinction between reformation and transformation in many of his lectures. Here are two written sources. From Redesigining Society (2003) … Systemic Transformation A system is transformed, as contrasted with reformed, when its structure or functions are changed fundamentally. Such changes are discontinuous and qualitative, quantum […]
