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19 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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ISIS
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Indicators, Systems, Innovation and Strategy.
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9 steps to do sustainable development
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1. understand the general concept of a system
2. know what sustainability means 3. be able to distinguish between 'development' and 'growth' 4. have adequate information about what is currently happening in the system you are attempting to make more sustainable – you must understand the critical trends 5. understand how the specific system works 6. identify the specific changes – innovations and other interventions – that will improve the system’s development pathway and put it (or keep it) on a sustainable course 7. successfully introduce and fully implement those changes within the system 8. successfully implement 9. continuously monitor results – and continuously improve your information, systems understanding, specific change initiatives and capacity to implement change |
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elements of a system
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* Source: The origin of something – physical stuff or abstract ‘stuff’ – that is moving around within a system.
* Sink: Where that stuff ends up when the system has finished using it. * Stock: Places where the stuff pauses on its way through a system. * Flow: The movement of stuff from one place to another within the system, from sources to stocks to ultimate sinks. * Feedback: Information that signals the status of a source, sink, stock or flow. * Feedback loop: What happens when feedback closes a circuit, and the feedback itself begins to drive system behaviour. * Dynamic equilibrium: Stability within a system, with all the moving parts staying within the limits of what that system can tolerate and still keep functioning. * Nonlinear event: Otherwise known as phase shifts in a system, these are disruptive events that are usually hard to predict, because they fall outside of the ‘straight line’ path of a system’s normal functioning. * Resilience: The capacity of a system to withstand shocks and other nonlinear effects and return to an equilibrium state – though perhaps not the same state it was in before. |
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A sustainable world
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Peace, justice
Economic vitality Social equity, universal opportunity Ecosystem integrity and stability Human and ecological health |
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Sustainability definition
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A set of conditions and trends in any given system that can continue indefinitely.
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Sustainable Development
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A strategic process of continuous innovation and change in the direction of sustainability.
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A code of ethics for sustainability professionals
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1. Walk the talk
2. Keep up to date 3. Tell the truth about what is happening, as you see it - In a world of great media noise and confusion, where sustainability issues and global concerns must compete for attention, be clear about what you believe to be the most important trends to be addressed, and why. 4. Share information, and credit, with other professionals 5. Prioritize cooperation over competition and impact over income 6. Make professional referrals whenever appropriate 7. When working as a professional, support the students and the volunteers 8. Explain your ethical choices - Be transparent about the criteria you use for structuring your practice and for choosing your professional engagements 9. Consider the systematic impacts of your advice and actions 10. Seek to do no harm |
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3 R's of climate change response
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Risk
Reward Responsibility |
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Sustainability investment
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Money spent on sustainability should be seen as an investment and not as a cost.
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ISIS method 1
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1. Start with the Indicators - individual trends selected for their ability to reflect the bigger picture.
Look at the data, the trends, what is really happening. Get as complete a picture in front of you (or your group, or your client) as possible. 2. Do a Systems analysis. Using the trends as a starting point, start to ask: what is happening here? What is moving where? Where are the sources and sinks, the stocks and the flows – in material and energy terms, but also in terms of intangibles, like people’s health and happiness? 3. Select Innovations to introduce. Once you have a good map of how the system works, and where you can most effectively change it, begin to brainstorm, and survey, and research, to figure out which changes to introduce at the selected leverage points. 4. Strategize for cultural change - Habits, power relations, demands on time, compatibility with existing elements of the system, even values and paradigms need to be considered as part of your strategizing |
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Accelerator
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= to speed up the process of learning and doing sustainable development
Principles: 1. Take complex sustainability theory, simplify its presentation (without sacrificing its substance), and make it approachable, understandable and usable by just about anyone; 2. Use structured processes that anyone can participate in, regardless of whether they understand the theory; 3 Finally, make sure the process leads to a result – one that stands a good chance of producing a tangible, positive, high-leverage change in the world. |
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Compass
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N, Nature - underlying health and sustainable management of key ecosystems, bio-geo-physical cycles and natural resources (water, forest, GHG, local animals and plants, the resources to survive)
E, Economy - all the ways human beings work with Nature, with knowledge and with each other to produce the things and services that they need or want (work, productivity, efficiency, effectiveness) S, Social - social systems, structures and institutions that are driven by people acting collectively (quality and equity in leadership, overall levels of competence, population numbers, levels of security, and levels of active participation in relevant social processes) W, Wellbeing - focuses on the individual, as well as on the smaller webs of intimate relationship that are crucial to health and happiness (health, family relations, quality of life) * everything is connected to everything else (not hierarchical) |
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Compass - needs to get started
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1. a constituency for the project (team, target audience)
2. a clear, sustainability-related goal and vision 3. the indicator set need to relate to the broadest possible audience of stakeholders, and cover all their most essential hoped and worries (assets and concerns) 4. leadership is engaged and bought-in 5. indicators need to be worked over in technical terms (ways to measure the status and trend) 6. set of candidate indicators must be refined to the point of consensus or agreement to proceed 7. actual data must be gathered 8. indicators must be analyzed, interpreted and communicated in a compelling way 9. each indicator is converted to the Compass's 0-100 performance scale and scores for each Compass Point are averaged to produce Indices and then overall Compass Index * methodology should be in the service of strategy 10. indicators need to be updated regularly, and changes in trends analyzed for their strategic importance |
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ways to use the Compass
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1. As a guiding framework and process for developing sustainability indicators and reports
2. As an assessment tool for organizational strategy, policy and commitment 3. As an assessment and guidance tool for fast-growing companies (and their investors) |
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Leverage point
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places in a system identified as a place to make positive change
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ISIS Method 2
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I = Indicators = The development of data, metrics, and information signals relevant to a bounded unit of analysis, or "system". To be understood by a wide variety of users and decision-makers
S = Systems = Using the available data and indicators as inputs to create system analyses (observed historic and current behavior to support forecasting and scenario development and identify key points of intervention in the system. Can be of varying levels of sophistication. I = Innovation = Identifying the kinds of interventions that are of highest benefit to the system as a whole. Can be "hard" changes in technology, investment, and infrastructure changes, to "soft" changes in awareness, attitude, and values. S = Strategy = Careful planning for successful introduction and implementation of prioritized Innovations. Includes the analysis of cultural roles and dynamics that may affect acceptance in a detailed and holistic way, in addition to traditional strategic planning processes of setting goals and objectives, specific approaches and tactics, and performance metrics. |
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Amoeba of Culture
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Innovator
Change Agent Transformer Mainstreamer Laggard Reactionary Iconoclast Spiritual Recluse Curmudgeon Controller |
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AMOEBA
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A=Adapt the Innovation
M=Mobilize the Change Agents O=Organize the Transformers E=Easy does it for the Mainstreamers B=Build momentum at the margins A=Avoid the Reactionaries. Laggards and Curmudgeons |
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The seven secret powers of the Change Agent
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1. The power of invitation
2. The power of volunteering 3. The power of facilitating 4. The power of simplicity 5. The power of creativity 6. The power of patience 7. The power of not seeking power |
