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Thinking in systems to address climate with Sheryl Cababa
Summary
Our sixth session, led by Sheryl Cababa, author of Closing the Loop: Systems Thinking for Designers explores the relationship between systems thinking and climate solutions. We use real-world examples to discuss systemic and organisational power dynamics, incentives, and how seeing and understanding them can integrate climate solutions into your work. Moderated by Alexis Oh
Key Insights
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Systems thinking extends perspective to understand interconnectedness, causality, and wholeness beyond immediate work scopes.
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The iceberg model helps teams uncover root causes beneath surface problems by analyzing events, trends, mental models, and structures.
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Structural elements like company policies significantly shape behaviors and are often the hardest yet most impactful change points.
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A committed minority of 25% can shift majority viewpoints, offering optimism for grassroots climate action within organizations.
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Designers and information architects are naturally positioned as systemic change agents due to their cross-functional roles and mental models.
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Participatory systems mapping involving diverse stakeholders aligns understanding and surfaces leverage points more effectively than solo efforts.
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Prototyping and pilots in systems thinking allow testing potential interventions cheaply and reduce risk-avoidant inertia.
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Frameworks like the theory of change and STEEP analysis keep climate action efforts grounded and aligned to measurable outcomes.
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Personifying the environment as a stakeholder (e.g., 'Mother Nature' card) facilitates embedding climate considerations into product decisions.
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Long-term design thinking inspired by indigenous principles (seven generations) reinforces decision impact across future horizons.
Notable Quotes
"Always design a thing by thinking of its next larger context: a chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment."
"Designers are change agents within their organizations because we’re multidisciplinary, empathetic, and compassionate."
"It only requires 25% of a committed minority to reverse a majority viewpoint in a population."
"Systems thinking is a mindset that extends your perspective beyond the immediate problem to see interconnections and consequences."
"Mapping is not just for presentation; it’s a practice to evolve your understanding of a complex problem space."
"Personifying the environment as a stakeholder is like Trojan horsing important climate conversations into the design process."
"You don’t need formal power to be a change agent; influence through alignment and stakeholder mapping is key."
"Pilots and prototyping create evidence to inform decisions, making change more achievable and less risky."
"The organization’s website structure often mirrors its internal organizational structure and decision-making."
"Design for seven generations—think about decisions that affect future people, not just immediate outcomes."
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