Analyzing complex social, economic, and ecological systems for root causes of unsustainable behavior
At Sustainability Institute, we develop concepts and tools that help pull together pieces of the sustainability puzzle, show how the whole adds up to something different from the sum of the parts, and identify the leverage points for change.
Within the broad range of sustainability challenges, we focus on three types of engagements.
- We are targeting particularly intractable issues – ones where there are no easy answers, no one organization has direct responsibility for improvement, and previous attempts at amelioration have failed.
- We tackle issues that could produce generalizable insights – for example, growth against a resource limit.
- We collaborate with people within systems exhibiting problematic behavior who are particularly committed to action and drawn to a systems thinking approach.
Our research is focused on "action research", in which we learn about a system and its leverage points by working closely with people within the system itself. We look for outcomes that:
- Influence policy, corporate strategy, or individual behavior within the systems
- Build the capacity of our collaborators to create positive change in the future
- Inform, empower, and inspire people in other systems who are struggling with similar challenges of creating a sustainable world