Comunidades y Viviendas, Monologue 1
Following on from last night's post, what to do? Where to start? How to explain? How to proceed? Striving for clarity to all those questions can only lead me to mental paralysis, so I will simply jump in.
As absurdly obvious as it may sound, everybody lives somewhere. It is a fundamental fact of our existence and, globally, one we all have in common. Certainly, the circumstances and the definition of that “living” may vary dramatically, but, the fact remains, we all put our heads down to sleep, and that takes place most often at the place (or places) we live. From the homeless person and the nomad, to the super-rich world citizen, our perspective on life springs from where and how we live day-to-day. My theory, therefore, is simple. If we are going to change the world, we must start from where people live.
Let me quickly introduce another perspective. Human society and the dynamics of the world in which it exists are made up of an infinite number of nested and interrelated systems. A family is a system. A community is a system. Biology is a system. An organization is a system. The environment is a system. Politics is a system. A government is a system. The economy is a system. The planets and their movement around the sun is a system. I will talk at another time about the emerging field of complex adaptive systems, but, for now, it is sufficient to point out that all of these systems are interconnected, interdependent, seek to learn and grow, and that the behavior of one affects, often in non-linear and unexpected ways, the behavior of the others. It is impossible to effectively alter the dynamics of one system without considering the influence of related systems and, subsequently, impacting the dynamics of those systems.
If we are to focus on and change a core element of human existence, where and how people live, we must undertake that work from a systemic point of view. All of the systems that interrelate with that core system must be taken into account. That was the framework behind the visual I posted in my introduction to this concept last night. All of those components, and probably more that I failed to mention, are systems inextricably interrelated to where and how we live, what I have chosen to call “Comunidades y Viviendas.” If where and how we live is to change for the better, ALL of those systems MUST be taken into account, and not only taken into account, THEY must very likely be changed as well. We must insure that the changes in the core element of how and where we live are not ground into dust by leaving the systems that support it unaffected. At a later time, I will relate several stories from my past experience that clearly illustrate how that can happen and the tragedies that ensue when it does. I am sure many of you have similar stories and hope that you will take the opportunity to share them when we get to that point.
Before moving one step further, I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t point out that what I am proposing has enormous and potentially quite threatening implications for established systems. If people become truly empowered to take charge of where and how they live, there is NOTHING else that can remain unaffected. Economic and power structures, for instance, will be altered in dramatic ways. The flow of both will be reversed, flowing from the bottom up, rather than as they do now, from the top down. This, to me at least, implies that there must be a readiness for this kind of change, and, as I said in the introductory post, I am predicating my proposal on what I believe to be unexpected and dramatic events that will pave the way for work on these changes to begin in earnest. That said, I see absolutely no reason why planning for it should not begin now.
That takes me to the principal challenge I see moving forward. I have connections with gifted and enlightened people in many parts of the world who, if they were able to pursue this effort and sustain themselves and their own lives in the process, would drop everything to become part of it. When I say “sustain themselves and their own lives,” I mean precisely that. Most of us require a certain level of resources flowing into our lives in order to maintain needs, responsibilities and obligations, and we also have connections and roots that are neither easily nor lightly abandoned. That’s good. It’s all about where and how we live and no one should be asked to sacrifice that. However, these people, if we are to join together in such a grand project, must come together from time to time to develop and evolve the concept, and, after all, developing and evolving the concept is the first and the biggest piece of the work. What this points to is a basic requirement for seed money, money for two things: to support the lives of the initial, core team so that we can devote all of our energy to the work, and two, money to support the travel necessary to bring us together as needed. To my mind, the money would ideally be provided by an “angel,” a sole philanthropist who would underwrite the development, evolution and pilot execution of the concept until it can become self-sustainable, with no expectation of return, payback, profit or future rights. An impossible fantasy? Perhaps. I’m putting it out there nevertheless, because I know from experience, you don’t get if you don’t ask.
I’ll expand on some of these initial thoughts in future posts. In the meantime, I look forward to your thoughts and comments.
Tweet
As absurdly obvious as it may sound, everybody lives somewhere. It is a fundamental fact of our existence and, globally, one we all have in common. Certainly, the circumstances and the definition of that “living” may vary dramatically, but, the fact remains, we all put our heads down to sleep, and that takes place most often at the place (or places) we live. From the homeless person and the nomad, to the super-rich world citizen, our perspective on life springs from where and how we live day-to-day. My theory, therefore, is simple. If we are going to change the world, we must start from where people live.
Let me quickly introduce another perspective. Human society and the dynamics of the world in which it exists are made up of an infinite number of nested and interrelated systems. A family is a system. A community is a system. Biology is a system. An organization is a system. The environment is a system. Politics is a system. A government is a system. The economy is a system. The planets and their movement around the sun is a system. I will talk at another time about the emerging field of complex adaptive systems, but, for now, it is sufficient to point out that all of these systems are interconnected, interdependent, seek to learn and grow, and that the behavior of one affects, often in non-linear and unexpected ways, the behavior of the others. It is impossible to effectively alter the dynamics of one system without considering the influence of related systems and, subsequently, impacting the dynamics of those systems.
If we are to focus on and change a core element of human existence, where and how people live, we must undertake that work from a systemic point of view. All of the systems that interrelate with that core system must be taken into account. That was the framework behind the visual I posted in my introduction to this concept last night. All of those components, and probably more that I failed to mention, are systems inextricably interrelated to where and how we live, what I have chosen to call “Comunidades y Viviendas.” If where and how we live is to change for the better, ALL of those systems MUST be taken into account, and not only taken into account, THEY must very likely be changed as well. We must insure that the changes in the core element of how and where we live are not ground into dust by leaving the systems that support it unaffected. At a later time, I will relate several stories from my past experience that clearly illustrate how that can happen and the tragedies that ensue when it does. I am sure many of you have similar stories and hope that you will take the opportunity to share them when we get to that point.
Before moving one step further, I would be terribly remiss if I didn’t point out that what I am proposing has enormous and potentially quite threatening implications for established systems. If people become truly empowered to take charge of where and how they live, there is NOTHING else that can remain unaffected. Economic and power structures, for instance, will be altered in dramatic ways. The flow of both will be reversed, flowing from the bottom up, rather than as they do now, from the top down. This, to me at least, implies that there must be a readiness for this kind of change, and, as I said in the introductory post, I am predicating my proposal on what I believe to be unexpected and dramatic events that will pave the way for work on these changes to begin in earnest. That said, I see absolutely no reason why planning for it should not begin now.
That takes me to the principal challenge I see moving forward. I have connections with gifted and enlightened people in many parts of the world who, if they were able to pursue this effort and sustain themselves and their own lives in the process, would drop everything to become part of it. When I say “sustain themselves and their own lives,” I mean precisely that. Most of us require a certain level of resources flowing into our lives in order to maintain needs, responsibilities and obligations, and we also have connections and roots that are neither easily nor lightly abandoned. That’s good. It’s all about where and how we live and no one should be asked to sacrifice that. However, these people, if we are to join together in such a grand project, must come together from time to time to develop and evolve the concept, and, after all, developing and evolving the concept is the first and the biggest piece of the work. What this points to is a basic requirement for seed money, money for two things: to support the lives of the initial, core team so that we can devote all of our energy to the work, and two, money to support the travel necessary to bring us together as needed. To my mind, the money would ideally be provided by an “angel,” a sole philanthropist who would underwrite the development, evolution and pilot execution of the concept until it can become self-sustainable, with no expectation of return, payback, profit or future rights. An impossible fantasy? Perhaps. I’m putting it out there nevertheless, because I know from experience, you don’t get if you don’t ask.
I’ll expand on some of these initial thoughts in future posts. In the meantime, I look forward to your thoughts and comments.
Labels: community, complex adaptive systems, Comunidades y Viviendas, large system design
Submit To PropellerTweet
posted by profmarcus at
8/16/2007
