Category Archives: Uncategorized

Fragmentation of systems thinking: Systems thinking is not a coherent body of knowledge but derived from a conglomerate of approaches, concepts, tools and methods with often different – even conflicting – interpretations on the one hand and different names for a … Continue reading →

I received the following inquiry into benchmarking systems thinking “….we adopted systems thinking in 2005….and would like to visit organisations that have integrated systems thinking approaches within their work…..for benchmarking purposes”. My immediate gut reaction on benchmarking systems thinking was: Sharing experiences, … Continue reading →

Systems thinking describes how systems are organised, unfold and change and how this should be managed. MBA programmes do the same regarding business organisations. Systems thinking is (w)holistic. (Note: Wholistic means considering wholes, while holistic implies that there is emergence … Continue reading →

Futures research concerns itself with how systems change and develop in the course of time. I would therefore argue that it represents the temporal perspective of systems theory and that the underlying worldview of futures research is systems thinking. Moreover, … Continue reading →

A growing recognition of the interdependence of systems across scientific disciplines manifests as an increase in interdisciplinary research, whereby two or more disciplines work together around a specific issue. However, from a systemic perspective, interdisciplinary cooperation and integration still implies … Continue reading →

Systems thinking fragmentation: In spite of more than 50 years since its inception, the impact of systems thinking in the universities I have observed and interacted with is disappointing. It has made an impact on some disciplines and even improved some … Continue reading →

Scientific fragmentation: As emphasised by systems thinking, problems like poverty span dimensions (i.e. there are economic, cultural, political, technological, ecological, biological and physical causes of poverty). Accordingly, there need to be strategies for dealing with the different dimensions. Issues like poverty … Continue reading →

Fragmented thinking in academia: There is increasing awareness and shared experience that we live in one global world, dependent on one precious planet. Yet, the unity of thinking about it (both in terms of science and systems thinking), let alone its … Continue reading →

Case of sustainability: If we want to survive as a species, embracing sustainable development is one of the key challenges. I reflected on this issue while attending the Africa Leads conference, which focused on the role of leadership in creating a … Continue reading →

Fragmentation of science and systems thinking: The fragmentation of science (both natural and human sciences ) and that of systems thinking are major co-producing factors for humanity’s poor records in (dis)solving complex societal problems. This fragmentation is sometimes also referred … Continue reading →