The Necessary Revolution

 The Necessary Revolution

Interview with the author: http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jun2008/id20080611_566195_page_3.htm

Author: Peter Senge is an American scientist and director of the Center for Organizational Learning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is a specialist in organizational learning and system thinking.
He is the founding chair of the Society for Organizational Learning (SoL).


This page is the summary of my learning points from our reading assigned for the first 7-8 weeks of the Global Sustainable Business Practices course. 


PART 1: Endings, New Beginnings
1. A Future Awaiting Our Choices
CREATING THE FUTURE: 
1. There is no viable path forward that does not take into account the needs of future generations.
2. Institutions matter.
3. Al real change is grounded in new ways of thinking and perceiving.
2. How We Got into This Predicament
Industrial waste
Consumer and Commercial Waste and Toxicity
Non-regenerative (Non-renewable) Resources
Regenerative (Renewable) Resources (freshwater quality, topsoil, fisheries, forests) 
Causal loops diagrams - "Shifting the Burden to "Expert" Specialist".
SEEING THE WHOLE PICTURE
1. The Industrial World
2. The largest natural world.
3. The regenerative resources. 
4. The non-regenerative resources.
5. The process of extracting - waste generating.
6. The industrial system within social system-natural system.
THE CASE FOR URGENCY: THE 80-20 CHALLENGE: the CO2 Bathtub.
3. Life Beyond the Bubble
The "real" real world - see Part III: p.102
The choices behind our choices (surf the flux, zero to landfill, we are borrowing the future from our children; we have to pay it back,we are only one of nature's wonders, value the earth's services; they come free of charge to those who treasure them; embrace variety; build community; in the global village, there is only one boat, and a hole sinks us all.)
The way in is also the way out.
4. New Thinking, New Choices
Core Learning Capabilities: seeing systems, collaborating across boundaries, creating desired future (beyond reactive problem solving).


Can we transform capitalism’s restless need for growth into something spiritual and sustainable where a sense of compassionate reciprocity replaces hand-outs from the wealthy, where nature is welcome as an ally and a teacher, and where the value of money is grounded in genuine wealth? Within its 400-odd pages, The Necessary Revolution provides an uplifting glimpse of what this might look like and identifies a starting point close enough that there really is no reason for us all not to begin. This is not just a matter of we can – we must.


Part II: The Future is Now
5. Never Doubt What One Person and a Small Group of Co-Conspirators Can Do.
Ford dealership - Sweden, p.58
ENGAGING THE LARGE DRIVERS FOR CHANGE
MAKE IT SOMETHING PEOPLE CAN TOUCH P. 63
6. Aligning an Industry
LEED, p. 69
BRINGING THE EXPERTISE TOGETHER: THE LEED RATING SYSTEM, p.71
Latent need: "Throughout the whole process, we relied on the organizational learning concept of aspiration; people oriented themselves toward what mattered most to them, rather than just problems." p.75
MEETING THE LATENT NEED - USGBC
7. Unconventional Allies: Coke and WWF Partner for Sustainable Water
Basic needs, p.79
SEEING THE LARGER BUSINESS SYSTEM
Getting to know the neighbors - Community Development/Investment, p.87
Getting to what really matters - Apple/Yangtze River, p.89
THE RISKS; public reputation.
EITHER WE ALL HANG TOGETHER OR WE'LL HANG SEPARATELY - NGO's + businesses


No one in their right mind would deny that climate change is a problem. But climate change is a symptom of more complex, interrelated problems that will not end with the disappearance of the toxic bloom of CO₂ that plagues our upper atmosphere. How will we know how much carbon dioxide is the right amount? At what speed can we safely reduce emissions? Will the War On Carbon, like the War on Drugs and the War On Poverty create unintended consequences equally as serious?


Part III: Getting Started
8. Risks and Opportunities: The Business Rationale for Sustainability
The "real" real world: systems thinking, p.102
ALIGNING PRIORITIES WITH NEW REALITIES - Google
BUSINESS RISKS IN AN INTERDEPENDENT WORLD - CDP (P.105)
THE FINANCIAL INDUSTRIES U-TURN - banking sector, p.108
OPPORTUNITY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF RISK - Goldman Sachs, p.108
COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE INNOVATION, AND GROWTH - Juergen H.Daum, Intangible Assets and Value Creation: (soft and hard assets)
1. There is significant money to be saved.
2. There is significant money to be made.
3. You can provide your customer with a competitive edge.
4. Sustainability os a point of differentiation.
5. You can shape the future of your industry.
6. You can become a preferred supplier. 
7. You can change your image and brand.
FROM COMPLIANCE TO INNOVATION - 5 stages and emerging drivers (referred to Bob Willard).
9. Positioning for the Future and the Present
The 4 elements of shareholder value, p.120
SUSTAINABLE VALUE CREATION - Sarnia, ON
Sustainable Value Framework - p.122
Sustainability Drivers
TRANSFORMING DUPONT
DuPont's Approach to Sustainable Value Creation
Cost and Risk Reduction
Reputation and Legitimacy
Innovation and Repositioning
Growth Path and Trajectory
Sustainable Growth as a High-Margin Strategy
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE
From Mercenaries to Missionaries
Big and Small Can Work Together to Provoke Innovation - GE
GE's Investment in the FUture
A New Way of Thinking Emerges
A Commitment to invest in the Future
10. Getting People Engaged
THE FIRST CONVERSATION
The Perils of Advocacy
Getting Unstuck - "soft stuff" of business
Becoming an Anomateur: your role as a leader.
First Steps Toward improving Dialogue
1. Personal Reflections
2. Initial conversations with like-minded peers.
3. Informal team.
4. "Scouting party"
5. Draft of a case for change
Making your role productive
1. Local line leaders.
2. internal network leaders and community builders.
3. Managers of specialist functions with the capability to initiate or work with key cross-organizational processes.
4. Executive leaders.
11. Building Your case for Change (Marks & Spencer)
TOOLBOX: USING THE SUSTAINABLE VALUE MATRIX TO BUILD THE CASE FOR CHANGE - p.161


“The central task of education is to implant a will and facility for learning; it should produce not learned but learning people. The truly human society is a learning society, where grandparents, parents, and children are students together.” 


Eric Hoffer


By leaving an individual’s spirit and will out of our discussion we forget that each person has a unique essence they are developing. We plan schooling in a way that limits both a teacher’s and a child’s ability to see who they uniquely are; when we want to engage them each time in a way that develops their ability to be more of who they truly and uniquely are. This lack of understanding on our part stops the evolution of the child, the teacher and the school from getting closer and more able to be their highest selves.


Part IV: Seeing Systems
12. The Tragedy and Opportunities of Commons
THE SYSTEMS-THINKING ICEBERG - p.172
events - patterns/trends - systemic structures - mental models
ECONOMY AND ECOLOGY
13. Spaceship Earth
Alcoa's exercise in thinking - p.182
SUGGESTIONS FOR RETHINKING BOUNDARIES
Resistance!!!
Principles for a 1,000-acre island - p.186 (Collapse by Jared Diamond), toolbox - p.188
SEEING LIMITS TO GROWTH
demand - production - ability to site new plants - resources - resource restriction 
TOOLBOX (limits to growth model used to see deeper processes)
self-reinforcing growth process
limiting process
14. Seeing your choices
Nike - p.196
Collective Impact of Individual Company Choices - p.199 - !!!!!
SEEING COMMON LIMITS
CHOOSING TO STEWARD THE COMMONS
CREATING POSITIVE CHANGE SNOW BALLS (HARNESSING THE "SNOWBALL EFFECT")
"Pull" for Change - p.211
THE BIG PICTURE: THE "CIRCULAR ECONOMY"/OPPORTUNITIES
Life cycle assessment (LCA) - p.215
CREATING COMMONS TO MANAGE COMMONS


As our businesses more and more need people with the capacity to think and manage them selves, this lack of depth in our education discussion is bad news. Businesses needs people who understand the systemic nature of reality, people who can create innovative new products, processes and systems and people who can work as members of a community. The certainty of the people involved in policy and public discussions — that facts and knowledge, that are measurable, are the gauge to determine a high quality education is a problem for business and all of society.


Part V: Across Boundaries
15. The Imperative to Collaborate
EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY
16. Convening: "Get the System in the Room"
IDENTIFYING STRATEGIC MICROCOSM - Toolbox, p.238
Building Momentum - p.240
Purposeful Networking, toolbox (Stakeholder Dialogue Interview) - p.245
1. Preparing
2. Opening
3. Engaging
4. Following the flow
5. "Jumping the bridge"
6. Expanding the network
7. Closing
17. Seeing Reality Through Other's Eyes
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS
CONVERSATIONS THAT SHAPE THE FUTURE
4 types: generative dialogue, empathetic dialogue, smoothing over, speaking out.
SUSPENDING ASSUMPTIONS
The Ladder of Inference (the reflexive loop) - p.255
BALANCING ADVOCACY AND INQUIRY - toolbox p.263
OPENING HEARTS AND MINDS: LEARNING JOURNEY
18. Building Shared Commitment
FOSTER ENGAGEMENT, AND LET COMMITMENT DEVELOP
CONNECT WITH WHAT MATTERS TO YOU AND YOUR ORGANIZATION
CREATE SPACE FOR INTENTION AND ASPIRATION TO GROW
Toolbox - The 4-player model: Identifying Current Patterns in Working Team, p.276


Part VI: From Problem Solving to Creating 
19. Innovation Inspired by Living Systems
zero to landfill
living system business model
20. Unleashing Every Day Magic
POSITIVE VISION VERSUS NEGATIVE VISION
CREATIVE VISION VERSUS EMOTIONAL TENSION
SETTING OPPORTUNITIES FOR INNOVATION VERSUS BEING LESS BAD
ALIGNING THE PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN
21. You don't have to have all the answers
MAKE IT REAL: LEARNING THROUGH PROTOTYPES: Carstedt's Green Zone 
ASKING FOR HELP (Alcoa, EHS)
SUGGESTIONS FOR PILOT PROJECTS
22. From Low-Hanging Fruit to New Strategic Possibilities
THE ELEPHANT AND THE GROWING FLEA (BP BRANDING) - p.311
SUGGESTIONS FOR BUILDING MOMENTUM FOR INNOVATIONS "ABOVE THE LINE"
Toolbox, p.317: Energy & Commitment (key areas, specific individuals, network map)
Toolbox, p. 319: Pilot and Prototype Sites, Markets, and Relevance (key people, lead customers, CE leverage, specific places w. favorable conditions, values, community development around the prototype)
DEVELOP MORE COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIES
23. It's now What the vision Is, It's What the Vision Does
ZERO SEEMS LIKE THE RIGHT NUMBER (Alcoa)
BUSINESS WITH A MISSION


A great quote of Peter Drucker: "Profit for a company is like oxygen for a person. If you don't have enough of it, you're out of the game. But if you think your life is about breathing, you're really missing something."


SMALL ACTIONS HELP THE WHOLE SYSTEM
Seventh Generation - p. 329
GROWING A BUSINESS THROUGH NETWORKS OF COMMON PURPOSE
HOW DID WE USE THE VISION TODAY?
breath life into
NEW IDEAS, NEW ROOTS, P.333 - !!!!
24. Redesigning for the Future
Realigning Strategy and Design within the Changing Business Environment
START FROM THE TOP DOWN 
it's OK not to know how
The role of catalysts - "Freedom is not the absence of structure... but rather a clear structure that enables people to work within established boundaries in an autonomous and creative way".
Start with the Backbone
Focus on Innovation Next
Focus on Staff Specialists
Toolbox: Balanced portfolio of vision - p.343


Part VII: The Future
25. The Future of the Corporation
26. The Future of Enterprise Variety
NGO's - p.357
27. The Future of Leadership
China
28. The Future of our Relations
29. The Future of us


Fuller: “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” 
Those who own iPods or iPhones, have driven a Smart Car or spent time in a solar house can understand directly the power of design to change things.


Everything made by humans is designed, but not necessarily designed well. Good design is an expression of human aspiration and intentions, and when it’s practiced in a thoughtful way that includes sustainability and context and the users point of view, it can solve problems upstream before they ever occur. It can bring the actual outcomes closer to the intended ones. We in the developed world are an industrial culture of so many unfortunate and deadly unintended consequences.