Complex Adaptive Systems in a Contentious World

This article is about developing and implementing interventions that are systemically viable in a world that is constantly evolving. Geopolitical and economic forces, environmental stressors, and the weaponization of information confront us with an unprecedented level of complexity, requiring new ways of seeing and being when intervening in conflictual situations. I draw on the Complex Adaptive Systems paradigm to explore how world order emerges from the dynamics of network relationships between the players in the cyber-social landscape. This treatment elaborates on mechanisms underpinning resilience, adaptation, and transformation of socioeconomic systems in turbulent contexts. It emphasizes a need to reconsider conventional logics and mindsets. In its final analysis the article suggests that world leaders need to choose whether to persist in defending the international rule-based order or to embrace network thinking and create conditions under which each country can find a sustainable niche in a global ecosystem

The Art and Artifacts of Solidarity

In Complex Adaptive Systems in a Contentious World I showed how viewing social systems as Complex Adaptive Systems exposes the systemic mechanisms that underpin their resilience and sustainability. In this article I show the utility of that approach for elucidating the role of art and artists in the evolution of resilient social movements. I do this by exploring the way in which art and artifacts were implicated in the evolution of the Polish Solidarność movement

A sceptic converts : recognising the benefits of peer assessment in enhancing student learning and developing critical thinking

Through a case study approach this paper explores the impact of peer assessment in terms of enhancing student learning, developing critical thinking and consequently supporting the development of lifelong learning amongst the students at the London Metropolitan University

Learning to Improve Software Processes: Making Sense of Practice

Software Process Improvement (SPI) programs are frequently considered to be planned in nature. However, there is recent evidence to suggest that SPI can be understood as a form of learning. Drawing on the organizational learning literature, this paper proposes an active learning perspective of improvements in processes. This view recognizes the various actors in the project to be reflective in their actions, making sense of the current context and thus designing their use of the process to best suit their needs at the time. The changes in the processes emerge through ongoing adjustments, experimentation and improvisation as developers and managers seek to improve their product development

Madagascar's future climate change intensified actions and policy reforms: fostering local initiatives or business as usual?

As Madagascar, like all other countries on the globe, is gearing up for the meeting of the 21 st Conference  of Parties (COP21 ) of UN’s Framework Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC), we reflect on the persistent failure of development policies in Madagascar, and suggest that there may be fundamental  flaws in perceptions about development interventions and transferability of solutions, resulting in a country in permanent crisis despite the island’s great potential. The major official donors claim that they had left the island to itself since the 2009 crisis. However, World Bank statistics show that, in current terms, Madagascar was receiving US$400 million in 1990 and US$ 500 million in 2013. In the same interval, the Gross National Product (GDP) per capita remained basically the same (equivalent to 440  US$/capita in 2013). Should COP21 produce a momentum for massive investment in carbon emission reduction and in adaptation to climate change (CC), we propose that, at a minimum, these new projects, plans, programs and policies should aim for sustainability by applying Environmental and Social Assessments at all required levels and that, preferably, this should be the opportunity to approach  development differently. In particular, we advocate focusing on enhancing the generative capacity (i.e., the capacity to generate unplanned-for new development options) of Malagasy people to better take  advantage of the natural resources and the information and communications technologies (ICT) infrastructure already in place. Such an ambitious program is not without risks and pitfalls, but it is one way of thinking about breaking out of Madagascar’s current self-reinforcing cycle of under-performance. The purpose of this essay is to question the status quo to stimulate discussion and new thinking, short of which observers, 20 years from now, will find themselves echoing the same frustrations that observers and inhabitants alike experience when faced with the present state of development in Madagascar.Au moment où Madagascar, comme tous les pays de cette planète, se prépare à participer à la 21 e  Conférence des Parties (COP21 ) de la Convention Cadre des Nations Unies sur les Changements Climatiques (CCNUCC), nous considérons les échecs récurrents des politiques de développement à  Madagascar pour souligner de possibles biais fondamentaux dans les perceptions des interventions de développement et la transférabilité de solutions, avec, comme résultat, une crise permanente malgré le grand potentiel de l’île. Alors que la plupart des bailleurs de fonds officiels font état d’une cessation de leurs activités dans le pays depuis la crise de 2009, les statistiques de la Banque Mondiale montrent que, en termes courants, Madagascar recevait US$400 millions en 1990 et US$500 millions en 2013. Au cours de la même période, le Produit intérieur brut par habitant a stagné (équivalent à 440 US$/capita en 2014). À supposer que la COP21 ait pour résultat des investissements massifs dans la réduction des émissions de carbone et dans l’adaptation au changement climatique, nous  proposons que, a minima, ces  nouveaux projets, plans, programmes et politiques devraient viser à plus de durabilité en appliquant les Évaluations  environnementales et sociales à tous les niveaux requis et que, de préférence, cet afflux de capitaux représente l’opportunité d’une nouvelle approche du développement. En particulier, nous proposons une focalisation sur la capacité générative (définie somme la capacité à générer spontanément de nouvelles options de développement) des citoyens malgaches de mieux tirer parti des ressources naturelles et de l’infrastructure des technologies de l’information et des communications (TIC) déjà en place. L’ambition d’un tel programme n’est ni sans risques ni sans embûches, mais nous estimons qu’il s’agit d’un moyen de sortir du cycle actuel et auto-entretenu de sousperformance qui existe à Madagascar. Cet essai propose ainsi de mettre en cause le statut quo afin de stimuler la discussion et une nouvelle approche. À défaut et sans changement, les habitants comme les observateurs connaitront, dans 20 ans, les  frustrations d’aujourd’hui, face à l’état du développement de Madagascar

RACIAL/CULTURAL IDENTITY: TRANSFORMATION AMONG SCHOOL‐BASED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS WORKING IN NUNAVUT

Eight non‐Aboriginal school counselors, who temporarily lived in Nunavut to provide services to Inuit clients, were interviewed regarding changes in their sense of self and their racial/cultural identity as a result of cross‐cultural immersion. They were also engaged in an arts‐based exercise where they pictorially represented perceived self‐changes. Analysis of counsellors’ narratives of their experiences in Nunavut and their art work revealed an increasing awareness of their “Whiteness” and their participation in the colonizing culture. The counsellors also displayed changes in cultural worldview that directly paralleled the socio‐centric and eco‐ centric nature of the Inuit culture, precipitating culturally sensitive counselling practice. Key words: racial/cultural identity; whiteness; Aboriginal; school counselling; multicultural competence Huit conseillers pédagogiques non autochtones temporairement en poste au Nunavut pour fournir des services à une clientèle inuite ont été interviewés au sujet de l’évolution de leur perception de leur identité personnelle et raciale/culturelle à la suite de leur immersion dans une autre culture. Ces conseillers ont également participé à un exercice créatif dans le cadre duquel ils devaient représenter en images les changements qu’ils avaient perçus chez eux. L’analyse des propos de ces conseillers au sujet de leurs expériences au Nunavut et de leurs créations ont révélé une conscientisation accrue de leur appartenance à la race blanche et de leur participation à une culture colonisatrice. Les auteurs notent également que la vision du monde de ces conseillers pédagogiques a changé et ce, en lien direct avec la nature sociocentrique et écocentrique de la culture inuite, ce qui a favorisé une prestation de services tenant compte des différences culturelles. Mots clés: identité raciale/culturelle, race blanche, autochtones, conseiller pédagogique, compétence multiculturelle

Mental health and climate change in Africa

It is now widely acknowledged that low- and middle-income countries in Africa are among global hotspots for high vulnerability to climate change, despite making comparatively low contributions to this phenomenon. Climate change has been shown to affect mental health as a result of disruption of social and economic structures that populations depend on for good health, including mental health. After decades of neglect, recent efforts by governments such as in Kenya to address the twin issues of climate change and mental health demonstrate the growing importance of these issues. Here we briefly review the evidence of climate change impacts on mental health in Africa and demonstrate that there is need for more contextual awareness and research in this area in Africa to mitigate or forestall potential mental health crises in the near future. We recommend systematic efforts to support funding for research and interventions at the nexus between climate change and mental health in Africa, and urge institutions and governments in Africa to begin paying attention to this emerging threat to the health of African populations

Facing Disruption Responsive Contents and Technological Responsibility

The panel explores an alternative conceptual framework to understand and manage the implications of non-linearly structured work forms that emerge in current work environments. The framework of complexity is used for this purpose and to assess the importance of boundaries and limited perspective for systems in which technology is constructed as a ferment of change. The question of which change data are needed to face disruption in information systems is raised at a general level. The panel audience is presented with a possible framework for the discussion