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Curriculum - sustainability (Garg
Posted by Amit Garg on 12/10/2005
In Reply To:Curriculum - sustainability (Garg Posted by John Heinbokel on 12/9/2005
John, thanks for your response.
To answer your first question - the focus of my workshops will be to develop systems thinking skills in general, using models covering one or multiple subjects (not necessarily sustainability). I appreciate your help!
Regarding your second point on developing curriculum in sustainability, I've jotted down my thoughts below under two section headings. The way I see it is: we can develop a list of sustainability topics to be covered in a specific order (this is what I have tried to do in section #2 below), and then develop specific models or case studies (as you did in your paper and courses) for each topic (or multiple topics), and then either fit those models into existing curriculum of various subjects such as Mathematics, Economics etc or package them as a stand-alone course in Sustainability. The points in section #1 (below) can also give us additional ideas on topics for sustainability curriculum.
This may not be an ideal approach, but just some food for thought (sorry for the looong email). And also, as you mentioned, there may already be a lot of stuff out there (including your work over the years), which we can use. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and those of other people interested or working in this field.
(#1) Key principles common to both Sustainability (S) and System Dynamics (SD):
Interconnectedness: inter-relationships, inter-dependency, feedback, dynamic complexity, and wholistic thinking. These are the underlying themes common to both the fields. (part vs. whole, silos, elephant and the blind men story etc)
Delay: a) because of the delay, people do not see results of their actions immediately or even within a few years – phenomenon such as climate change and nuclear waste do not seem to be imminent issues, b) because seeds take time to bear fruits (delay), we need to plant the seeds today in order for us to be more sustainable tomorrow.
Pervasive and Inter-disciplinary: S and SD apply to all aspects of our lives, work, and almost all subjects in the classroom.
Mental Models: need to transcend the paradigms. We need: a) a better way of communicating our mental models (i.e. we need SD tools), b) a shift of mind - for example, is GDP growth a good measure of development?
"Systems Citizens" (Barry Richmond): we need good citizens for sustainability… and citizens who can think systems.
Leaner-centered Learning: we cannot show or preach to children what is sustainability. Sustainability education has to be interactive.
Leverage: in both the fields, leverage is important and children are our biggest leverage. We need to plant seeds of S and SD in children.
Change: dynamic behavior and constant change all around us. Sustainability is not about a snapshot in time – it is all about change.
(#2) Sustainability and System Dynamics - Topics and Models (sub-bullets) for curriculum:
Concept of the System: Earth, planets, forests, rivers, glaciers, humans, wild life, marine life - everything is part of one big system that operates in perfect harmony. This knowledge is fundamental and a pre-requisite to proceeding on the path of sustainability. Models:
Various CLD of the big system and subsystems (such as carbon cycle) to illustrate feedback loops, inter-connectedness
BOTG - how our system has been changing over time
Importance of balance in the System: a) It is a very delicate balance, b) Effect of our actions maybe distant in time and space (delay affects the balance), c) stocks (accumulations) and flows (rates at which we are depleting our resources or adding up pollution etc) are important for that balance, d) non-linear behavior. Models:
For 2b: Examples of distant space (up stream and down stream examples): 1) we clear our waste from our houses but where does it go - what happens to the stuff in landfills and how long it takes for various things to decompose in landfills? 2) Why Social Responsibility? Because today people care about how and under what conditions the products are being made.
For 2d: soil erosion example (Donna Meadows)
'Limits to Growth' in our System: Once we've explained the system and importance of balance, 'limits to growth' archetype can be used to illustrate that we cannot keep extracting resources forever etc. [These first 3 topics will thoroughly cover 'what is sustainability']
What has gone wrong?: Band-aid fixes, Shifting the burden, Tragedy of the commons, Eroding goals. Models:
Models to show band-aid solutions that are counter-productive and unsustainable. Or shifting the burden where quick fix interventions become addictive. One of the laws of fifth discipline says that "there is no blame" - this is so relevant and very true in the area of sustainability. (For example - is it possible and even worthwhile to find out whose car is responsible for that lump of CO2 hovering over Antarctica?)
Models showing trade-offs: self-interest versus community or society's interest, short-term versus long-term decisions etc
Sustainability and Base of the Pyramid (BOP) – a huge opportunity. BOP refers to 4 Billion people around the world who earn less than $4 a day. (This topic may be relevant only for undergraduate or higher levels). Models:
Iceberg Metaphor - Like an iceberg, the big, important structure is hidden below the surface. Similarly, like an iceberg, biggest economic opportunities for companies are hidden at the base of the economic pyramid. We can have models showing what happens when poor at the base of the pyramid start moving up or how to move the up.
Other concepts and ideas: a) Linda Sweeney's "How is this similar to that?" - it will work very well in sustainability, b) John and Jeff's generic three-sector feedback loop, c) many more…
regards,
Amit
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