Global issues and self-identity, consciousness and culture

Attending day one of Progress2019 reinforced for me the importance of self-identity, consciousness and culture in addressing the range of interconnected complex national and global issues that we face.

Too often we focus on the behaviours of others or on outdated systems. We point the finger instead of listening more deeply to self and those who think or feel differently. We often operate within our own silos and debate within echo chambers.

We often think and do as we always have done and risk developing solutions within previous mindsets that only perpetuate the problems we are attempting to solve.

‘Integral thinking or frameworks’ add new lenses to our view of complex issues. In addition to systems and behaviours they consider psychological and cultural perspectives.

In ‘How Culture Shapes the Climate Change Debate’ Andrew Hoffman states “social debate around climate change is no longer about carbon dioxide and climate models. It is about values, culture, worldviews and ideology.”

In describing effective communication and policy-making for climate solutions Annick De Witt and Nicholas Hedlund recognise “the critically important phenomenon of worldviews in the urgently needed transformation to sustainable societies.”

An ‘integral framework’ maps four essential terrains for successfully addressing complex issues. The following brief sketch of these terrains was adapted from Integral Environmental Sustainability.

🔹 Psychological Terrain - Self and Consciousness 
Contexts: Self-identity and consciousness, intentions, personal values, mindsets, religious and spiritual beliefs...
Transformational Tools: Self questioning, introspection, mindfulness, counselling, journaling, prayer, meditation, immersion in nature, vision quests...

🔹 Cultural Terrain - Culture and Worldviews
Contexts: Cultural appropriateness, collective perceptions, collective vision, collective interpretation of inequalities...
Transformational Tools: Dialogue, inclusive strategic planning, organisational learning, community visioning, storytelling.

🔹 Behavioural Terrain - Brain and Organism, Actions
Contexts: Brain chemistry, physical health, behaviours, skills, capabilities...
Transformational Tools: Diet, hygiene, medication, skill building, guidance from a respected authority...

🔹 Systems Terrain: Social Systems and Environments
Contexts: Visible societal structures, systems and modes of production, strategies, policies, natural systems...
Transformational Tools: Policy making, organised protest, systems and transformational thinking, complexity and chaos theories, natural resource restoration and management systems... 

Worldviews Test

Annick De Witt offers a useful Worldviews Test to increase self-awareness of our own often unquestioned beliefs and assumptions.

A personal global issues change strategy - Part 2

'Ways of Being’ are just as important, if not more important, than ‘Things to Do’ when it comes to my personal rethink addressing issues of concern such as climate change. 

This is because when moving away from 19th century materialist, positivist and reductionist assumptions and beliefs about nature and humanity we have an entirely different view of reality. No longer are humans separate machines living on the third rock from the sun in a purposeless and largely dead universe. 

Humanity lives as a connected whole interdependent with a living planet within a universe that is interconnected at the deepest levels. The universe is more like a thought than a thing.

How human beings ‘Be’ is as profoundly important as what human beings ‘Do’. In fact how we ‘Be’ often drives what we ‘Do’. 

So my personal approach to climate change and other issues of concern begins with ‘Ways of Being’. Within our deeply connected lives, ways of being can have dramatic and often surprising consequences. One of these consequences is to make the things we do much more effective.

Ways of Being

🔹 Be in Nature

Being in and with Nature builds connection, relationship and respect.
Nature teaches, communicates, calms, heals and reinvigorates.
Commune with Nature's intelligence and planetary consciousness.
Honour the beautiful, mysterious and sacred in Nature.

🔹 Be fully present

Being fully present in the moment enables subtle perception, intuition, insight and a deeper intelligence. Breathe first, heart next, head last.
Mindfulness brings deeper awareness to tasks.
Witness self and others. Take a step back and see the bigger picture.
Be still and listen to Self. Be meditative and centred.

🔹 Be loving, peaceful and joyful

Look for the common good. Forgive self and others.
Love self and others. Be inclusive.
Be discerning not judgmental.
Be myself. Be playful. Be in the flow.
Honour the sacred in self/Self and others.

🔹 Be the change I want to see

Change self, invite others, be flexible.
Be positive and inspiring.
Live in the present rather than the past or future. Letting go.
Read/view inspirational content, meet inspiring people.
Strive for the highest aspirations of the human spirit.
Step into own wisdom and power.


Things to Do

🔹 Make conscious choices

Make sustainable ethical choices for purchasing, consuming, voting, sharing...
Consume local products/produce as much as possible.

Engage in regenerative whole systems gardening practices.
Delete news feeds (digital and traditional) that are sensationalist, repetitive, negative, or contain disinformation.
Choose inspirational content and people. Seek indigenous knowledge, ancient wisdom and spiritual emergence.


🔹 Contemplative practice

Question own beliefs, assumptions and world views.

Holistic practices - body, mind, soul.
Meditate - deep listening, insight, intuition.
Breathing and body movement disciplines.
Walk in nature.


🔹 Provide support to others

Active listening, compassion, positive affirmation.
Give time, skills, dollars.
Facilitating, mentoring.
Social media support - likes, shares.


🔹 Personally meaningful participation

Build positive relationships.
Follow individual calling/passion.
Maintain personal well-being.
Where does my deep gladness meet the world's deep need?


🔹 Co-create preferred futures

Envision together. Conscious evolution.
Participate respectfully, inclusively and positively.
Create the new rather than fix the old.
Share inspirational stories and journeys.

(See previous post on this topic.)

A personal climate change strategy - Part 1

I’ve been rethinking my personal response to climate change with the intention of rethinking my approach to a range of local and global issues.

This has involved:

🔹 updating my understanding of climate change

🔹 listening to those with views different from my own

🔹 deepening my knowledge of who we are and the nature of reality

🔹 researching local climate actions over the last decade

🔹 reading existing climate change action strategies


Below is an early summary of some key points from recent reading and thinking.

This is a living document which will be updated as I proceed to think about what personal actions might arise.


🔹 My understanding of climate change

Climate change is one of a number of long term and related changes currently impacting the planet and life on it. Many but not all are caused consciously or subconsciously by humans.

A key contributor to most of the adverse changes taking place has been a lack of respect for nature or the ‘other’. This was largely driven by the erroneous notion that humans are separate from nature and each other.

Climate and related changes are systemic in nature involving complex interdependence and wicked problems and solutions thinking.

All systems work to maintain themselves so a focus on creating the new may be more effective than fixing the old.


🔹 Listening to those with different views on climate change

Many of those with different views to my own on climate change have different world views based on different beliefs and assumptions about the nature of reality.

Most Australians are concerned about climate change.

Most Australians accept the same basic human values.

A few of the very wealthy choose to cloud discussion and democratic process with targeted and sophisticated disinformation.

Many people have other pressing survival and well-being issues to deal with.

Climate change can trigger a range of emotional responses such as anger, denial, grief, depression, panic, helplessness.


🔹 Knowledge of who we are and the nature of reality

Most people are still catching up with 21st century views on what it means to be human, the interdependence of nature and the planet, and the fundamental nature of reality.

Dominant 19th and 20th century thinking make it difficult to understand the nature or the severity of many current global problems and severely restrict the range of possible solutions that are considered.

Questions and proposed actions are often still embedded within older world views that caused the problems in the first place.

The potential for humanity to effectively address current global issues is restricted by adversarial approaches, the need to be right, the expectation that ‘somebody else’ will fix them, lack of empowerment or lack of compassion.

A deep sense of the sacred is emerging based on indigenous knowledge and ways of being in the world, ancient wisdom traditions or personal spiritual experience.


🔹 Researching local climate change actions over the last decade

There are a number of existing climate change organisations, groups and networks.

There are a number of existing climate change agenda, policies, projects and reports.

Local expertise in successful climate change mitigation has been building.

Climate change activism is changing as the limitations of previous adversarial approaches become evident, many long term activists suffer burnout, and youth join.

New questions are being asked as we learn from the climate actions of the past and the transparency of vested interests increases.

Climate actions should be effective as well as personally sustainable, meaningful and joyful.

Climate actions should focus more on creating the new rather than attempting to fix the old.


🔹 Reading existing climate change action strategies

A number of community, government and organisational climate change action strategies exist at local, state, national and global levels.

Future vision documents often contain climate change actions.

Community discourse and consultation on preferred futures often refer to climate change.

‘Futures studies’ and ‘social foresight’ organisations research systemic, sustainable, agile, integral, holistic and transformational change methodologies.