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Responding across the system

We need to address the complexity gap in climate responses.

Social imagination for regenerative neighbourhood futures

When you imagine the future of your Street does it feel like a thriving place to live?

The Future of Labs - Part 2: Reflections

As our understanding of complex challenges advances and there is global exploration of the ways of seeing, being, doing which enable us to respond effectively - is there still a role for the Lab in the landscape of change approaches?

Free Resource: Playbook for Local Regen Workshops

Introducing a playbook to support place-based regeneration through a rich participatory experience on country.

The Future of Labs - Part 1: Foundations

What is the role of the "Lab" in the current landscape of approaches to change? What are the core practices and structures to make Labs effective? Where are the potential overlaps, differences and opportunities of connecting to other approaches which are evolving around the world?

Hello Canada

Exploring the beating heart of social innovation in Canada in 2024, and exploring the Future of Labs.

Fieldnote: Visualising Experiment Portfolios

Let's talk about Experimentation Portfolios. Visualising an array of experiments to see active and latent potential to shift systems through living labs, mission-oriented innovation and challenge precincts.

Inspiration from the Horizon

Inspiration from the EU Horizon Fund showing us what's possible when you mainstream applied, trans-disciplinary, ambitious research projects.

Codesign for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

How does Codesign relate to the Sustainable Development Goals? My talk for MIG2024 explored Codesign, Complexity and the SDGs.

Making Systems & Portfolios Physical with UNDP Innovation

Together with UNDP Innovation we explored how to make complex ideas, systems and portfolios, tangible.

Furthering Experimentation Practice - Part II: Process & Pathways

A rigorous experimentation approach (experiment-to-learn) will most likely outperform planning-based approaches (analyse-to-predict) where the challenge is dynamic and ever changing (i.e. any complex social and environmental challenge). This post explores how to do experimentation for change.

Furthering Experimentation Practice - Part I

Lately I've been thinking about the capabilities, process and frameworks needed for effective change work, as a continuation of a theme which has run through my work for 10+ years now - experimentation.

Capabilities for living labs and impact ecosystems - Part 1

What are the core capabilities needed for living labs and impact ecosystems? Field notes on a capability model.

Living Labs: recommendations for enabling collective action on complex challenges

How can we create the islands of coherence, the vehicles for co-investment, and create the dojos for the kinds of practices we need to tackle collective action challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, or mental health?

On Relational Infrastructure

Exploring the role of relationships, trust and mutualistic approaches to change.

Towards Net Zero and a return to 'Labs'

Exploring how to support net zero transitions, whilst also powering up Monash's work with living labs - a significant work transition for 2022 & beyond!

Challenge-led or Mission-oriented? Exploring collective action approaches to transition, transformation and systems change

What is this 'Mission-oriented Innovation' everyone is talking about? Fieldnotes from a 2 day deep dive workshop into challenge-led approaches.

On the idea of developing a 'Landscape of Intervention' for systems change work

It is the interplay of intention and emergence which, dancing together, enables us to influence the future of the system towards a desired state.

Nature-based Solutions - a 2022 scan

The promise of Nature-based Solutions are to address dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, whilst also supporting human health and wellbeing.

Towards collective action for a safer climate

We know that the coming years are crucial for taking rapid collective action if we want to minimise the damage caused by our own actions. It feels important to me personally to bring my skills and experience to the table professionally, having spent the better part of 15 years exploring

Exploring the weaving of Narrative Change & Systems Change

Beyond storytelling as communication about what has happened, toward creating meaning and collective action for intentional change in our world.

Communicating Systems Change - 5 of the best Resources, Reports & Articles

5 of the best resources, reports and articles about communication for systems change that I have found.

Exploring how systems change practitioners use communications in their work

This post is a summary of a workshop with systems change practitioners exploring how they relate to communications as a function of their work.

Transition: Conservation to Regeneration

My new role is focused on support the Regenerating Australia program, which includes a short film by Damon Gameau, a community visioning workshop resource, an online network, $2m Challenge Fund, and a series of Local Learning Labs - which is what I've been brought in to design.

On Communicating Systems Change: an inquiry takes shape

> Halting climate change. Eradicating disease. Lifting up the arts. Ending poverty. At their core, foundations and nonprofits are in the business of developing and advancing big, bold ideas. If you want your ideas to take hold, you need to communicate and communicate well. It’s not an option anymore—

5 Learnings From 15 Years

I remember the feeling as the humid air hit me as I stepped off the plane in Kota Kinabalu, and the rush of excitment as I knew this was the start of a new adventure that I had no idea where it would take me. This new chapter started 15

Joining the Luminary Community

How do we effectively communicate about systems change initiatives in order to make them accessible, fundable and more impactful?

The 'so what' of complexity - Part III

This post aims to capture some insights and resources which inform how we might approach change work differently than more linear 'cause and effect' planning-based efforts which have dominated the landscape of change work in the last 50 years or so.

The 'so what' of complexity - Part II

In this fieldnote, I'm going to dive into the guiding principles for my complexity practice - including a focus on Portfolio Approaches, Learning and Funding.

Obscuring Complexity & Welcoming Trojan Mice

How can we work in organisations that don't see complexxity, if we're committed to embracing complexity in our practice?

Changemaker Chat on The Changemakers Podcast

How can we address the biodiversity crisis, the climate crisis, whilst also improving human & more-than-human wellbeing?

The 'so what' of complexity - Part I

It's been the best part of 10 years I've been exploring and writing about complexity now - it's about time to capture some of the main learnings about the implications, rather than the substance.

Fieldnotes: Ethics In Lab Team Research

The Lab environment, it may be their first exposure to engaging in collaborative, cross-disciplinary research and prototyping, thus we have a responsibility to make part of our container setting about exploring ethical considerations.

Metaphors of Change

Exploring different metaphors for change to support individuals and teams to better navigate organisational transformation.

Self Directed Learning: Useful Resources

This is not a post encouraging you taking an online course in the middle of the pandemic.

Learning Change - the videos

Learning Change is a series featuring Amanda Tattersall, Tyson Yunkaporta, Nora Bateson and myself, exploring the development of cultures of transition.

#AfterShock - (re)thinking in systems

Is 'systems thinking' a passing fad for Government, or a zeitgeist which captures an important shift where complexity is embraced instead of fought against?

Learning from COVID-19

Contributing to global conversations about how to chart a course forward. COVID-19 has profoundly changed our world in one short/interminable year. Many people have lost their lives. Society has been turned upside down. Many people have been working to keep their organisations, groups, businesses and government departments alive, rapidly

Portfolio approaches to change: emerging patterns & resources

This post focuses on the recent advancements in a 'portfolio' approach to change work which is happening across multiple organisations, and is an interesting signal in a move away from planning-based approaches.

Fieldnotes: Communicating Systems Strategy

This post focuses on developing some good practice patterns for communicating systems change work. I have a particular interest in systems change strategies, which may be early stage or representing organisations in transition to working more systemically.

Learning Change: in conversation with Nora Bateson, Tyson Yunkaporta, and Amanda Tattersall

Announcing the "Learning Change: adaptive social learning for transition times" series with Nora Bateson, Tyson Yunkaporta, Amanda Tattersall and Sam Rye.

Horizon Scan: Emerging tech for nature conservation in the Yarra Valley

Scanning the landscape for existing and emerging technology which could be effectively utilised for a nature restoration and conservation project.

New Practice: Community Engagement for Environmental Action in a COVID-19 era

Around the world, groups and organisations are scrambling to reinvent how we enable and/or do environmental conservation work during these large scale societal lockdowns.

Climate Adaptation in the Yarra Ranges: Home Scale

Climate resilience and adaptation needs to be enabled, developed and nurtured at all levels of our society, with collective strategies vital to supporting a systemic transformation to move us towards a doughnut society.

Participatory Futures in the age of COVID-19

This article is a summary of a rather boisterous twitter thread which invited examples of participatory futures & collective visioning, for a COVID-19 era of social distancing.

Resource: Collaboration Cafe - Open Source

A Facilitator's Workshop Guide for supporting people to work together. Back in 2012 I got together with some friends from Enspiral to develop a monthly event to get people working together more. I was having 10s of conversations with people in Wellington about their projects, and kept found

Recover

This post is my early explorations of Australian Bushfire Recovery with Conservation Volunteers Australia. We are coordinating a nationwide environmental volunteering response for bushfire recovery.

Exploring Climate Adaptation in the Yarra Ranges

As the patterns build, I slowly allow myself to admit a rising terror about the changing climate here in Australia. All image rights are Bureau of Meterology> Based on preliminary analysis, yesterday, Australia recorded its hottest day on record. The nationally-averaged maximum daytime temp was 41.9 °C exceeding

Fieldnotes - Towards Complexity 101

Why are systems thinking and complexity so... complex? In this post I share one activity and 6 resources to help you to be more comfortable in the complexity of our world.

Paying Attention to Signals

This is a fieldnote which attempts to articulate four ingredients which are mixing around in my head, all converging to inform the development of a platform to support environmental conservation groups.

Ending Well

Volunteer Impact is closing down after 6 years of exploring through entrepreneurial and academic paths, and being reborn with Conservation Volunteers.

Free Resource: Experimentation Field Guide

I'm delighted to announce the release of the Field Guide to Experimentation which I developed for Monash University's School of Art Design & Architecture ( MADA [https://www.monash.edu/mada]). Read the Experimentation Field Guide at mada.gitbook.io [https://mada.gitbook.io/experimentation-field-guide/] The field

What is Strategic Design practice?

Strategic Design practice is made up of a wide range of activities, methods and tools, and is much less well articulated than the likes of Service Design. This post draws on my original post from my Masters research project [https://www.samrye.xyz/masters/], which used Systemic & Strategic Design

Return to the Fray

At the turn of the year I felt a strong call to return to work on biodiversity & climate. I'm delighted to say that at the end of the month, I will be rejoining Conservation Volunteers [https://conservationvolunteers.com.au/] (Australasia's largest conservation volunteering organisation), as

Towards Targeted Systems Change

Modelling and communicating how to shift systems As I’ve written about in the recent past, [https://medium.com/mdes-environmental-social-impact] I focused my recently completed Masters of Design focused on a domain I’m particularly passionate about — environmental issues. This post aims to uncover some of the research, thinking and

Learnings about Environmental Philanthropy

Recently I’ve been looking into finding a new home for my skills and experience. One of the organisations I've been speaking to is a leader in the philanthropy sector in Australia.

Learnings about Environmental Philanthropy

Reflections from exploring a role working in the philantrophic sector

Exploring Regenerative Design Methods

I was recently invited to work with Swinburne University’s Masters of Design Strategy & Innovation students, to deliver a participatory toolkit session using organic materials to scaffold their reflection on Design Leadership research thus far.

Farewell Medium?

I'm breaking up with Medium. Since 2013, I've been primarily writing on Medium.com. Since that time, Medium has changed. Lately, it's done the path I really hoped it wouldn't - encouraging people to paywall their writing.

On Scaling Impact

We run our Pilot, and then if it works, we scale it up. Yet, all too often the ‘scaled up’ version doesn’t have the same effect as the pilot. Why is this? In a word: complexity.

End of 2018 Reflections: Perspectives on Systems Change, Strategic Design, and Seasonality

This post focuses on some professional and personal reflections from 2018, spanning my Masters, Consulting, and more. In it, I touch on systems change, experimentation, strategy, seasonality and nature.

On Sustaining Impact

This article is a plea to stop pouring so much resource into solely “getting ideas started” and then making them pitch for funding.

Design as Strategy?

Exploring the landscape of emerging Strategic Design practice As I’ve journeyed deeper into my Masters of Design [https://www.samrye.xyz/masters/], I’ve explored a vast landscape of practice which focuses on how to intervene in complex challenges from the fuzzy front end of design (Sanders & Stappers

57+ Tools to help create your first website, product or service

Awhile ago Anna Guenther, the excellent Chief Bubble Blower of Kiwi crowdfunding site PledgeMe, tweeted a shout out for tools to build a first product/app/website. This is the redux of my popular 'My Startup Stack' post.

The Relational Field

Musings on the importance of the quality of relationships in the context of social labs and social innovation programs TLDR; * Building community is an end in itself, and one of the best factors to increase the health and resilience of systems. * Building relationships shouldn't be left to '

My Startup Stack (2016)

Entrepreneurship is a process, not a destination. To help you on that journey, here's the stack of tools I use to drive the train.

Developing an Impact Story for a Social Lab

How were we supposed to tell a story when we were only just learning about the multiple layers of value we were creating for society?

How We Use Experiments To Drive Insights

In this article, I outline how we developed an impact evaluation framework, and an experimentation practice which drove our ability to rapidly gain insight.