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Hannah writes on the challenge and slipperiness of finding ‘a’ system change theory and helpfully collates a range of them that may help sharpen (or expand!) your thinking.
On policy fiction (or fictional policies?). "My hope, as a policymaker, is to read more science fiction stories about the future of policy and diplomacy.”
Which I think relates nicely to this on piece from Cassie on imagination and field building “as necessary for creating infrastructure — slow, deep capacity building to support conditions of long-term uncertainty".
Demos map the emergence of a new economic paradigm – field building again – and add that “with every kind of nascent movement, there is a period of misalignment, ideological disagreement, tactical disparity, and, consequentially, a sense of dissonance.”
On the same theme: "we tend to think of revolutions as loud: frustrations shouted in the streets. But the ideas fueling them have traditionally been conceived in much quieter spaces: small, secluded corners where a vanguard can imagine alternate realities" from the Quiet Before by Gal Beckerman.
Ella has created the Long Time Academy, a podcast one small corner that “sits at the intersection of spirituality and activism” and is filled with awe-inspiring wisdom. Some great guests: Adrienne Maree Brown, Brian Eno, George the Poet.
“What bureaucracies really need, more often than not, is to reimagine their purpose, not their workflows", writes Sascha on dealing with the inevitable setbacks when playing the long game.
On purpose: a framework for conceptualising the purpose of innovation labs. Lindsay Cole writes “as the number of PSI labs grows, what is also emerging is more reflective practice and a stronger critique.”
"I have come to believe we should stop building labs in isolation. Instead, we should tear their existing parent organizations apart, and assemble them from scratch based on a new set of design principles" writes Christian Bason on DDC’s 2022.
Re-upping this from Demos Helsinki one purpose/vision to “define humility [in government] as the capability to recognise that leadership in the 21st century is not about having all the right answers, but about continuously learning and collaborating rigorously in inventive new ways.”
On what a portfolio approach to policy “can be equated to an action, learning, and problem-solving system, which was designed to examine, highlight and create new choices, options, and opportunities in a complex space."
And finally, Bas on how all of this is great but report writing takes over everything.
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