Strategic changes occur when we think and act differently Rediscovering working together

Climate change.. an unprecedented challenge >Deep cuts of 80% by at least >Disadvantaged are most vulnerable –Australia’s poorest 20% spend twice as much of their income on electricity, gas and petrol as Australia’s wealthiest 20% >Children will bear the brunt - Ross Garnaut We need serious action, in the “short period that remains before our options diminish fatefully”…

.. and an unprecedented opportunity?..a proportional response to climate change will entail fundamental shifts in both policy and lifestyles in the very short term - WWF

A diabolical policy challenge How do we shift focus from private interest to public interest? We have so much to contribute and so much to lose as we face the diabolical policy challenge of climate change - Ross Garnaut

Ingredients of a paradigm shift? equity wellbeing diversity interconnectedness quality of life democracy access to services and resources opportunity participation social inclusion social justice social progress rights of current and future generations social development

What can we learn from sustainability principles? limits systems thinkingimpacts fairness awareness complexity uncertainty

Living within limits Sources: ACF Consumption Altas (2008), Lenzen (1997) Per capita greenhouse gas emissions Tonnes/ person/ year Greenhouse gas emissions by source Average Sydney resident

Systems thinking >Maximising synergy >Minimising trade-offs economy society environment CH2 in Melbourne – an example of systems thinking in a building

Impacts and responsibility

Awareness and fairness

Complexity and uncertainty Where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation - Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration (1992)

What we need is… New ways of working together New ways of thinking

Beyond advocacy to participation Citizen’s juries >Randomly selected >Diverse and representative >Interactive >Facilitated >Informed >Recommendations implemented Ideal where questions are clear and issues are complex Source: Liverpool Council website

Involving children & youth in decision making Fresh ideas for new solutions

Tool 1: Backcasting 2008 x trend forecast Desired future barriers limitations problems backcast What if..?

Tool 2: Appreciative Inquiry Affirmative topic choice Discovery Dream Design Destiny The infinite human resource we have for generating constructive change is our collective imagination and discourse about the future -Appreciative Inquiry: Principles for a Positive Revolution Appreciating the best of what is Envisioning what might be Co-constructing the vision Learning, adjusting, improvising, sustaining

Tool 3: Causal layered analysis litany systemic causes discourse/ world view myth/ metaphor

LayerDescriptionQuestions The litanyThe official public or media description of an issue What might a current overdramatised newspaper headline about this issue look like? Systemic causes Social, technological, economic, environmental, political and historical factors. Provides interpretation based on quantitative data, technical explanations and academic analysis. How and why did the issue arise? Who is involved? What is the source of the litany? Why was it presented? Who is being quoted - what is their involvement? What are the underlying causes? Discourse / worldview Deeper, unconsciously held ideological, worldview and discursive assumptions Who are the stakeholders? What values do they have? Who usually talks and lobbies about this issue? What do they stand to lose or gain? Who has the most control over the issue? Myth / metaphor Unconscious, emotive dimensions of the issue. What is an image or phrase that encapsulates what has been uncovered so far? What work of fiction, movie, poetry, art, etc. evokes an image of the issue being discussed? Are there any myths that may constrain thinking or acting in relation to this issue? S. Inayatullah, Causal Layered Analysis: Poststructuralism as Method, Futures 30 (8) (1998) Serafino de Simone, 2004, Causal Layered Analysis: A Cookbook Approach, in: The Causal Layered Analysis Reader.

UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. - The Lorax, Dr Seuss …