Abstract
Human capacities and beliefs tend to lead us to construct systems that are inherently unsustainable. With the modern capability of humankind to extract more and more resources globally, resources are rapidly depleting and the effects are escalating. The human capacity for reflection and conscious action seems not to have kept pace with the capacity and desire to use more and more resources. Further, the emerging problems appear to be global, not solvable locally. This gives rise to a feeling of disempowerment that is a basic dysfunctional belief system. It may lead either to paralysis of decision-making, or too rushed action in which each stakeholder lobbies for their own solution and competes with others. This is part of the challenge of sustainable development: to bring back the sense that action, especially cooperative action, can bring results, also in the context of the need for transformational rather than marginal change. A second key challenge is to enable much more effective learning from experience. This paper documents an action research journey that took its departure point in this second challenge, expanded to include consideration of dysfunctional belief systems (patterns), and converged to prioritize a key question: how to design a process that will significantly enhance learning from experience, in the short and long term. The resulting methodology—a workshop format and toolbox—are the major focus of this paper. It can be used in any context, though conceived for initiatives for sustainable development. It has been designed to support conscious decisions of where and how to act, including an improved capacity to choose for transformational change.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alexander, Christopher, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein, Max Jacobson, Ingrid Fiksdahl-King, Shlomo Angel, & 3 more. 1977. A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction. New York: Oxford University Press.
Bandler, Richard, and John Grinder. 2014. “Neuro-linguistic programming, learning and education - an introduction.” infed.org. Åtkomstdatum maj 4. http://infed.org/mobi/neuro-linguistic-programming-learning-and-education-an-introduction/.
Benaim, Andre, and Marilyn Mehlmann. 2013. “Learning for Change”. Text. Global Action Plan International. http://globalactionplan.com/node/166.
Bussey, Marcus, Alse Eliason Bjurstrom, Miriam Sannum, Shambhushivananda Avadhuta, Bernard Nadhomi-Mukisa, Leonel Ceruto, Muwanguzi Denis, i.a. 2012. “Weaving pedagogies of possibility”. In Learning for sustainability in times of accelerating change, by Peter Blaze Corcoran, edited by Arjen E.J. Wals, 77–90. Wageningen Academic Publishers. http://www.wageningenacademic.com/learn4-e_04.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research. 2012. “Moving into Action: We Know What Practices We Want to Change, Now What?” http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/e/45669.html.
CIPAST. 1970. “The Metaplan Methodology”. http://www.cipast.org/download/CD%20CIPAST%20in%20Practice/cipast/en/design_2_5_1.htm.
Dewey, John. 1910. How We Think. D.C.HEATH & CO., PUBLISHERS. http://archive.org/details/howwethink000838mbp.
Ferrucci, Piero. 2000. What We May Be: Techniques for Psychological and Spiritual Growth. New edition edition. Los Angeles; Boston: Jeremy P Tarcher.
Fleck, Erhard. 2005. “Fleck’s Synergy Method”.
Freire, Paulo. 2000. Pedagogy of the oppressed.
Fritz, Robert. 2011. The Path of Least Resistance for Managers. Second edition. Newfane, VT: Newfane Press.
Gaventa, J, och A Cornwall. 2001. “Power and Knowledge”. In Handbook of Action Research, edited by P Reason and H Bradburgy, 70–79.
Greenleaf, Robert. 2013. “What Is Servant Leadership?” Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership. https://greenleaf.org/what-is-servant-leadership/.
Hallsmith, Gwendolyn. 2003. The Key to Sustainable Cities: Meeting Human Needs, Transforming Community Systems. Gabriola Island, B.C: New Society Publishers.
Heath, Dan, and Chip Heath. 2010. Switch. http://heathbrothers.com/books/switch/.
Henwood, Suzanne, and Jim Lister. 2007. “Wiley: NLP and Coaching for Health Care Professionals”. http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470065737.html.
Howard, Anthony. 2010. “Paradexity: the convergence of paradox and complexity”. Journal of Management Development 29 (3): 210–23. doi:10.1108/02621711011025759.
Inayatullah, Sohail. 2006. “Anticipatory Action Learning: theory and practice”. Futures, num 38: 656–66.
Krugman, Paul. 2014. “Salvation Gets Cheap”. The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/18/opinion/krugman-salvation-gets-cheap.html.
Leach et al. 2012. “Transforming Innovation for Sustainability.” http://web.a.ebscohost.com/abstract?direct=true&profile=ehost&scope=site&authtype=crawler&jrnl=17083087&AN=77928786&h=YKVAhWdts2Ir1Z3mZAh3Pv26oL6Hd%2faCwdzy1w%2bFZCdPBnGNZkJxXKzAwO%2bU2gUYd4HhDbQxkL5X2xETr0J8Ig%3d%3d&crl=c.
McTaggart, Robin. 1991. “Principles for Participatory Action Research”. Adult Education Quarterly 41 (3): 168–87. doi:10.1177/0001848191041003003.
Mehlmann, Marilyn, Nadia McLaren, and Olena Pometun. 2010. “Learning to live sustainably”. Global Environmental Research 15: 177–86.
NLP Mentor. 2014. “A Pattern Interrupt to Change a Strategy | NLP Mentor”. http://nlp-mentor.com/pattern-interrupt/.
O’Brien, Rory. 2001. “An overview of the methodological approach of action research”. Theory and practice of action research, 1–18.
Owen, Harrison. 2008. “Open Space Technology”. http://www.co-intelligence.org/P-Openspace.html.
Polya, George. 1957. “How to Solve It”. http://www.math.utah.edu/~pa/math/polya.html.
Rost, Joseph C. 1993. “Leadership Development in the New Millennium”. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies 1 (1): 91–110. doi:10.1177/107179199300100109.
Sannum, Miriam. 2012. “Lessons and Patterns for Sustainable Development: A Personal Reflection”. Social Alternatives 31 (4): 24.
Tift, Kay. 1973. “The I, We and It of Group Dynamics”; PhD thesis, no longer publicly accesible.
UN Habitat. 2013. “BestPractices.at - UN-HABITAT Best Practices Database”. http://www.bestpractices.at/main.php?page=programme/un/database&lang=en.
Urenje, Shepherd. 2013. “Education for Sustainable Development in Malaysia”. Text. Global Action Plan International. http://globalactionplan.com/node/219.
Wals, Arjen E. J. 2010. “Mirroring, Gestaltswitching and transformative social learning: Stepping stones for developing sustainability competence”. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education 11 (4): 380–90. doi:10.1108/14676371011077595.
Watzlawick, Paul, John H. Weakland, Richard Fisch, Milton H. Erickson, & 1 more. 1974. Change: Principles of Problem Formation and Problem Resolution. 1 edition. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
White, Clayton. 2010. “Pattern Laboratory”. Text. Global Action Plan International. http://globalactionplan.com/node/35.
Wilcox, David. 2013. “Changing Business As Usual: 3 Questions for Non-profit & For-profit Innovation Leaders”. http://www.csrwire.com/blog/posts/823-changing-business-as-usual-3-questions-for-non-profit-for-profit-innovation-leaders.
Ziegler, Warren. 1993. “Envisioning the Future”. Unpublished course material.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mehlmann, M., Sannum, M., Benaim, A. (2015). Learning for Sustainability. In: Thoresen, V., Doyle, D., Klein, J., Didham, R. (eds) Responsible Living. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15305-6_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15305-6_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-15304-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-15305-6
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)