Yet there are practical steps that are proven to work (community wealth and community wealth building) / IPBES transformative change assessment contains similar fractal strategies — what would you say to these — throw these out or have them in your toolbox?
I'll check IPBES out (hadn't heard of that).. what I've noticed is that with a changed paradigm/mentation even the old mechanistic "procedures" take on new meaning, but that largely they are not as useful anymore except to learn from.. the learning flows like a river because all the ideas and structures that were taken for granted before are now like exploring a fantastic rainforest of meaning.
Ok, yes, seeing that IPBES-TCA is a motion toward developmental thinking.. the word 'nature' in the articulations feels like a barrier (that old chestnut). 'Aliveness' gets closer for me to what we mean by 'nature' and allows that the biophilicality of what we call 'nature' can also be found anywhere (with organs developed to know/see/create/conjure it), but 'aliveness' can be anemically low (or systematically snuffed through white modernity and the spreading necro-politan blob).
Aliveness can exist and be felt in 'nature', but also in a beautiful moment on a slushy highway, in a moving eulogy, in the delight of a email. Aliveness is the field effect of coherence that plays out whenever it is not held back.
Christopher Alexander ("the nature of order" books) spoke of how the spread and prevalence of ugliness in the world (the lack of aliveness and coherence) is on par with the climate crisis and deeply intertwined. He spoke of this before the terms poly-crisis and Vervaeke's "meaning crisis" were articulated, but was referring as much to such.
I riff on William Wimsat's idea of rainforest ontology (to give credit back to my source). A video clip that summarizes it (from an awesome lecture series)
I really resonate with so much of this. In the field of Regenerative Development and Design, a dynamic, foundational approach we take is beginning with the potential of a system rather than seeking solutions to an isolated problem. This requires us to see the system in it's wholeness- and zoom out to at least two levels of wholeness that the system is nested within, because potential is always contextual, always unique, and always limitless.
And...my god, writing on the internet, sharing and promoting this kind of approach from a place that frankly needs to support business growth in a world of reductive listicles has been hard, until recently.
I'm finding it so much easier here and now on substack, I think very much because of what I shared recently about the root of the word "essay" being "to attempt." How you close here, with
"remain aware that my writing is only part of a larger whole, I might add depth to my work while embracing the fluidity of understanding," so beautifully voices the mentality that Seth and I have had in a lot of our recent writing. There's so much holistic, nuanced, depth within us that has felt so unable to be expressed until recently, and now it's flowing, and we're embracing imperfection and seeing all that we write here in a larger continuum of not only our own respective journeys of thinking out loud, but weaving together with the larger whole of brilliant people we're connecting with here.
And it's surprised us, that two of our recent pieces are going viral by substack standards. Neither of us would have ever guessed that of all things, fascia and villaging respectively, two things that we talk about amongst ourselves every day, would resonate with thousands of people here the way they have. But these are topics that are literally about the interstitial fabric that connects the living systems we belong to.
I think that the world is ready for this, at least a pocket of the world that is growing in clarity, boldness, and interconnectedness here. There's a lot of potential in that. I'm really glad to be in it with you.
This comment will make your day! Joking aside, I found it interesting that your title did catch my attention, not because of its promise, but because you wrote it. I recently joined a group discussing the future of western education in the light of the metacrisis. I like the notion of ‘solutionism’ and the less ambitious, though perhaps more effective idea of just contemplating the ‘next step’.
I’m also feeling more comfortable with ontological uncertainty - and questioning everything without the expectation of answers. Paradoxically for me, this appears to result in a greater sense of existential certainty - at least for the moment 🙂
In the interest of "transcending and including" the idea of solutions, I do want to share this organization, which is connected to RegenIntel whose foundations course I'm taking right now. A very ambitious and globally connected network that is growing, connecting, and educating leaders who are able to "multi-solve," designing solutions in a trans-disciplinary way with the aim to create cascading benefits. If we're going to be talking solutionism, this is a nice way to approach it.
Great question. I think yes AND to include other ways of knowing (apart from what arises), which could be very analytic, empiric work as well. Does that make sense to you?
Your essay wrestles with complexity, but it contradicts itself at key points. You argue that solutions are inadequate because life is nonlinear and messy, yet you also suggest that solutions are necessary, just incomplete. You reject “solutionism” as a flawed mindset, but then you concede that reductionism—breaking problems into manageable parts—is sometimes useful.
You claim we must let go of the idea of solutions, yet you offer one: “critical complexity.” You propose that instead of solutions, we should focus on relationships—except that relationships ARE a kind of solution to the problem you describe. Solutions are born of collaboration. You warn against intellectual laziness, yet the conclusion—“maybe our best option is to pray”—abdicates, even if partially tongue in cheek, responsibility rather than confronting complexity with action.
You rightly criticize oversimplified, one-size-fits-all fixes, but in dismissing the idea of solutions altogether, you risk throwing out the very tools that allow us to engage with the world meaningfully. Complexity doesn’t mean paralysis. We can reject false certainty while still working toward partial, imperfect, and evolving solutions. Indeed, we must. Otherwise, what’s left? A fatalistic shrug wrapped in a bow.
Additionally, “metacrisis” as a catch-all term bugs me. It feels like yet more vague, farting-about language distancing ourselves from the problems at hand. Solutionism may not be the solution, but neither is such sitting-on-our-hands newspeak the answer, either.
Reading your post was most helpful. I deliver a leadership course under the title (Nature-Based Leadership) with Chinese partners in China. When we designed the program, we based it on the Daoist cultural heritage, "DAO Follows Nature." Intuitively, "questioning everything without expecting answers" has worked very well in China, but your lines add some clarifying arguments that will be useful for the background and framing of the program; thank you!
A great challenge, is living in a culture addicted to certainty.
At a meta level, I believe mortality and impermanence are the sources. A good place to start.
When confronting a problem I have found two questions very fruitful:
How does nature resolve my challenge? We live in an infinite set of relationships. Every relationship holds possibility, otherwise it wouldn’t be present.
Second, I ask myself “what would a reasonably smart group of 6th graders do ?”
Never overlook simplicity and pragmatism. Example: they would never defund medical research.
Control is an illusion and often makes things worse. Conscious “participation” in relationships holds possibility. How Native Americans and indigenous peoples have always lived. Never in a world of objects.
All of life is dependent upon feedback loops. Identifying them is the first step to influencing through the quality of our participation.
Lastly, you asked how to write about this ?
Read Barry Lopez. He has taken this to an exquisite art form.
Thank you for this Michael. I love this question "what would a reasonably smart group of 6th graders do?" Also, I will definitely check out Barry Lopez 🙏
This is so fundamental and important. And the piece about how to communicate and collaborate in digital spaces is the core of so many issues. I have been lucky enough in a long sustainability and human rights career to work in critical stakeholder collaborations - working across perspectives, roles and major disagreements to find ways forward. And in 30 years my most important takeaway is the LOVE that people feel for each other when they lay down their arguments, dig deep into holistically understanding the systemic issues they face, and find ways to mitigate or even solve critical problems. For decades afterwards people greet each other with hugs, call on each other for insight and collaboration, drop their silo boundaries and trust each other... But doing this work online or at scale is SO HARD, without the personal/physical presence, the breaking bread and finding ways for conversations to remain positive in real time. I am trying in my post,-leadership role to find ways and opportunities to support this incredibly meaningful exploration.
This piece is a breath of fresh air in a world obsessed with quick fixes. It resonates deeply—the metacrisis isn’t something to “solve,” but a tangled web of relationships we need to navigate with humility. I love how it challenges the myth of linear progress while still making space for strategic simplifications when needed.
What stands out most is the call to sit with uncertainty, to ask better questions instead of chasing false promises of certainty. It’s both unsettling and freeing. Maybe real change isn’t about having the answers, but about staying present with the complexity, embracing the mess, and moving forward with awareness.
I'm definetly a "next step" kinda guy and hold little interest in utopic visions. But, going to a talk on eco-futurism kinda made me realise the benfits of utopic thinking.
A lot of people feel hopeless and it can often manifest in negative loops. Having an idea of what things can be and long term vision can give direction and momentum to thought and action.
Therefore, I think imagining an ideal can be incredible useful. As long as it is taken as something to strive towards rather than an end that you are attached to.
I know that’s not quite what the article is about. But, it just reminded me.
This is very good indeed. .... I always felt hunting for a solution to 'wicked problems' didn't quite work but had'nt got clarity on why, until this ...TY :)
Yet there are practical steps that are proven to work (community wealth and community wealth building) / IPBES transformative change assessment contains similar fractal strategies — what would you say to these — throw these out or have them in your toolbox?
Absolutely keep them :) I do agree, that there definitely are solutions that work and I don't think we should disregards those.
I'll check IPBES out (hadn't heard of that).. what I've noticed is that with a changed paradigm/mentation even the old mechanistic "procedures" take on new meaning, but that largely they are not as useful anymore except to learn from.. the learning flows like a river because all the ideas and structures that were taken for granted before are now like exploring a fantastic rainforest of meaning.
Ok, yes, seeing that IPBES-TCA is a motion toward developmental thinking.. the word 'nature' in the articulations feels like a barrier (that old chestnut). 'Aliveness' gets closer for me to what we mean by 'nature' and allows that the biophilicality of what we call 'nature' can also be found anywhere (with organs developed to know/see/create/conjure it), but 'aliveness' can be anemically low (or systematically snuffed through white modernity and the spreading necro-politan blob).
Aliveness can exist and be felt in 'nature', but also in a beautiful moment on a slushy highway, in a moving eulogy, in the delight of a email. Aliveness is the field effect of coherence that plays out whenever it is not held back.
Christopher Alexander ("the nature of order" books) spoke of how the spread and prevalence of ugliness in the world (the lack of aliveness and coherence) is on par with the climate crisis and deeply intertwined. He spoke of this before the terms poly-crisis and Vervaeke's "meaning crisis" were articulated, but was referring as much to such.
Thanks Adrian. I agree with everything you are saying and I love Christopher Alexander's work.
Rainforest of meaning. I love the imagery that evokes. Thank you xoxo
I riff on William Wimsat's idea of rainforest ontology (to give credit back to my source). A video clip that summarizes it (from an awesome lecture series)
https://youtu.be/_DVeXjpEn6Q?si=t8HyWb42Gt7tJVVN
I really resonate with so much of this. In the field of Regenerative Development and Design, a dynamic, foundational approach we take is beginning with the potential of a system rather than seeking solutions to an isolated problem. This requires us to see the system in it's wholeness- and zoom out to at least two levels of wholeness that the system is nested within, because potential is always contextual, always unique, and always limitless.
And...my god, writing on the internet, sharing and promoting this kind of approach from a place that frankly needs to support business growth in a world of reductive listicles has been hard, until recently.
I'm finding it so much easier here and now on substack, I think very much because of what I shared recently about the root of the word "essay" being "to attempt." How you close here, with
"remain aware that my writing is only part of a larger whole, I might add depth to my work while embracing the fluidity of understanding," so beautifully voices the mentality that Seth and I have had in a lot of our recent writing. There's so much holistic, nuanced, depth within us that has felt so unable to be expressed until recently, and now it's flowing, and we're embracing imperfection and seeing all that we write here in a larger continuum of not only our own respective journeys of thinking out loud, but weaving together with the larger whole of brilliant people we're connecting with here.
And it's surprised us, that two of our recent pieces are going viral by substack standards. Neither of us would have ever guessed that of all things, fascia and villaging respectively, two things that we talk about amongst ourselves every day, would resonate with thousands of people here the way they have. But these are topics that are literally about the interstitial fabric that connects the living systems we belong to.
I think that the world is ready for this, at least a pocket of the world that is growing in clarity, boldness, and interconnectedness here. There's a lot of potential in that. I'm really glad to be in it with you.
This comment will make your day! Joking aside, I found it interesting that your title did catch my attention, not because of its promise, but because you wrote it. I recently joined a group discussing the future of western education in the light of the metacrisis. I like the notion of ‘solutionism’ and the less ambitious, though perhaps more effective idea of just contemplating the ‘next step’.
I’m also feeling more comfortable with ontological uncertainty - and questioning everything without the expectation of answers. Paradoxically for me, this appears to result in a greater sense of existential certainty - at least for the moment 🙂
Love this, and becoming comfortable with ontological uncertainty is a great way to put this.
"solutioneering" is a fun term I first heard from Daniel Christian Wahl (who speaks to this subject regularly in relation to his key theses)
In the interest of "transcending and including" the idea of solutions, I do want to share this organization, which is connected to RegenIntel whose foundations course I'm taking right now. A very ambitious and globally connected network that is growing, connecting, and educating leaders who are able to "multi-solve," designing solutions in a trans-disciplinary way with the aim to create cascading benefits. If we're going to be talking solutionism, this is a nice way to approach it.
https://www.regenintel.earth/collaboratory
Looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing.
Would you say… Trust the process and try stuff. Create. We are the solutions, which arise through this process(?)
Great question. I think yes AND to include other ways of knowing (apart from what arises), which could be very analytic, empiric work as well. Does that make sense to you?
Yes, absolutely it does :)
Your essay wrestles with complexity, but it contradicts itself at key points. You argue that solutions are inadequate because life is nonlinear and messy, yet you also suggest that solutions are necessary, just incomplete. You reject “solutionism” as a flawed mindset, but then you concede that reductionism—breaking problems into manageable parts—is sometimes useful.
You claim we must let go of the idea of solutions, yet you offer one: “critical complexity.” You propose that instead of solutions, we should focus on relationships—except that relationships ARE a kind of solution to the problem you describe. Solutions are born of collaboration. You warn against intellectual laziness, yet the conclusion—“maybe our best option is to pray”—abdicates, even if partially tongue in cheek, responsibility rather than confronting complexity with action.
You rightly criticize oversimplified, one-size-fits-all fixes, but in dismissing the idea of solutions altogether, you risk throwing out the very tools that allow us to engage with the world meaningfully. Complexity doesn’t mean paralysis. We can reject false certainty while still working toward partial, imperfect, and evolving solutions. Indeed, we must. Otherwise, what’s left? A fatalistic shrug wrapped in a bow.
Additionally, “metacrisis” as a catch-all term bugs me. It feels like yet more vague, farting-about language distancing ourselves from the problems at hand. Solutionism may not be the solution, but neither is such sitting-on-our-hands newspeak the answer, either.
Good observations.
So far in my experience, the closer I get to reality, the more I find myself present with paradox.
Homelessness is considered a “meta crisis”. I love Bishop Tutu’s response:
"We need to stop just pulling people out of the river.
We need to go upstream and find out why they're falling in."
I have heard that response from Tutu before, but it has slipped my mind - so good - thanks!
Ha, I love that. And yes, it's so contradictory in a way. Thank you!
I love the phrase "islands of coherence." No, we can't "solution" our way out of the metacrisis. But we can keep moving and we can keep our sanity. https://open.substack.com/pub/mweisburgh/p/islands-of-coherence?r=1782p&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
Yes, poetry and songs could lead us out of this metacrisis. The Indigo Girls "Closer to Fine" hints at what you're talking about.
I will check that out.
Reading your post was most helpful. I deliver a leadership course under the title (Nature-Based Leadership) with Chinese partners in China. When we designed the program, we based it on the Daoist cultural heritage, "DAO Follows Nature." Intuitively, "questioning everything without expecting answers" has worked very well in China, but your lines add some clarifying arguments that will be useful for the background and framing of the program; thank you!
thanks, that's super interesting. I can imagine that other cultures - the not WEIRD ones - have a much easier time with this :)
I've found i've stopped asking why and started looking at things from an if then standpoint.
What a great approach.
Thank you. Some great thoughts.
Several responses:
A great challenge, is living in a culture addicted to certainty.
At a meta level, I believe mortality and impermanence are the sources. A good place to start.
When confronting a problem I have found two questions very fruitful:
How does nature resolve my challenge? We live in an infinite set of relationships. Every relationship holds possibility, otherwise it wouldn’t be present.
Second, I ask myself “what would a reasonably smart group of 6th graders do ?”
Never overlook simplicity and pragmatism. Example: they would never defund medical research.
Control is an illusion and often makes things worse. Conscious “participation” in relationships holds possibility. How Native Americans and indigenous peoples have always lived. Never in a world of objects.
All of life is dependent upon feedback loops. Identifying them is the first step to influencing through the quality of our participation.
Lastly, you asked how to write about this ?
Read Barry Lopez. He has taken this to an exquisite art form.
Just ordered "Embrace Fearlessly the Burning World" - looking forward to explore.
Start with “The invitation”.
I can share my favorites down the road. You are in for a treat !
Okay, will do :)
Thank you for this Michael. I love this question "what would a reasonably smart group of 6th graders do?" Also, I will definitely check out Barry Lopez 🙏
This is so fundamental and important. And the piece about how to communicate and collaborate in digital spaces is the core of so many issues. I have been lucky enough in a long sustainability and human rights career to work in critical stakeholder collaborations - working across perspectives, roles and major disagreements to find ways forward. And in 30 years my most important takeaway is the LOVE that people feel for each other when they lay down their arguments, dig deep into holistically understanding the systemic issues they face, and find ways to mitigate or even solve critical problems. For decades afterwards people greet each other with hugs, call on each other for insight and collaboration, drop their silo boundaries and trust each other... But doing this work online or at scale is SO HARD, without the personal/physical presence, the breaking bread and finding ways for conversations to remain positive in real time. I am trying in my post,-leadership role to find ways and opportunities to support this incredibly meaningful exploration.
Thank you Sarah. That's beautiful.
This piece is a breath of fresh air in a world obsessed with quick fixes. It resonates deeply—the metacrisis isn’t something to “solve,” but a tangled web of relationships we need to navigate with humility. I love how it challenges the myth of linear progress while still making space for strategic simplifications when needed.
What stands out most is the call to sit with uncertainty, to ask better questions instead of chasing false promises of certainty. It’s both unsettling and freeing. Maybe real change isn’t about having the answers, but about staying present with the complexity, embracing the mess, and moving forward with awareness.
Thank you Christy.
Humble curiosity is a proven & powerful cure against absolutes.
Agreed :)
I’m hopeful you get multiple readers. Interested to hear if you do…
I'm definetly a "next step" kinda guy and hold little interest in utopic visions. But, going to a talk on eco-futurism kinda made me realise the benfits of utopic thinking.
A lot of people feel hopeless and it can often manifest in negative loops. Having an idea of what things can be and long term vision can give direction and momentum to thought and action.
Therefore, I think imagining an ideal can be incredible useful. As long as it is taken as something to strive towards rather than an end that you are attached to.
I know that’s not quite what the article is about. But, it just reminded me.
I like that connection.
This is very good indeed. .... I always felt hunting for a solution to 'wicked problems' didn't quite work but had'nt got clarity on why, until this ...TY :)