Wonderful article! Someday I hope we wake up to the fact we humans, and everything on this planet are the earth. We are not separate, we are one collective unit. Great job Maryjane! I especially like all the art examples!
Great article, once again! We are taught, from an early age, to be "independent". Yet experientially, we have learned that complete independence is an impossible goal. We are lately learning that even social independence is not something that can be achieved. Those who embrace the interconnectedness, from the familial through the global world, are much more resillient during tmes of upheaval and stress because they have built a support system from the world around them. They can achieve inner peace by relying on others (and the arts and artists who create) to supply a form of social comfort and reassurance.
I don't think it was a coincidence that when Reagan wanted to dismantle government supports for the social safety net, he started eliminating sociologists from government positions. Thanks for your comment!
Yow. I don't understand why planners don't consider 2nd & 3rd order effects. Is it because people want to kick the can down the road for political reasons? Or because considering economic externalities would mobilize corporate opposition? I don't get it. The knowledge exists. Why can't we use it?
Decades ago Yale Sociologist Charles Perrow wrote “Normal Accidents”, warning us about our failures to understand our intertwined systems and technologies.
I remember Perrow's example of the plane crash that happened because the wiring for a critical system was behind a panel where the coffee maker was set up. The coffee pot leaked, the wiring shorted, and . . . .
Wonderful article! Someday I hope we wake up to the fact we humans, and everything on this planet are the earth. We are not separate, we are one collective unit. Great job Maryjane! I especially like all the art examples!
I thought you'd like this one. :-)
Great article, once again! We are taught, from an early age, to be "independent". Yet experientially, we have learned that complete independence is an impossible goal. We are lately learning that even social independence is not something that can be achieved. Those who embrace the interconnectedness, from the familial through the global world, are much more resillient during tmes of upheaval and stress because they have built a support system from the world around them. They can achieve inner peace by relying on others (and the arts and artists who create) to supply a form of social comfort and reassurance.
I don't think it was a coincidence that when Reagan wanted to dismantle government supports for the social safety net, he started eliminating sociologists from government positions. Thanks for your comment!
Another good example of interconnectedness and complexity is India's grand plan to interconnect its rivers to enable a massive expansion of the crop irrigation system. (See https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-03193-1?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter). This plan, intended to reduce drought conditions, could actually wind up reducing precipitation due to various feedback loops.
Yow. I don't understand why planners don't consider 2nd & 3rd order effects. Is it because people want to kick the can down the road for political reasons? Or because considering economic externalities would mobilize corporate opposition? I don't get it. The knowledge exists. Why can't we use it?
Decades ago Yale Sociologist Charles Perrow wrote “Normal Accidents”, warning us about our failures to understand our intertwined systems and technologies.
We should have paid attention.
I remember Perrow's example of the plane crash that happened because the wiring for a critical system was behind a panel where the coffee maker was set up. The coffee pot leaked, the wiring shorted, and . . . .