Systemic thinking for re-generative development

Abstract

The chapter offers a way of systemic thinking linked to a systemic ethics in which thinkers and actors strive to re-generate life chances of people and the living systems on which they depend. The argument takes into account the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals of 2015, and extends these by propounding an ethic of inclusive wellbeing: this is based on appreciating (along with many authors advocating the relevance of Indigenous worldviews for sustainable ways of living) our connectivity to others, and nurturing compassion across all forms of life. The chapter spells out some possibilities for activating a non-anthropocentric ethic in (all) our relationships, while focusing on facilitating/strengthening our own and others’ capabilities for recognising that everything we think and do to living systems matters. Our thinking shapes the material world of which we are part. Put differently, our ways of observing/interpreting “systems” are not innocent in their consequences. The chapter offers two examples of taking co-responsibility with others for the understandings and values that affect the ongoing development of social and ecological life. Some implications for protecting the global commons as a matter of social and ecological justice are expected.