5 Key Design Principles for a New Normal from the Work of Donella Meadows

At a time so deeply painful for many, what design principles might we draw from to shape a positive new normal?

We collaborated with our colleagues at CoCreative for a webinar focusing on the work and teachings of Donella Meadows. The webinar explored some of the practical ideas that made Donella (Dana) Meadows so beloved by people interested in making a world that works for all.

If you are interested in Dana’s work and looking for a place to start, we recommend the following resources; each one is full of the deep thinking and deep caring that made Dana the exceptional leader and communicator that she was.

• Envisioning a Sustainable World — a powerful video of Dana’s speech on the crucial role that visioning plays in bringing about the world we want

• Tools for the Transition to Sustainability — in this chapter, Dana discusses the importance of visioning, networking, truth-telling, learning, and loving in the quest for sustainability

• Leverage Points: Places to Intervene in a System — probably Dana’s most famous article, this piece illuminates Dana’s deep wisdom about how systems work and how we can manipulate them to create the most change

• Dancing with Systems — another powerful piece about how people can work with systems once they lose the illusion of control over them

• The Limits to Growth — the groundbreaking 1972 study that launched Donella Meadows onto the global stage as a leading climate thinker and writer