rogat+-+sustp+-+matrix+annotation+3

Michelle Rogat Sustainability Problems Matrix - Annotation #3

"Leverage points: places to intervene in a system." by Donella Meadows

Meadows, D. (2008). Leverage points: places to intervene in a system. 1999. Available from:[2003 Nov 24]. Retrieved from http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&btnG=Search&q=intitle:Leverage+Points+Places+to+Intervene+in+a+System#4
 * 1. Full citation. **

This is an excerpt from her obituary: "She was best known to the world as the lead author of the international bestselling book The Limits to Growth, published in 1972. The book, which reported on a study of long-term global trends in population, economics, and the environment, sold millions of copies and was translated into 28 languages. She was also the lead author of the twenty-year follow-up study, [|Beyond the Limits]  (1992), with original co-authors Dennis Meadows and J Randers....
 * 2. Where does the author work, what else has s/he written about, and what are her/his credentials? **

In 1997, Professor Meadows founded the [|Sustainability Institute] , which she described as a "think-do-tank." The Institute combines cutting edge research in global systems with practical demonstrations of sustainable living, including the development of an ecological village and organic farm in Hartland Four Corners, Vermont."

The main topic of this paper was that there are these 'leveraging points' within every complex system that can be potential points to focus on to bring about systemic change, and in this particular case systemic change in how society thinks and deals with climate change, and hopefully shifts towards sustainability.
 * 3. What is the main topic or argument of the text? **

She fleshes this out by going through the 12 points she lists as places to intervene in a system, explains what they are, the importance of it's role in the system, and explains how it might be used to help leverage change in the system. She also explains that these leverage points are in order from least to most important with a countdown, but explains that depending on the circumstances of the system, these points switch levels of importance, etc. This list of points to intervene in a system is by no means perfect, but is a working list.
 * 4. Describe at least three ways that the main topic or argument is fleshed out. **


 * 5. What three quotes capture the critical import of the text? **
 * "It is in this space of mastery over paradigms that people throw off addictions, live in constant joy, bring down empires, found religions, get locked up or “disappeared” or shot, and have impacts that last for millennia."
 * "Folks who do systems analysis have a great belief in “leverage points.” These are places within a complex system (a corporation, an economy, a living body, a city, an ecosystem) where a small shift in one thing can produce big changes in everything."
 * "... has found it to be the basis for radical empowerment. If no paradigm is right, you can choose whatever one will help to achieve your purpose."

When people and businesses are so focused on the here and now and immediate results, they don't allow the system enough time to respond and give them the information they need to make sustainable decisions. In parameters that businesses set themselves such as a budget and a forecasted return on investment, they don't allow their business enough time for the benefits of sustainability to come back their way, making it hard to incentivize a business to become sustainable.
 * 6. Explain how the argument and evidence in the text supports your research focus. **


 * 7. List at least two details or references from the text that you have used in your presentation and wiki post. **
 * "Corporations adjust parameters such as wage rates and product prices, with an eye on the level in their profit bathtub—the bottom line."
 * " Delays in feedback loops are common causes of oscillations. If you’re trying to adjust a system state to your goal, but you only receive delayed information about what the system state is, you will overshoot and undershoot. Same if your information is timely, but your response isn't ."