Learning log: Summer Journey

Which knowledge is now in my backpack? 2

Leadership pillars 2
System Thinking 3
System concept 3
Map a system 4
B.R.A.V.I.N.G 7

Reflection: How my vision of climate change changed? 7

Something to remember 8

Project: Escape from Disaster 10

Sense making: So now, what’s next? 12

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Which knowledge is now in my backpack?
During this Journey I learned a lot of things, useful tools, concepts, new skills, etc. But this is
a summary, so I’m going to put the knowledge that it was more impactful for me. If you want
to see more information, in the extended version you will find more :).

Leadership pillars
What are the different aspects of a leader? This seems really interesting to analyze if you
want to lead the change to a more sustainable future. That’s why, during Leg 1, they give us
the Leadership Pillars, something that will accompany all the Journey. Is basically going
more in depth about the concept of leadership, which areas and skills include. In this sense,
we have these five pillars:

1. Systemic Leadership: Understand all the complexity that is implicit in the climate
change that we are living, to understand which resources do you want to be able to
lead to change the current system.
2. Participatory Leadership: Let the others also become change's agents to tackle
and have a positive footprint on an environmental level and go all together to lead the
change.
3. Innovative Leadership: Create the conditions for people to express their creativity
to come up with innovative ideas.
4. Entrepreneurial/Intrapreneurial Leadership: Transform all these innovative ideas
into an entrepreneur project that aims to act in a positive way for the climate.
5. Personal Leadership: If you are going to lead a change, you have to know yourself,
which skills do you have, and have the attitude to face this complexity of climate
change and act to change it.

Figure 1: The Leadership Pillars

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System Thinking
During Leg 1, they introduce us to how to think about a system, the system thinking. Let’s
say that is a skill, really important for analyzing the actual climate crisis. Once you can
analyze a system, then you can find the leverage points, that points where with less action
they produce more benefits. But before we continue, what is a system?

System concept

The define of a system that Merriam-Webster give us is this one:

A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of

rules to form a unified whole.

So a system is a group of objects/parts/elements that interact with each other, generating

something that is complex.

To give some examples of a complex system, focusing on the area of climate change, we
have the SDG, proposed by the UN. They propose their own connections and their own
analyzing system. Another example is the Planetary Boundaries, led by Professor
Rockström, that establish some boundaries to the system that regulates the world.

Figure 2: Examples of system thinking in sustainability.

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 Figure 3: Model of Planetary Boundaries

And the last thing to comment about the system, why is there a system? Because it is
fulfilling societal needs, sometimes these needs emerge from issues.

Map a system
How can we map the system? There are different ways to do it. The two which we are
going to focus on are the key actor circle and in the iceberg model.

Figure 4: Types of ways to map a system

How does the key actor circle work? Is really simple, put outside the circle the different
actors that are influencing the system, and put different arrows that represent the influences
between each of them.

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 Figure 5: Template of the Actor circle

Focusing on the iceberg model, explain a little bit the hidden parts of a system. We have
the visible part, the events, the things that are happening. In the level below, entering the
hidden part of the iceberg, we have the patterns of behavior, which types of trend there are
over the time. Under, we have the systems structure, how are the parts of the system
related, how they influence. And in the lower part we have the Mental Models, what values,
assumptions or beliefs move people to act like that in the system.

Figure 6: Representation of the iceberg model for system mapping

Is interesting to comment that when we understand the lower parts we increase our leverage
to change the system. That is the reason why we get deeper about the concept of the mental
models.

Another point to comment about the systems is that it is very useful to set boundaries on a
system. Maybe they don't really exist, but we create this to improve the system, not go into
chaos and see what is on the system and what is out of the system.

The hosts give us a template that is really curious that describes the influences of a system.
We have three parts. We have the landscape, the part of the system that maybe is a little bit
of our control, but generates new opportunities. For example, the Covid-19 imposed a new

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landscape, it was out of our control, something more big that we can not really control. We
can deal with the landscape, and then start the other part, the incumbent system. Is
basically the interaction between landscape and niche systems. In this part there are actors
that influence the system. And the last part, we have the niche system, new things that are
emerging and influencing the incumbent system.

Figure 7: Template of interactions of a system

If we merge all these things, we can use a very useful template to map a system, the
Transition Model Canvas (TMC).

Figure 8: TMC (Transition Model Canvas)

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B.R.A.V.I.N.G
In Leg 2, because we're going to work in teams, they provide us an interesting concept for
social agreements and generate trust with each part of the group, B.R.A.V.I.N.G. Is a map to
generate trust developed by Brene Brown, and these are the main points.

● Boundaries. Set clear boundaries and respect them.

● Reliability. Trust you if you are going to do what you are going to do.
● Accountability. When you make a mistake you are willing to own it.
● Vault. What we are going to share will keep in secret.
● Integrity. Choosing what is right over what is fun, fast and easy, practicing your
morals.
● Non-judgment.
● Generosity. If I mess up, say something, forget something, you will make the most
generous assumptions.

Figure 8: B.R.A.V.I.N.G’s component

Reflection: How my vision of climate change changed?

During this Journey, I have the opportunity to get more deeper into the concept of the actual
climate crisis we are living in.

The first thing to reflect is that I understand more better the complexity that you have to
deal with if you want to bring a solution to this crisis. Yes, at first it overwhelmed me, it is
difficult to understand every side of climate change, and I think that is also overwhelming
me. But now I have the privilege to see this concept with a more enriching point of view, with
more perspective, more close to reality. That allows me to really understand it, and then,
propose some solutions.

Also I met a lot of change makers, that give me hope and see that they are people doing
things to solve this problem. For example, I was in Dublin's Journey, and I met a lot of people
there in Dublin that are acting in a positive way to a sustainable future. To mention some
names:

● John Beckett, a sustainable entrepreneurship with a project called “Go Carbon

Neutral”

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 ● Steve Rawling, a professional storyteller that shows how to communicate the climate
crisis.
● Aodhán McAleer, hydrogen manager in ESB.

We were more than 100 people, and all of these people (and also me) have something in
common, we have the same essence that allows us to be connected, and it is the thing to
act in a positive way to take care of the environment, people that believe in a sustainable
future. That thing gives me a really potencial message, I’m not alone, there are also other
people worried about this topic, there is a tribe of people that I can lean on.

The last thing that I want to comment on is while I was talking about climate change, I got
deeper in the scientific method, I got a more critical point related to climate change, a
more scientific vision. Now, for example, seeing that since I don't have the truth, I cannot
categorically assert that many of the things that happen are due to climate change. Maybe
there is a relationship, but we don’t really know how the Earth works, its internal mechanism.

Something to remember

Also I want to put this here, to remember this beautiful moment. For the closing, we give
thanks to the host and the coaches that make this program possible, and also this Leg 1, all
the work that they have done. So everyone put the camera in zoom with a paper giving
thanks, and I was playing the guitar singing “Hey brother - Avicii”. Wow, the energy, the
moment was really incredible, singing to more than 100 people, wow. I leave the photos
here.

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Project: Escape from Disaster
During Leg 2, we came up with a project called “Escape from Disaster”, an escape room to
understand more better the actual climate crisis through an interactive way.

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 Figure 9: A graphic representation of our project “Escape from Disaster”

To comment a little bit on the project, we think of putting different rooms where in each part
you get involved into a main issue related to climate change. These problems are:

● Loss of biodiversity and deforestation.

● Extreme Weathers.
● Water pollution and scarcity.
● Energy transition (in cities).
● Extensive land use and fertilizer use in agriculture.

The way to get involved and understand this problem more deeply is through puzzles, mini
games or something related to gamification.

We are in the Team Jafas, Federico and Lisanne.

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 Figure 10: Team members of Escape from Disaster

The experience was really amazing. There were also internal tensions, for example, my role
in the team, what I can apport to the team, but in summary, is incredible to work with this
incredible people, I learn more about the power of working in a team, I learn more about the
scientific method, lot of laughs and funny moments. I’m really thankful for the team.

Sense making: So now, what’s next?

Like a hero’s journey, I accept the call of the adventure, I enter in this program and I get
involved. The reason to be here is to connect more with the environmental problems and see
what I can do, become part of the solutions of this crisis we are living through. When Leg 1
came, I departed for the adventure. When I get more involved throughout the climate crisis
and all the complexity of this system, I get into a personal crisis, feeling impotence, without
strength to act such as magnitude of a problem. But the coaches, my teammates and
myself, I stand up again, I have to become the change that I want to see, “Enter through the
narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many
enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few
find it.” (Matthew, 7:13–14.) Take the hard way because it's worth it. And now I’m claiming
the treasure, I’m seeing that I’m another person, now I’m so close to coming back to my
ordinary world, I’m the change that I want to see in the world. “Although nothing changes, if I
change, everything changes'' (Marcel Proust)

Figure 11: Hero’s Journey

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