Mind the Gap
The COVID pandemic is a time of profound disruption for all of us. All around the globe, we are experiencing a "gap" between what came before and what will come after. We are in that gap now. Now is the time to pay attention. Whether you are watching your professional life fall apart, or you are as busy as ever, there is nothing normal about this time, and as such there is an opportunity here.
Bruno Figueiredo, Unsplash
The amount of disruption and pain from the pandemic is devastating and should never be minimized. However, this time does also represent an opportunity. This is a moment where the driving forces and momentum of the old normal are not as powerful. We can use this gap moment for our advantage, and for the benefit of future generations.
Focusing specifically on the aspect of society where Positive Energy does its work, the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry, this is a unique time where traditional practices are slightly less solid, more fluid. This fluidity at the professional level is likely based on the uncertainty that we are all feeling at a personal level, and it's an opportunity that may not come again, hopefully will not come again in the form of a global pandemic.
So, how do we mind the gap? How do we use this time to put in place a new normal in a way that it "sticks"? Traditional design, construction and operation practices are based on reckless, wasteful and unsustainable resource and energy use. How do we end this regime of "organized irresponsibility" where we are all complicit in systems that bring about outcomes that no one wants. How do we leverage this time of disruption to end the tyranny of short term profit based on the exploitation of human and planetary resources? How do we bring social and environmental justice into the mainstream?
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
One answer is found in the words of Muriel Rukeyser "the universe is made of stories, not of atoms". We humans respond deeply to stories. We like to think we are rational, but we are, instead, relational. We seek safety and security through adherence to tradition and in-group loyalty. These traditional practice are based on paradigms.
Paradigms are, at heart, stories; stories about the world around us. These stories form and inform our lives and our perspective of the world. They are sets and patterns of ideas, beliefs and values that individuals and societies use to make sense of reality. But a key aspect of paradigms are that they are essentially invisible. They are so deeply rooted that they feel like common sense. As such, we rarely question the big stories because we don't actually notice they exist and inform all of our decisions and actions.
Paradigms are stories that societies hold as truths until new paradigms take over. Here are some paradigms that are no longer widely held:
"The earth is flat."
"The earth is at the center of the universe."
"Individual decisions and actions can not impact the entire planet.”*
*In the world of the post COVID-19 crisis, this last one is hopefully, finally gone forever.
Why all this talk about paradigms? We have important and pressing issues, this is not the time to talk about stories. Or is it?
Paradigms are powerful leverage points. We need that power now. Within a complex system, leverage points are those places where small shifts lead to big changes. That is why paying attention to paradigms is what matters most during this time between the old normal and the new normal. If we just focus on getting rid of wild animal markets we will find ourselves back here again, in another global crisis, soon enough. We have a chance now to interrupt the organized irresponsibility, so let's find some leverage and make the shift.
“A paradigm is a set or pattern of ideas, beliefs, and values used by individuals and societies as a means of making sense of reality.”
According to Donella Meadows, there are places to intervene in a system that provides leverage. As a quick reminder a lever is a tool that can be used to move a heavy load by applying force as far from the lever's fulcrum as possible. The heavy load in this case is the weight of traditional AEC practices. They have a seemingly immovable inertia of position but that is not true. Traditional practices are not fixed, there do come times where change is possible. Our goal now is to use leverage skillfully by applying the force to the lever as far from the fulcrum and load as possible. All forces are not the same. There is a known, natural hierarchy with large, interconnected human societal systems.
In her book Thinking in Systems: A Primer the hierarchy of leverage points is clearly spelled out. With some interpretation by us here at Positive Energy, here are the leverage points in order of increasing impact.
Products
Practices
Processes
Protocols
Paradigms
Note that the most powerful leverage point, the one most powerfully helps move the load is one that is essentially invisible and unrecognized. Hence the reason to write this article.
It is our deep hope that we begin to notice our dominant and inaccurate paradigms. These are underlying, unspoken stories like:
"The planet is huge and can provide for our needs indefinitely.""Human activity can not impact global ecosystems including climate patterns."
"Engineers will invent new technologies, in time to provide for the needs of future generations."
"Architectural design is mainly a visual craft."
"Indoor environments are mainly visual, spatial and economic situations."
"Indoor air quality does not have a large impact on our health and well-being."
"Social and environmental justice don't impact you, as long as you have money."'
"Circular economies are too costly and therefore unrealistic to achieve."
Honestly assess your beliefs about the work you do day in and day out. "Mind the gap" by taking some time to notice unrecognized paradigms, unchallenged traditional stories, as you engage in the craft of your profession in the coming weeks and months. This is a powerful opportunity for us to tell ourselves some new stories that leverage power to help us arrive at new futures. If you’re privileged enough to think deeply about these things, it’s a real shame and waste not to make the most of this time.