Papers by Graham Leicester
Twelve principles for transformation-focused evaluation
Viewpoint: The Seven Enemies of Evidence-Based Policy
Public Money & Management, Mar 15, 2010
Archetypes of system transition and transformation: Six lessons for stewarding change
Energy research and social science, Sep 1, 2022
The Innovation Journal: The Public Sector Innovation Journal, Volume 18(1), 2013, article 14. Book Review
There are, it is commonly said, two kinds of people in this world: those who think that there are... more There are, it is commonly said, two kinds of people in this world: those who think that there are two kinds of people, and those who don’t. An inveterate foe of simplicity and an advocate of almost endless ambiguity, I fall heavily into the second camp. Nonetheless, I also acknowledge that small numbers have a certain expediency. “Three ” is especially good for purposes for purposes of bringing things together into a comfortable whole (Lease, 1919). It famously forms the spiritual Christian “trinity” (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). It outlines the Weberian analysis of authority (traditional, charismatic and rational-legal), the Freudian approach to the psyche (id, ego and superego) and Kohlberg’s ascending ladder of morality (pre-conventional, conventional and postconventional). It can be found in various manifestations of the occult, e.g., MacBeth’s three witches), but it shows up in Habermas ’ roster of human knowledge (historical-hermeneutic, empirical-analytical and emancipatory)...
Fundamentals for a New Scotland Act
A Diverse Assembly, 1998
Are you a “person of tomorrow”? Such people thrive in the contemporary world, and inhabit “the co... more Are you a “person of tomorrow”? Such people thrive in the contemporary world, and inhabit “the complex and messy problems of the 21st century in a more expansive way than their colleagues.” They take “a larger, broader, more holistic, more generous, more all-encompassing, altogether bigger view of any circumstance.” They are flexible in their responses, while maintaining a reliable ethical stance. They welcome and honor the dignity and possibilities of otherness. They energize others with their vision, their aspiration and their hope. “They are always pushing boundaries, including their own. They dance at the edge.” These are innate human capacities that we all possess. But some manage to develop and express them better than others.
Environmental Science & Policy, 2021
Climate challenge brings three, not just one, emergencies. These are the visible, conceptual and ... more Climate challenge brings three, not just one, emergencies. These are the visible, conceptual and existential, all of which are urgent and important. The three emergencies are starkly highlighted in Louisiana, where historical coastal development and climate-induced sea level rise is causing visible emergencies in the form of extensive land loss and increased impacts of flooding and storm surges, leading to forced relocation of settlements. The visible emergencies cannot be overcome without addressing conceptual emergencies where current ways of organising, thinking and approaching the challenges are inadequate for the scale, nature and rate of change. The conceptual emergencies, in turn, cannot be overcome without addressing the existential, where different cultures, values and identities are needed to overcome existing conceptual challenges. Louisiana's state government is beginning to go beyond the visible to wrestle with the conceptual and, to some extent, awareness is growing about the existential. The need to address the conceptual and existential will only increase as the limits of current approaches to addressing the visible emergencies become more apparent. As such, the case highlights how climate change will force a transformation that will be characterised by fundamentally new social attributes. The nature of what emerges, however, is not guaranteed and will depend on how those in Louisiana and beyond seek to work with all three emergencies and their interconnections.
Sustaining Human Aspiration: Action Learning in Falkirk
... Sustaining Human Aspiration: Action ... Today the region boasts a new-found confidence and al... more ... Sustaining Human Aspiration: Action ... Today the region boasts a new-found confidence and aleadership determined to push the boundaries of what is consid ... We took up the challenge and initiated a "case encounter": a carefully prepared half-day in the community followed by ...
Renewing Universities in Our Climate Emergency: Stewarding System Change and Transformation
Frontiers in Sustainability
This paper outlines climate emergencies facing universities and, by drawing on research on system... more This paper outlines climate emergencies facing universities and, by drawing on research on system transition, provides insights about how change to overcome the challenges might be stewarded. Climate change brings three interconnected and urgent emergencies for universities: (1) Manifest emergencies such as risks to operations and business models; (2) Conceptual emergencies that arise because assumptions, ideologies, systems, and structures cannot match the scale of the manifest challenges; and (3) Existential emergencies where current identities and sense of purpose are incapable of supporting the changes needed to overcome the conceptual challenges. To be viable leaders in the world, universities will need to renew their commitments to serving the public good, be dedicated to an unwavering challenge-orientation, create post-disciplinary structures, and be the change one seeks to see in the world. Importantly, universities will need to overcome the emergencies on the inside if they...
Transforming knowledge systems for life on Earth: Visions of future systems and how to get there
Energy Research & Social Science
World Futures
In March 2016 an interdisciplinary group met for two days and two evenings to explore the implica... more In March 2016 an interdisciplinary group met for two days and two evenings to explore the implications for policy making of second order science. The event was sponsored by SITRA, the Finnish Parliament's Innovation Fund. Their interest arose from their concern that the well-established ways, including evidence based approaches, of policy and decision making used in government were increasingly falling short of the complexity, uncertainty and urgency of needed decision making. There was no assumption that second order science or second-order cybernetics would reveal any practical possibilities at this early stage of enquiry. On the other hand some members of the group are practioners in both policy and in facilitating change in sectors of society. Thus the intellectual concepts were strongly grounded in experience. This is an account of the deliberations of that group and some reflections on what came out of the various shared contributions and ensuing dialogues. The overall conclusion of the event is that there definitely are possibilities that are worthy of further research and exploration.
Ecology and Society, 2016
Global environmental change requires responses that involve marked or qualitative changes in indi... more Global environmental change requires responses that involve marked or qualitative changes in individuals, institutions, societies, and cultures. Yet, while there has been considerable effort to develop theory about such processes, there has been limited research on practices for facilitating transformative change. We present a novel pathways approach called Three Horizons that helps participants work with complex and intractable problems and uncertain futures. The approach is important for helping groups work with uncertainty while also generating agency in ways not always addressed by existing futures approaches. We explain how the approach uses a simple framework for structured and guided dialogue around different patterns of change by using examples. We then discuss some of the key characteristics of the practice that facilitators and participants have found to be useful. This includes (1) providing a simple structure for working with complexity, (2) helping develop future consciousness (an awareness of the future potential in the present moment), (3) helping distinguish between incremental and transformative change, (4) making explicit the processes of power and patterns of renewal, (5) enabling the exploration of how to manage transitions, and (6) providing a framework for dialogue among actors with different mindsets. The complementarity of Three Horizons to other approaches (e.g., scenario planning, dilemma thinking) is then discussed. Overall, we highlight that there is a need for much greater attention to researching practices of transformation in ways that bridge different kinds of knowledge, including episteme and phronesis. Achieving this will itself require changes to contemporary systems of knowledge production. The practice of Three Horizons could be a useful way to explore how such transformations in knowledge production and use could be achieved.
Fundamentals for a New Scotland Act: The Constitution Unit' Report on Scotland
Scottish Affairs, 1996
Devolution and Europe: Britain's double constitutional problem
Regional & Federal Studies, 1998
The Seven Enemies of Evidence-Based Policy
Public Money and Management, 1999
The Political Quarterly, 1996
AT the end of March 1995 the Royal Institute of International Affairs hosted a major conference o... more AT the end of March 1995 the Royal Institute of International Affairs hosted a major conference on the theme 'Britain in the World'. Henry Kissinger told the conference that Britain, in relative decline since the Second World War, had moved 'from power to influence'. Britain is not the preeminent power it once was and must now seek to achieve its aims largely by exerting influence on others. America's role has changed too. Kissinger acknowledged that in his recent book Diplomacy. Just as Britain is moving from power to influence, he says, so America is moving 'from dominance to leadership'. But this statement of apparent simplicity masks what, were it to occur, would in practice be a significant and difficult transition for the US. Dominance is easy: partners fall into line, if necessary under threat. But leaders need followers; they have to inspire, and to know where they are going. Leadership is a much more testing role. This article explores the significance of Kissinger's distinction, and what it says about America's place in the world. It is unlikely that America will manage the transition from dominance to leadership well, if at all. The easy lure of dominance will be too strong. This suggests a potential instability in America's relations with its allies which is already becoming apparent after the Cold War. The article concludes with some thoughts about the policy implications for Europe and in particular for Britain.
The Political Quarterly, 1999
European Journal of Education, 2007
The Challenge to Learn These are powerful times. 2 We are citizens of a global society living in ... more The Challenge to Learn These are powerful times. 2 We are citizens of a global society living in unprecedented conditions of boundless complexity, rapid change and radical interconnectedness. Peter Drucker writes that: 'Every few hundred years in Western history
The Seven Enemies of Evidence-Based Policy
Uploads
Papers by Graham Leicester