TY  - BOOK
AU  - Meadows, Donella H.
AU  - Wright, Diana
TI  - Thinking in systems : : a primer
SN  - 9781603580557
AV  - QA402 .M425 2008
PY  - 2008///
CY  - White River Junction, VT
PB  - Chelsea Green Publishing
KW  - System analysis
KW  - Simulation methods
KW  - Decision making
KW  - Critical thinking
KW  - Sustainable development
KW  - Social sciences
KW  - Economic development
KW  - Environmental aspects
KW  - Population
KW  - Economic aspects
KW  - Pollution
KW  - Environmental education
KW  - Bibliography B2 PBT Thinking Complexity
KW  - Bibliography M1 - Sustainable Business
N1  - Includes bibliographical references and index; A note from the author -- A note from the editor -- Introduction: the systems lens --  pt. 1. System structures and behavior -- 1. The basics -- 2. A brief visit to the systems zoo -- pt. 2. Systems and us -- 3. Why systems work so well -- 4. Why systems surprise us -- 5. System traps ... And opportunities -- pt. 4. Creating change; in systems and in philosophy -- 6. Leverage points; places to intervene in a system -- 7. Living in a world of systems -- Appendix -- Bibliography of systems resources
N2  - In the years following her role as the lead author of the international bestseller, Limits to Growth the first book to show the consequences of unchecked growth on a finite planet, Donella Meadows remained a pioneer of environmental and social analysis until her untimely death in 2001.
Meadow's newly released manuscript, Thinking in Systems, is a concise and crucial book offering insight for problem-solving on scales ranging from the personal to the global. Edited by the Sustainability Institute's Diana Wright, this essential primer brings systems thinking out of the realm of computers and equations and into the tangible world. It shows readers how to develop the systems-thinking skills that thought leaders across the globe consider critical for 21st-century life.
Some of the biggest problems facing the world war, hunger, poverty, and environmental degradation are essentially system failures. They cannot be solved by fixing one piece in isolation from the others, because even seemingly minor details have enormous power to undermine the best efforts of too-narrow thinking.
While readers will learn the conceptual tools and methods of systems thinking, the heart of the book is grander than methodology. Donella Meadows was known as much for nurturing positive outcomes as she was for delving into the science behind global dilemmas. She reminds readers to pay attention to what is important, not just what is quantifiable, to stay humble, and to stay a learner.
In a world growing ever more complicated, crowded, and interdependent, Thinking in Systems helps readers avoid confusion and helplessness, the first step toward finding proactive and effective solutions
ER  -