Beyond “blah blah blah”: exploring the “how” of transformation

Abstract

Calls for transformations are clear and multiple pathways and alternative visions for the future have been defined. Yet, there is very little shared understanding of how such transformations come about and how knowledge-action gaps will be filled. This Special Feature focuses on how we can go beyond talking about transformation—the “blah blah blah”—and moving toward action for results. It does so by distinguishing between the means of transformation and the manner of transformation, two key dimensions to answering the question of “how.” The means can be understood as the many solutions, technical and practical methods, or actions that are presented as significant to transformative change. The manner, in contrast, represents the ways in which something is done, i.e., ways of acting. It describes the core values, principles, qualities, and relationships that not only underpin and motivate transformative change, but shape the process. Integrating rather than conflating the means and the manner is important to better understand how transformations come about. We then present insights from the collection of papers that focus on the “how” of transformation. The papers describe different ways of integrating the means and the manner in transformation processes. We have organized them thematically as follows: papers that draw on the integration of meaning making, the integration of learning and listening, and the integration of different ways of being and becoming. Drawing on both science and alternative ways of knowing, they weave together new narratives and stories about nature, society, and the future, inviting us to embark on the journey of creating sustainability pathways.

Becoming Self-Aware—How Do Self-Awareness and Transformative Learning Fit in the Sustainability Competency Discourse?

“…Art-based and creative practices, which have been highlighted in sustainability science (Bentz et al, 2021(Bentz et al, , 2022 and transformative learning literature (Cranton, 2016), are well known in design education. These practices are often associated with change-making efforts that are grounded in mutual learning, cultivating the participants to challenge and change their own views, as well as their ability to become sensitive to new perspectives (Light and Akama, 2014;Mattelmäki et al, 2014;Vink et al, 2017).…”

Radical interventions for climate-impacted systems

“…Many analysts are forcefully arguing that fundamentally challenging climate change will require disruption of hitherto overlooked contextual or 'landscape' drivers such as capitalism, colonialism and global inequality 10,11,35 . Some are calling urgently for more empirical research on how to implement radical intervention at scale 13,36 . Others are dismantling the assumption that radical interventions are universally desirable by showing how different actors can resist and reinterpret transformational change 37 .…”

From hegemony-reinforcing to hegemony-transcending transformations: horizons of possibility and strategies of escape

“…Everyone seems to be calling for transformations these days, from grassroots activists to global policy forums. Yet, there remains little consensus on what transformations actually mean, to whom, what it should or should not involve, how it should be achieved, and by whom (Bentz et al 2022;Feola 2015;Scoones et al 2020;Bluwstein 2021). The term rose to prominence in socioecological discourses as a direct response to the growing evidence for the failure of the mainstream, reformist, reactive and status quo favouring strategies and policies to address the multiple escalating crises facing the planet (Steffen et al 2007;Gills and Morgan 2020;IPCC 2021).…”

“…With few exceptions (e.g. Blythe et al 2018), the bulk of this literature approach transformations as necessarily positive, and focuses on the aims and objectives, while insights on the process and the how of transformations continue to lack (Bentz et al 2022). In this paper, we aim to respond to the lack of critical insights and to shed light on the how of transformations, by focusing on the process, not only the outcome of transformations.…”