Systems Mapping: How Paris meets Climate Change
By: Gian Wieck
Tags: Resilience, System Mapping, Urban Planning, Climate Change, Systems Thinking

“Remember, always, that everything you know, and everything everyone knows, is only a model. Get your model out there where it can be viewed. Invite others to challenge your assumptions and add their own.” ― Donella H. Meadows, Thinking in Systems: A Primer

How does Paris attempt to decrease CO2 emissions and mitigate climate change? This is the key question asked in the article “Gärten statt Beton — So begegnet Paris dem Klimawandel” published in the Tagesspiegel (03.08.2019, Link to Original Article, Link to English Translation).

From a Systems Thinking perspective, the topic is highly relevant due to the interplay of different social, environmental and economic factors. That’s why we chose the article for our first “Systems Jam” to develop a map summarizing the causal essence of the article.

What are Systems? What is Systems Thinking?

We live in a world full of systems and complexity. Being a neighbor, a colleague, a parent or a citizen, we move within systemic structures that guide our thinking and are affected by our actions. Some of those systems we learned to manage intuitively (e.g. having a shower, driving a car, eating lunch, preparing presentations). Others though are more complex and our intuition might guide us wrong (e.g. staying healthy, coping with stress, acting sustainably, raising a child, planning long-term climate mitigation).

Formally, a system is defined as an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves a particular function. Systems Thinking can help to improve decisions in complex situations. It is a mindset and a set of scientific tools to understand the structures of complex systems and develop effective actions which improve the whole rather than single parts. One tool frequently used is the Systems Map.

What is a Systems Map? Why is it useful?

Based on a defined goal or problem, the Systems Map (or Causal Loop Diagram) provides an overview of important factors and their causal connections. The map unveils the most important characteristic to understand a system: feedback loops. The emergent behavior from feedback loops is what guides a system and determines its long-term development. Balancing loops keep systems stable, while reinforcing loops can lead to significant systemic change.

From a cognitive perspective, the map supports us in understanding the underlying structure of a system and in developing a narrative about how the problem arose. By developing a causal summary, it allows to critically reflect on the topic, identify missing connections or think of factors which should be in the picture as well.

From a co-creation perspective, the map acts as a boundary object: it connects participants and bridges the gaps due to different functions or experience. Independent of the field of expertise, everyone can read a systems map and contribute to its development. Unveiling implicit assumptions, the map facilitates the debate and at the same time, nudges the participants to integrate their perspectives.

The map is not (and will never be) a perfect representation of the real world. It is rather a collection of the assumptions of how the system works through the eyes of the modellers, the participants and — in the case of mapping an article — the author.

Systems Map in Practice: Paris & Climate Change

In our example, we elicited the key factors and assumptions from the Tagesspiegel article and summarized them in a Systems Map. The map is not comprehensive and mainly reflects the variables mentioned in the article through the inherently biased eyes of the modeller team.