Concern about the polycrisis of climate change, ecological decline, inequality, and weakening trust in institutions has led some policy thinkers to call for new eco-social contracts. Yet many place-based initiatives have long been working on related questions in practice. This
This post explores how collaborations can move beyond information sharing to support shared learning and adaptation in complex environmental work. It looks at why collaboration needs more than coordination, what learning-supportive environments look like in practice, the roles that facilitators
Many applied research and evaluation projects operate outside formal institutional ethics systems. Over time, a collaborative peer review protocol developed in applied science and evaluation work has supported a range of projects and published work. This post reflects on how
In long-term, multi-actor systems, programmes come and go, but places, relationships and consequences remain. In these complex settings, design, evaluation and facilitation rarely sit neatly in sequence; they overlap. Supporting change in such contexts calls for drawing deliberately across these
Debates about AI often sound polarised, but much of the disagreement comes from people beginning with different assumptions about what is at stake. This post maps two overlapping levels of concern – the structural conditions shaping AI systems, and the
The new IPBES Business and Biodiversity Assessment is being read as a wake-up call for business and finance. It is. But it is also a quieter call for stronger organisational capability, coordination and ongoing adaptation. This post reflects on what
Programmes end, but places and relationships continue, and responsibilities often extend beyond formal mandates. In complexity-aware approaches to evaluation, design, and strategy, the artefacts we create shape what is carried forward and how learning, value, and accountability are understood over
Complexity-aware evaluation is often discussed in terms of methods and tools. In long-term, place-based work, some of the harder design questions sit earlier and later than method choice. They concern how evaluation operates in real institutional settings, and what it
Many climate adaptation and systems-change initiatives, including those focused on biodiversity, water, food, and health, struggle because collaboration and learning are not explicitly designed or resourced to hold the work together over time. In a polycrisis, where multiple crises interact
Indicators are often treated as neutral measures of progress. In practice, they only make sense through judgement, conversation, and institutional context. Drawing on place-based environmental programmes, this post reflects on why indicators need to be revisited, interpreted, and sometimes reworked
This site curates annotated links to tools and frameworks for people working in complex, multi-actor settings. It also shows how different dimensions of practice fit together across real-world contexts.
If you’re looking for tailored support – whether that’s short advisory input, process design, reflective coaching, or strategic writing – you’re welcome to get in touch or visit my bio and services page to learn more. I work collaboratively on facilitation, evaluation, and learning design, often during early-stage or time-limited phases.
Visit some of my reflections on collaborative practice and learning in complex, multi-actor settings.
This site is free for everyone, but not free to maintain. If you find it useful, you might consider a small contribution, about the cost of a cup of coffee, to help keep it going.
Visit core pages introducing key themes, approaches, and frameworks for supporting collaboration and learning in complex, multi-actor contexts.
