Espinosa, Angela

Complexity approach to sustainability: theory and application - London Imperial College Press 2011 - xxvi,: 361p.

1. Introducing complexity and sustainability. --
1.1. Why we need a new approach. --
1.2. The need for a new paradigm. --
1.3. Sustainability. --
1.4. Conceptual platform : Systems, cybernetics. --
1.5. Sustainability : A review from systemic and complexity approaches. --
1.6. Summary --
2. Viability through complexity management : Revisiting the viable systems model. --
2.1. The conceptual platform. --
2.2. Overview : Three elements, five systems. --
2.3. The five systems. 2.4. Viability through complexity management. --
2.5. Managing complexity in the 3/4/5 homeostat : Team syntegrity. --
2.6. Viable systems, complex adaptive systems and sustainability. --
2.7. Summary --
3. Societies as viable systems : Complexity management and sustainability. --
3.1. Introduction. 3.2. Modelling a sustainable society. --
3.3. VSM criteria for sustainable governance. --
3.4. Approaches, methodologies and tools. --
3.5. Managing complexity in a nation state. --
3.6. Lessons for modelling sustainable societies. --
3.7. Conclusion --
4. Complexity and environmental management. --
4.1. Environmental management : Origins, development, application and assessment. --
4.2. Holistic and complex system approaches to environmental management. --
4.3. Environmental management in business. --
4.4. Case study : Environmental management from the Magdalena River basin--.
4.5. Towards a complexity-based framework for environmental management. --
4.6. Conclusion --
5. Rethinking sustainable development. --
5.1. Approaches to sustainable development. --
5.2. Rethinking the paradigm of development. --
5.3. Self-governance in communities : Developing a European eco-village. --
5.4. From sustainable development to sustainable governance. --
5.5. Case study : Developing a governance system for a national programme against poverty. --
5.6. Conclusions --
6. Envisioning solutions for the required societal transition. --
6.1. The required societal transition. --
6.2. From individuals to families, neighbourhoods, communities and towns. --
6.3. From the eco-region to the continental levels. --
6.4. The global recursion : A planetary society striving towards sustainability.--
6.5. Conclusions --
7. Conclusions. --
7.1. System 5 : Identity and the need to adopt a new paradigm of sustainable governance. --
7.2. Need for recursive sustainable self-governance. 7.3. Co-evolution between an organisation and its niche. --
7.4. Structural design. --
7.5. Creating a co-evolutionary learning society. --
7.6. Contributions to the development of complexity sciences. --
7.7. Final statement.

9781848165274


Sustainable development

338.927 / ESP-C