Development aversion (inspiration)

From school to the war front. Unfortunately, this is still the fate of many young people around the world today. Not much seems to have changed from a meta-perspective since the last devastating world wars. A strange loop of recurring patterns seems to make up social coexistence, in which the impression can arise that devastation must first be wrought so that something new can emerge.

But with all the technological achievements that civilization has produced in the last 150 years, the question is what it is, if not development, that keeps society from establishing systems-time functional solutions that enable an exit from this strange self-destructive loop.

Without a doubt, development is one of the topics that occupies a very special position for me as an autodidact. Above all, when society is faced, as it is now, with complex, intertwined problems that, whether one wants to admit them or not, are becoming a global existential risk, I think it is particularly important to focus on development.

I agree with Albert Einstein when he said that it is the purest form of madness to leave everything as it is and hope that this behaviour will change anything.

The purest form of madness is to leave everything as it is and at the same time hope that something will change. - Albert Einstein

With eyes focused on current complex entangled problems, it becomes clear that civilization is facing a mess of dilemmas that we need to know cannot possibly be solved with a school of thought that has been involved in their creation.

Instead, to initiate a countermovement that supports society in elaborating and implementing system-time functional solutions, new systemic and scientific training programs and education for the advancement of society need to find their way into society.

One of the tasks of these new systemic and scientific educational programs is to reactivate both the innate curiosity and the ability to handle (manage) complexity that has been lost through complex adaptation mechanisms. Cooperations can find new functional solutions for system-time adequate social existence by developing multidimensional connections and a human networked collective mind, such as those promoted by Formwelt.

And because it is a matter of the heart for me to work on new solutions in these cooperations and because this work is initiated by the movement that is carried, among other things, by mobilizing ideas - these are ideas that, according to José Ortega y Gasset, inspire people to act - I will tell a little story in this article that could move someone else to get to the bottom of the meaning of development.

I also tell this story because it is one of the few that motivates me to reflect on my own thinking, prejudices, ideological impulses, and worldview. This reflection work is a necessary basis for developing new functional solutions. Or, as my good friend Gitta Peyn says, "Criticism without self-criticism not only builds prisons for others, but also for oneself."

Surprisingly challenged

In 1942, at the age of 23, having just completed his architecture studies and in the middle of his philosophy studies, Russell received a letter that began with the words "Greetings".

It was the draft notification issued by the American armed forces which were to interrupt Russell Ackoff’s philosophy studies for what was perhaps his most important journey of discovery.

Russell first served in the 4th Armored Division, quickly rising to sergeant and then serving in the Corps of Engineers, which soon stationed him in the Philippines. Once there, he worked mostly with technical intelligence and war-related infrastructure construction projects.

Towards the end of the war, the tasks of the Corps of Engineers increasingly changed towards smaller maintenance operations and clean-up work so that the commanding general had Russell summoned back to headquarters to entrust him with new tasks.

When presented to the commanding general, Russell first had to face the general's critical questions about his career and competence in military architecture. Russell told of the short time he had spent on practical architectural tasks before entering the war and of the year and a half he had spent building a training center in the desert within the 4th Armored Division.

Satisfied with the general's initial findings, but especially because the current situation required the skills of an architect, the commanding general told of his plan to build a recreation center on one of the islands for up to 600 soldiers exhausted by the war.

After the commanding general had convinced Russell to first visit the island in question with him, he asked Russell in conclusion whether he would trust himself to take on this project, which was to begin immediately.

For Russell, who was rather bored with the clean-up work, this was a fitting opportunity to develop his own architectural skills further. So, he answered "yes", but at the same time wanted to know how many engineers he would be assigned.

But immediately with the first answer from his superior, the initial euphoria evaporated and gave way to the first beads of sweat.

"Don't be silly! I can't afford any more engineers. You get the money to pay 250 locals who can help you build," was the terse, decisive reply from the commanding general.

Russell then asked how he was able to organize 250 locals without being able to speak their language, to which his supervisor granted him a translator. But Russell, visibly tense, remarked that it was impossible to assess the locals' abilities in such a short time, let alone teach them to build houses according to American construction methods.

The commanding general's reply was predictably curt: "I thought you were a trained architect? Then work it out!"

Challenged by the answer, Russell then at least wanted to know how many materials he would be given by the military to build the recreation center. Again, his superior replied curtly, "Don't be silly! I can't afford to spend any more money on materials!"

Russell again inquired loudly how his superior general had imagined building a recreation center for 600 soldiers without being provided with the necessary materials.

"How do you think the locals build their houses? Go there and find out!" was the general's final answer, ending the conversation.

Development is a question of learning

Early the next morning, Russell, his new translator, accompanied by two military policemen, set out to explore the area around the chosen construction site. Not far away, they came across a village consisting of simple huts made of bamboo and built on stilts.

With the help of the interpreter, Russell enquired about the best builders in the village, and after some discussion, both sides agreed that Russell should first live with the locals for a few weeks to get a better idea of their building techniques.

In the days that followed, Russell observed the construction techniques of the natives and noticed that their houses were made of only three materials: Palm tree trunks for the substructure, bamboo to support the walls and roofs, and grass that was woven together and used to cover the roof.

But the construction method also had its pitfalls because as soon as the houses stood for a while, they became increasingly crooked.

This was mainly because the grass, which was also used to connect the bamboo cross-braces, tended to expand after a short time due to the local humidity. The oncoming winds then did the rest so that the houses subsequently began to lean.

The solution to the construction problem was quickly found in the countless single-core cables that had been laid all over the island during the war for communication and electricity. After only a few experiments, a technique was found to knot these cables so that the building structure could withstand the weather.

Soon after, Russell was faced with the next problem: the soldiers, who were to come for recreation, would need a large dock for mooring, swimming, diving and fishing. But the recreation center was to be built on a river that, thanks to tides, sometimes had more and sometimes less water. More precisely, Russell had to find a way to build a dock that could easily withstand the 2 ? meter difference in elevation.

But Russell also found the solution in the material that the military had left on the island. Using small cages made of bamboo, Russell had 55 empty oil barrels attached to the underside of the jetty. In this way, the jetty could always fulfil its function, despite the tides.

The third major problem arose while Russell began designing the actual recreation center. In addition to various small dormitories and activity rooms, there was also to be a community hall for all the soldiers, which measured 12 x 18 meters.

However, the largest available bamboo timbers were only 6 meters long; on average, bamboo on the island only grew to a height of 4.5 meters. How could such a 12-metre-wide span be built for a roof? The answer was found in the half-timbered tradition.

Now that Russell had managed to get all the major technical problems out of the way, he hired 150 local men and 100 local women. The men's task was first to cut palm trees for the substructure and to procure bamboo for the actual construction. Meanwhile, the women were busy weaving large mats of grass that would later be used as wall coverings, partitions and roofing.

Even during the first days of the actual construction phase, more and more other locals gathered to gaze in disbelief at the progress of the buildings. And towards the end of the construction phase, up to 2,000 people a day enthusiastically examined the truss constructions in particular, which they had never seen before.

When the construction of the recreation center was completed, all the old and new master builders returned to their village. With them: all the new things they had learned.

They immediately began to tear down their old houses and rebuild them from the ground up, making them more stable and spacious. Visibly amazed, Russell had learned several lessons that would accompany him throughout his life. Among them, above all, what constitutes the concept of development:

"Development has nothing to do with how much someone has, but with how much someone knows how to do with what they already have. "

Conclusion

To conclude the article, I would like to encourage the following:

1. Reflect on what society already has and that better used can establish functional solutions to enable exit from this strange self-destructive loop that civilization finds itself in.

2. Reflect on what obstacles there are that prevent society from establishing these functional solutions.

3. Reflect on which one of these obstacles could you, your company, your team, or your political party address now?

Remember that effective management focuses on what it wants, not what it does not want! And it is worth thinking about the effectiveness of our decisions in regard to the life circumstances of future generations.