A little bit of a confusing hodge-podge – a centre set up by Skoll at the Said Business School at Oxford University, which seems to have suddenly sprung to life with both a newsletter (copied at bottom) which links to a blog page (copied below) which has a bit of a different set of links.
via Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship | SCO – Initial Convening
Welcome
Welcome, system change colleagues, to the Systems Change Observatory (SCO) newsletter.
Systems change itself is a phrase that many are using more and more: Big challenges in the world have persuaded activists, policy makers, corporates, and researchers to ‘think big’ and to think in ‘whole system’ terms. The useful conversations now are to explore new ways of talking, understanding, and intervening – no one organization or community or even country can solve these challenges on their own. And the challenges themselves are outcomes from complex, interdependent, layered processes that often span jurisdictions.
Over the coming months we will highlight the ambitions of the SCO and themes that emerged from our initial convening in May 2019. At times we will ask for your contributions to add to our observations of the systems change landscape as it relates to education, research and practitioner knowledge and experiences.
Read on and we look forward to learning with you. Prof Marc Ventresca
University of Oxford and Wolfson College
|
|
What is the Systems Change Observatory?
The Systems Change Observatory (SCO) is a research initiative of the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Saïd Business School. The Observatory aims to provide a space for a wide range of stakeholders in systems change theory, policy and practice to discuss, share experiences and learn best ways to steer systems change practice to achieve positive social and environmental impact.
This research study explores pathways to systems change made visible in the starting points and initiatives of a large sample of ventures over time. The goal is to generate actionable insights, case studies and tools in support of systems change, both for practice and policy. The research integrates insights from organisational design and strategy, institutional and funding contexts, the work of leaders and broader venture ecosystems.
|
|
Getting started
In March 2019, we had a daylong session that integrated in-person attendance with contributions from participants around the world. This meeting incorporated opinions from previously conducted unstructured interviews to identify the most relevant issues and concerns regarding systems change among this first round of Observatory contributors.
|
|
|
Spotlight profile: Dr Paulo Savaget
Dr Paulo Savaget is the postdoctoral researcher for the Systems Change Observatory research initiative. Paulo works on the implementation of an applied research agenda focused on transforming unjust systems through social innovation and social entrepreneurship.
|
|
Useful resources
In each edition of this newsletter, we will share useful insightful resources related to systems change. Practitioner Reports Embracing Complexity – Towards a shared understanding of funding systems change.
Systems Leadership and Platforms: How to mobilize people to transform systems and build the platforms to scale these efforts By John Hagel and Gemma Mortensen.
Beyond Organisational Scale: How Social Entrepreneurs create systems Change. Academic Paper
Ferraro, F., Etzion, D., & Gehman, J. (2015). Tackling Grand Challenges Pragmatically: Robust Action Revisited. Organization Studies, 36(3), 363–390.
|
|