Life's Universal Design Principles

LIFE’S
UNIVERSAL
DESIGN
PRINCIPLES
ANDWHY WE NEED
TO ALIGN WITH THEM
IN WORK, IN LEARNING,
IN COMMUNITY AND
EVERYWHERE IN BETWEEN

THERE ARE MORE AND MORE SIGNS THAT
HUMANITY IS OUT OF ALIGNMENT WITH THE
NATURAL PATTERNS AND PROCESSES OF LIFE.

LIFE’S PATTERNS AND PROCESSES OFFER
UNIVERSAL DESIGN PRINCIPLES
WE CAN USE TO HELP ORGANIZATIONS,
COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS THRIVE.

ALL THRIVING
LIVING SYSTEMS
ARE GUIDED
BY 4 SUCH
DESIGN PRINCIPLES.

CELLS INYOUR BODY BEES IN A HIVE
TREES IN A FOREST
PEOPLE IN AN
ORGANIZATION
1.THERE ARE PARTS

THE MORE DIVERGENT
(OR DIVERSE) THE PARTS,
THE MORE RESILIENT, ADAPTIVE
AND CREATIVE THE
LIVING SYSTEM WILL BE.

2.THERE ARE RELATIONSHIPS
THE PATTERNS AND STRUCTURES
OF INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PARTS

E.G., CIRCULATORY, DIGESTIVE, SKELETAL &
OTHER SYSTEMS & STRUCTURES
E.G.,THE HIVE STRUCTURE;THE DANCES BEES
USE TO COMMUNICATE
E.G., MYCELIAL NETWORKS TREES USE TO
DISTRIBUTE NUTRIENTS ACROSS THE FOREST
E.G., PATTERNS OF INFO-SHARING & DECISION-
MAKING; SPACES THAT CONNECT & SUPPORT

THE MORE OPEN AND FREE-FLOWING
THE RELATIONSHIPS,
THE MORE RESILIENT, ADAPTIVE AND
CREATIVE THE LIVING SYSTEM WILL BE.

YOUR BODY THE BEE COLONY
THE FOREST
3.THERE IS A WHOLE
AN EMERGENT LEVEL OF LIFE WITH CHARACTERISTICS & CAPABILITIES OF ITS OWN
THAT CAN’T BE UNDERSTOOD BY LOOKING ONLY AT THE PARTS
THE ORGANIZATION

THE MORE CONVERGENT THE WHOLE
(FOR EXAMPLE: THE MORE YOU REMAIN
RECOGNIZABLY YOU EVEN AS YOUR CELLS
ARE CONTINUOUSLY REPLACED)
THE MORE RESILIENT, ADAPTIVE AND CREATIVE
THE LIVING SYSTEM WILL BE.

HINT:
IN ORGANIZATIONS
AND COMMUNITIES,
IT IS SHARED PURPOSE
THAT CREATES
WHOLENESS -
AND WITH IT,
EMERGENCE OF
NEW CAPABILITIES.

4.THERE IS A
“SELF-INTEGRATING
PROPERTY”
THIS IS HOW BIOLOGISTS DESCRIBE THE WAY THAT…BY ITSELF
THE LIVING SYSTEM INTEGRATES ALL THOSE DIVERGENT PARTS
INTO A CONVERGENT WHOLE
IN DYNAMIC RELATIONSHIP INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY
IN AN ONGOING, MOMENT-BY-MOMENT PROCESS
OF SELF CREATION AND SELF-REGENERATION.
IN OTHER WORDS, IT’S WHAT MAKES THE LIVING SYSTEM ALIVE.

THAT’S LIFE,RIGHT?
IT’S WHATEVER IT IS THAT ANIMATES US AND MAKES US ALIVE.

THESE ARE LIFE’S UNIVERSAL DESIGN PRINCIPLES
DIVERGENT PARTS DYNAMIC RELATIONSHIP
CONVERGENT WHOLENESS
SELF-INTEGRATING,
SELF-REGENERATING LIFE

WE CAN IMAGINE THIS SET OF
DESIGN PRINCIPLES AS A PRISM
CONTEXT*COMESIN
AND AS IT
PASSES
THROUGH
THE LIVING
SYSTEM
IT IS
TRANSFORMED
* PEOPLE, MATTER, ENERGY, INFORMATION…

© Copyright Michelle Holliday
1INDIVIDUAL PARTS MAKE
DISTINCT, DIVERGENT
CONTRIBUTIONS.
AND WE CAN IMAGINE THAT EACH FACE OF THE PRISM
REPRESENTS ONE OF THE DESIGN PRINCIPLES

2
THESE PARTS CONNECT TO
EACH OTHER AND TO
CONTEXT IN A DYNAMIC
WEB OF RELATIONSHIP.

3
PARTS CONNECT TO EACH OTHER
TO CREATE A CONVERGENT
WHOLE THAT CANNOT BE
UNDERSTOOD SIMPLY BY LOOKING
AT THE BEHAVIOR OF THE PARTS.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS
COORDINATED BY A
SELF-INTEGRATING,
PROPERTY THAT CAN BE
UNDERSTOOD AS
THE SPARK OF LIFE.
4

AS THE SYSTEM EVOLVES IN
REACTION TO CHANGES IN ITS
CONTEXT, IT BECOMES
INCREASINGLY INTEGRATED
WITH ITS ENVIRONMENT.

THROUGH FEEDBACK, IT BECOMES EVER
MORE SENSITIVE TO CHANGES IN CONTEXT,
DRIVING MORE EVOLUTION, IN TURN DRIVING
INFINITE AND UNPREDICTABLE CREATIVITY.

IN ALL, LIVING SYSTEMS ARE CREATIVE, ADAPTIVE AND
REGENERATIVE BY THEIR NATURE. THEY SEEK ALWAYS
TO TRANSCEND THEMSELVES BY CONNECTING
WITH OTHER LIFE TO CREATE NOVEL FORMS.

THIS
MEANS:
YOU HAVE TO POLISH ALL
SO EACH “INGREDIENT”
THREE SIDES OF THE PRISM,
IS PRESENT AT
HIGH LEVELS …

…IFYOU WANT TO CREATE THE FERTILE CONDITIONS FOR LIFE
TO SHINE THROUGH AND DO ITS SELF-INTEGRATING,
REGENERATIVE, TRANSCENDENT “THING.”

WHAT DOES ALL THIS
MEAN FORYOU?

IT MEANS THAT A NEW STORY
IS POSSIBLE – AND EMERGING.

IN THE OUTGOING STORY,
WE SAW EVERYTHING AS
LIFELESS MACHINES
MADE UP OF SEPARATE PARTS
TO BE MANAGED AND CONTROLLED..

THIS STORY HAS SHAPED EVERY ASPECT OF OUR LIVES
HOW WE STRUCTURE LEARNING HOW WE APPROACH HEALTH
HOW WE GROW FOOD HOW WE STRUCTUREWORK

IN THE MACHINE STORY,
THE ORGANIZATION’S ONLY PURPOSE
IS PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFITABILITY.

THIS STORY HAS LED TO
ALL KINDS OF PROBLEMS

FROM MACHINES TO LIVING SYSTEMS.
NOW WE’RE CHANGING HOW WE SEE OURSELVES AND OUR WORLD:

TO STEWARDS OR GARDENERS OF
SOMETHING PRECIOUS AND ALIVE.FROM DRIVERS OF A MACHINE...
WE’RE CHANGING HOW WE SEE OUR ROLE:

TO CULTIVATE THE FERTILE CONDITIONS
FOR LIFE TO THRIVE.
AND WE’RE (RE)DISCOVERING A MORE MEANINGFUL PURPOSE
FOR OUR INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE EFFORTS:

NOW, WE CAN EACH STEP INTO
THE INFORMED INTENTION AND PRACTICE OF
CULTIVATING THE FERTILE CONDITIONS FOR LIFE TO THRIVE
WHEREVER WE FIND IT – AND WE FIND IT EVERYWHERE.

NOW, WE CAN CULTIVATE NOT ONLY
PROFITABILITY AND PRODUCTIVITY BUT
THRIVABILITY

PLEASE JOIN US AT
WWW.AGEOFTHRIVABILITY.COM
FACEBOOK:
WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/AGEOFTHRIVABILITY
TWITTER:
@THRIVABILITY
EMAIL:
MICHELLE@AGEOFTHRIVABILITY.COM

Life's Universal Design Principles

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