Mid Sweden University

The practical approaches to pursuing youth well-being and social justice are evolving, with distinct approaches such as co-creation gaining traction in the public sector (Ansell & Torfing, 2021; Henson, 2019). However, there is also a critique arguing the need for radical attention to more relational approaches advocating for relational welfare, which focuses on the relationships between youth and the welfare state, as well as on the well-being of the ecosystem as an interdependent living system (Cottam, 2018; Helne & Hirvilammi, 2015; Heimburg & Ness, 2021).

Relational welfare is then described as a radical change in which relational bonds should serve as a starting point for promo-ting health and well-being (Cottam, 2018). Consequently, a transformative change in youth well-being is bound by relationships, and these relations-hips are the core of the fluid and dynamic process of co-creating well-being. As stressed by Heimburg and Ness (2021), a significant body of research supports this notion, suggesting that loving and supportive relationships are the most vital of all social determinants for achieving health and well-being (Antonovsky, 1987; Ersoy, 2017; Prilleltensky, 2005).

In addition, the quality of relationships between public service users and public servants (i.e., in therapy or in kindergarten or other school settings) tends to be the most important factor for successful outcomes such as learning and well-being (Davidson, 2011; Lund & Winslade, 2018). A relational shift also stretches beyond our human relations, as stressed by Helne and Hirvilammi (2015). Sustainability and well-being can in fact be seen as twin concepts, as human well-being is enabled by the health of the ecosystems in which we participate.

The present ecological crisis and the well-being crisis are strongly associated with (or even caused by) the human exceptionalism paradigm, in which nature is considered predominantly as a resource basis for human consumption. The relational paradigm then takes into account and respects both the social bonds bet-ween individuals and the relationship between humans and nature (see, for example, Gergen, 2009). The concept of “right relationships” central to many Indigenous cultures might be an inspiration and appropriate term for this ideal of relating. It is a mode of being that is grounded in Indigenous ontologies characterised by relationality and reciprocity among both human and non-human relatives (Gram-Hanssen et al., 2022). But what exactly does “right relationships” mean when co-creating youth well-being, and how might we design, facilitate it, and cultivate it in practice?

The purpose of this chapter is to explore how a relational perspective on well-being and welfare can enrich the understanding of, and reveal new potentials for improving, youth involvement.

A take-back system can reduce the usage of virgin natural resources by reusing discarded products. However, if actors in the take-back system treat the discarded products as waste, the reuse value potential is lost. A situation that negatively impacts the sustainability and financial performance of the take-back system. The study explores the reuse of discarded white goods using data from multiple take-back value streams for discarded white goods. This is not an ideal case of a take-back system but rather a case showing some of the challenges in creating an efficient one. The study identifies interest alignment between collaborating actors as a key condition for maximizing the recoverability of discarded products, capturing value, and reducing value loss. Additionally, information asymmetry impacts value loss and financial performance. The study proposes introducing governance mechanisms and leads firm initiatives to promote conditions conducive to ecosystem actor alignment. An effective take-back system usually requires a lead firm-an orchestrator-responsible for the structure and performance of the take-back system, including governance, commercial arrangements, go-to-market coordination, value creation mechanisms, value sharing mechanisms, and risk management.

Purpose

Organizations are currently challenged to learn and develop quality at an increasing speed, as well as to navigate rising levels of complexity. This calls for new approaches to facilitating learning and quality as phenomena emerging in interconnected complex ecosystems of stakeholders. This paper explores the possibilities of facilitating the emergence of learning and quality in transformation and complexity with the support of scientific social media.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on a qualitative research design. Using scientific social media [SSM] for reflection and dialogue with an action research approach, it allows individuals with specific roles/functions linked to a transformative process to reflect on strong emotional experiences and action-oriented assignments. This can be described as equipping the ecosystem with sensors to capture systemic obstacles and levers.

Findings

As a result, a triad with three themes of action possibilities for facilitating emergence was identified, with the support of scientific social media: (1) creating a living arena for emergence; (2) learning for emergence and (3) leading for emergence in transformation.

Research limitations/implications

Future research could benefit from using scientific social media and combined qualitative and quantitative data to study quality and learning as emerging phenomena. Practically, organizations could use SSM for health system transformation.

Originality/value

This paper provides empirical insights and new innovative ways of conducting research when exploring complex transformational changes in healthcare and the emergence paradigm of quality management.

Purpose

In light of the current “triple planetary crisis”, referring to increased pollution, climate change impacts and biodiversity loss, what is called for is a transformative change of our ways of managing operations, relationships and resources. The facilitation of such a transformation cannot be limited to only one part of a supply chain or network but will have to be ecosystemic. The transformation will also have to include an important shift in mindset from just being sustainable (reducing negative impacts) to becoming regenerative (creating life-affirming outcomes that enhance flourishing for all concerned stakeholders, including local communities, wider society, and the interconnected fabric of life on earth) (Hutchins, 2022).In doing so, a promising new approach is the use of “ecosystemic enablers” (Hutchins, 2022), which is a team of people gathered from across the stakeholder ecosystem into a community of learning by playing an active sensing-responding role in the emerging living ecosystem.The purpose of this paper is to explore how regenerative skills, capabilities and a shift in mindset for ecosystem facilitation can be built together in a team of ecosystemic enablers.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is based on an ongoing research project including case studies and interventions in two interconnected ecosystems of stakeholders. The first ecosystem is2connected to the Swedish national resource centre for artisan food, and the second to a tourist mountain destination. The research project applies an interactive research process were two “practice teams”, consisting of ecosystemic enablers (Hutchins, 2022), have been gathered from the ecosystems, respectively. The ecosystemic enabler teams come together frequently in order to collectively sense into, learn, and transform the ecosystem by designing and conducting interventions, tests, and demonstrators. The data has been collected using a combination of qualitative methods including interviews, observations, and document reviews. The analysis of the data, making sense of and understanding the complex interrelationships and dynamics, have been done collectively together with the practice teams and within the research team.

Findings

The project presents insights from the collective journey concerning how skills, perspectives, and capabilities for regenerative ecosystem facilitation can be built together in a team of ecosystemic enablers. The insights concern the practical exploration of various facilitation frameworks and tools from for example Regenerative leadership, Theory U, Appreciative Inquiry, and Dialogic OD.

Practical implications

The paper contributes with new insights concerning how to practically face the challenge of simultaneously moving on the level of ecosystems, by building regenerative skills, shifts in mindset, and capabilities across the ecosystem of actors.

Relevance/contribution

The world is clearly calling for new regenerative ways of facilitating and leading, in sharp contrast to traditional mechanistic ways of command-and-control. This paper contributes to bringing such a shift into life in practice as it contributes with new insights on the use and gathering of “ecosystemic enablers” into communities that collectively facilitate ecosystem transformation.

Quality management (QM) has shown an impressive ability to update and evolve. The purpose of this paper is to highlight themes that have been identified as vital and important for research projects within QM during the coming decade. The paper is also an attempt to initiate research for the emerging 2030 agenda for QM, here referred to as ‘Quality 2030’. This article is based on extensive data gathered during a workshop process conducted in two main steps: (1) a collaborative brainstorming workshop with 22 researchers and practitioners (spring 2019) and (2) an appreciative inquiry summit with 20 researchers and practitioners (autumn 2019). The process produced five collectively elaborated and designed future research themes for QM: (a) systems perspectives applied, (b) stability in change, (c) models for smart self-organising, (d) integrating sustainable development, and (e) higher purpose as QM booster. The process also identified a positive core of QM, defined as core values and aspects in the field and practice that need to be preserved and nurtured in the future.

A newly developed and tested survey instrument assessed the impact of individual beliefs, norms, and attitudes on the adoption of circular practices in the building industry, with a focus on reuse behaviors in renovation and construction. The findings indicate that while attitudes indirectly influence organizational intentions, norms, and perceived behavioral control directly relate to reuse intentions. These results highlight the critical role of psychological factors in promoting sustainable practices within the industry, emphasizing the need for further exploration of how these elements interact to advance environmental responsibility.

The facilitation of transforming into a better world will have to be ecosystemic, taking into account complex living ecosystems of people, processes, technology, places, and relationships. The transformation will also have to include an important shift in mindset from just being sustainable, reducing negative impacts, to becoming regenerative in terms of creating life-affirming outcomes across the ecosystems. In contributing to that, this paper explores the potential role and function of using teams of ecosystemic enablers for regenerative ecosystem facilitation. Insights are shared from teams and interventions in two ecosystems in Sweden aiming to increase ecosystemic learning, improvement, and regenerative development. 

In recent years, the importance of working collaboratively with improvements through inter-organisational networks has gained attention from academics and practitioners for addressing complex issues. Inter-organisational networks provide a fertile ground for collaboration, as they bring together diverse perspectives, resources, and expertise. The central question explored by this research is what factors stimulate continuous collaborative improvement initiatives in rural development projects in Sweden.

A multisite case study methodology was used to study the start-up of two local development plan processes carried out by local community groups and businesses, facilitated by the local municipality, and financed through EU’s LEADER program. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews, analyses of documents, and participant observations at local development workshops. 

The findings indicated that two primary factors were crucial to stimulating continuous collaborative improvement initiatives: 1) structure and processes, and 2) engagement and motivation. The interplay between structure and processes, and between motivation and engagement, was fundamental for stimulating continuous collaborative improvement initiatives. While structure and processes seem to provide the necessary framework and organisation, the study found that motivation and engagement appear to drive sustainable improvement activities. Participants’ motivation and engagement required a clear structure to channel their capacity effectively and point out direction, ensuring that enthusiasm and commitment were maintained. Future collaborative efforts should focus on maintaining this balance, with flexible and inclusive structures supported by trusted facilitators. This synergy has a potential to create significant impact, fostering sustainable and meaningful improvements in rural development projects that benefit the entire community.

This study emphasises that combining resources and expertise can potentially create value unattainable by individual stakeholders alone. These insights offer an understanding of the dynamics of collaborative improvement in inter-organisational networks, helping stakeholders better navigate and leverage collaborative initiatives to address rural challenges and drive sustainable development.

Purpose: Organizations will be key to realizing the “transformative change for humanity” now being called for. However, the complexity calls for new ways of facilitating change and organizational learning; it also calls for moving beyond sustainability to develop practices that restore and regenerate the world in which we live. Above all, it calls for the development of new frameworks, practices, mindset and capabilities to hold space for and facilitate such transformation, to dance with the “Logic of Life.” The purpose of this study is to contribute to advancing the current leading frameworks and practices of facilitating learning and development towards the enabling of regenerative transformative change in organizations and society. Design/methodology/approach: This study is based on an exploratory qualitative analysis of a facilitation prototype that expands the current framework and practice of Appreciative Inquiry Summits toward regeneration. Findings: This study presents four paradoxes of regenerative facilitation to guide the dance for life in complex ecosystems. It also identifies that the dance needs to be widened, towards inviting more frequently the ends of the four paradoxes noted as regenerative, negative emotions, inner and more-than-human. Originality/value: This study explores the intersection of practices and frameworks for facilitating complexity with principles from regenerative leadership and complexity theory, potentially making an important contribution to the urgent and widespread need to facilitate a regenerative transformative change for humanity, society and our organizations. 

Indigenous systems offer a unique perspective on sustainability and regeneration, emerging from a profound understanding of the intricate relationship between humans and the environment. At the core of indigenous cultures lies a way of being in respectful reciprocal relationships with the living.  

Right relations can then be seen as “an obligation to live up to the responsibilities involved when taking part in a relationship—be it to other humans, other species, the land or the climate”. Being in right relationships does then reach into a way of being based on an underlying mindset and awareness. It can therefore be seen as a vital and profound input, inspiration, and foundation for the regenerative transformational change ahead regarding humanity, organizations, and society.  

The need for such input is also currently stressed within the initiative and framework of inner development goals (IDGs). It is a framework that acknowledges that modern humanity seems to lack the inner capacity to deal with our increasingly complex environment and the challenges connected to caring for and sustaining life on this planet (https://www.innerdevelopmentgoals.org/ ). In response to that, the IDG framework raises the importance of developing our abilities to relate to and care for others and the world. One of the most foundational shifts highlighted in the IDG framework is the notion of developing our “inner compass”, that relates to “having a deeply felt sense of responsibility and commitment to values and purposes relating to the good of the whole”. 

The purpose of this paper is to explore and propose how the development of ‘being in right relationship’ and the ‘inner compass’ in the IDG framework might be facilitated by generative questions in appreciative inquiry interview guides.      

This is a conceptual paper, focused on exploring and proposing generative questions to be used within Appreciative Inquiry Interviews. It is an approach that acknowledges the power of questions as fundamental for facilitating change. More specifically, when discussing generative questions in relation to appreciative inquiry, research propose that the generativity of the questions increases if: 1) they are surprising; 2) they touch people’s heart and spirit; 3) talking about and listening to these stories will build relationships; and 4) the questions force us to look at reality a little differently.  

As a result, the paper presents a practical output in terms of questions and question guides for appreciative inquiry interviews aimed to facilitate reflection, learning and transformation towards ‘being in right relationship’ and the ‘inner compass’ in the IDG framework.   

The abstract contributes and relates to leadership development and building capability for continuous improvement and transformation in relation to all of the SDGs. The abstract also relates strongly to the main topic of the conference, as it addresses and elaborates on the destroyed relationship of modern humanity and the notion of sustainability and regeneration as a way of being in right relationship, as practiced by indigenous communities since millennia.   

The paper is submitted to Track 10D and contributes with new insights about Indigenous Systems and Sustainability.