Abstract
AbstractIn the field of sustainability science, many scholars and practitioners are embracing a ‘humanistic turn’ that draws from psychology and cognitive sciences and from the arts and humanities. Contributing to a spirit of ‘exuberant experimentation’ in the field, this chapter asks: How can creative methods of engagement be operationalized to support the imaginative capacity of researchers and practitioners in the arena of sustainability? In order to address this question, I (a) propose the concept of imaginative leadership to describe the ability to understand and consciously influence the symbolic/metaphorical dimensions of self and others, and (b) explore the process of designing workshops that employ creative methods rooted in ‘transformative mindsets.’ Transformative mindsets refer to specific conceptual frames identified for their potential to disrupt default unsustainable and anthropocentric worldviews and open new spaces of possibility for action and perception. The broad goal of these workshops was to support imaginative leadership towards regenerative sustainability through collaborative experimentation with unconventional methods. Informed by research on metaphorical thinking, somatics, neurocognitive linguistics, and arts-based environmental education, the methods were designed to activate a set of specific transformative mindsets, which were subsequently refined through the process of experimentation and co-reflection during and after the workshops.
Highlights
The survival of civilization and the well-being of humankind in the future will require a dramatic shift in the dominant cultures of global society—a veritable cultural renaissance—Boyden (2001: 112)
Imaginative leadership through the arts can nourish a cultural renaissance towards regenerative sustainability by sparking new stories, metaphors, and practices that support transformative mindsets and open new spaces of possibility
Sustainability is an ongoing ‘search process’ (Kagan, 2011) rooted in productive uncertainty, transformations towards just and ecologically healthy societies will always involve a reflection on what we value, accept, reject, love, care for, are passionate about, what we find just, fair, and sensible
Summary
Participatory involvement with the many forms of art can enable us to see more in our experience, to hear more on normally unheard frequencies, to become conscious of what daily routines have obscured, what habit and convention have suppressed—Maxine Greene (1995: 123). Complex sustainability challenges can only be understood and addressed via ambiguous subjective judgements, which are shaped by the inner dimensions of individuals and groups, such as their worldviews, imaginaries, interests/motivations, values, and ideologies (Rittel & Webber, 1973). Even taking the inner-dimensions into account, actuating change is often constrained by the power and inertia of entrenched ways of thinking and perceiving, habituated everyday practices, and social/contextual norms and conventions (Ajzen, 1991; Dewey, 1922; Greene, 1995; Kagan, 2011). The human psyche is hardwired to disengage when faced with information that appears overwhelmingly difficult or disturbing and can result in apathy and eco-anxiety (Lertzman, 2015; Pihkala, 2020)
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