The Age of SMART
Yeah, this use of the acronym "SMART" is our own invention. You won't yet find it in the mainstream (though we'd love to change that over time.) We came up with it to try to articulate specifically what we were learning about sustainable systems, and what it really meant to be "sustainable".
The word "sustainable" itself is not terribly inspiring. Intuitively, it means something on the order of "continuing to exist". In recent years this has become a central and often elusive goal for many living systems, social contracts, and businesses (but that is a blog post for another day). Still -- "sustainable" is hardly a juicy word to the average innovator (is there such a thing as an average innovator? also a blog post for another day).
So why "SMART"? We began with the word "SMART" because increasingly the ways we manage infrastructures, treat social systems and conduct business have begun to appear to the forward-thinking observer to be (now don't hate me) -- STUPID. Yes -- stupid. In fact, the long-term effects of the status quo were dramatized in the popularly and critically acclaimed and innovatively distributed 2009 British film The Age of Stupid. Set in 2055, it tells the story of what happens when the world refuses to change its systems and infrastructures, revealing the "reasons" for this lack of action as, well, lame and stupid.
Now, not everyone is moved by alarmist movies. But even the CEOs and EVPs of the largest corporations in the world, upon coming together to contemplate the future circa 2050, came away saying this about everything from energy and materials to people and values:
"Business-as-usual cannot get us to sustainability or secure economic and social prosperity. These can be achieved only through radical change, starting now."
Translation: the way we have been doing business, though once thought to be smart, is no longer so. If we continue in the same way going forward -- we are stupid. This, however para-phrased, comes directly from the horse's mouth. A very SMART beginning.
The word "sustainable" itself is not terribly inspiring. Intuitively, it means something on the order of "continuing to exist". In recent years this has become a central and often elusive goal for many living systems, social contracts, and businesses (but that is a blog post for another day). Still -- "sustainable" is hardly a juicy word to the average innovator (is there such a thing as an average innovator? also a blog post for another day).
So why "SMART"? We began with the word "SMART" because increasingly the ways we manage infrastructures, treat social systems and conduct business have begun to appear to the forward-thinking observer to be (now don't hate me) -- STUPID. Yes -- stupid. In fact, the long-term effects of the status quo were dramatized in the popularly and critically acclaimed and innovatively distributed 2009 British film The Age of Stupid. Set in 2055, it tells the story of what happens when the world refuses to change its systems and infrastructures, revealing the "reasons" for this lack of action as, well, lame and stupid.
Now, not everyone is moved by alarmist movies. But even the CEOs and EVPs of the largest corporations in the world, upon coming together to contemplate the future circa 2050, came away saying this about everything from energy and materials to people and values:
"Business-as-usual cannot get us to sustainability or secure economic and social prosperity. These can be achieved only through radical change, starting now."
Translation: the way we have been doing business, though once thought to be smart, is no longer so. If we continue in the same way going forward -- we are stupid. This, however para-phrased, comes directly from the horse's mouth. A very SMART beginning.
OK, so remind me -- what is "SMART" again? SMART is:
Systems-savvy –
designed with sensitivity to the context of the specific systems and environs involved; also, optimizing the interplay between systems.
Systems-savvy –
designed with sensitivity to the context of the specific systems and environs involved; also, optimizing the interplay between systems.
Managed intelligently -
managed thoughtfully for best result; also, using sensors/data/analysis/control to manage systems operationally in dynamic circumstances.
managed thoughtfully for best result; also, using sensors/data/analysis/control to manage systems operationally in dynamic circumstances.
Adaptive -
designed to work well in a changing world, in a manner that works with the environment and not against it.
designed to work well in a changing world, in a manner that works with the environment and not against it.
Regenerative - applying creative system interplays, where the waste of one system becomes food to another; closed-loop cooperative systems.
Trusted - reliable, exercising good judgment; honest, authentic, transparent; without this quality, the other qualities can be applied in a misguided or misleading fashion.
These are our design principles for a sustainable world. If you ever forget, just check our SMART Design webpage, or subscribe to our podcasts. One day (and it best be soon), the ideas behind "SMART" will become mainstream, and we will have advanced to "The Age of SMART".
These are our design principles for a sustainable world. If you ever forget, just check our SMART Design webpage, or subscribe to our podcasts. One day (and it best be soon), the ideas behind "SMART" will become mainstream, and we will have advanced to "The Age of SMART".
Views: 18
Comment
Today
Become more
planet friendly,
disaster resilient and
community rich.
© 2024 Created by Sue Lebeck.
Powered by
You need to be a member of InnovatingSMART to add comments!
Join InnovatingSMART