Making the System Shift
28 Nov - 2 Dec 2022
A free online festival for people creating different systems for a better future
What does it really take to shift a system? Join us with 50 of the boldest system innovators from across the world as we take a deep dive into the practical realities of shifting systems towards better futures.
“On the surface we’re hitting our targets. But my big fear is that nothing fundamental is changing. We’re not shifting the underlying dynamics that are driving the problem in the first place.”
We all know what it is like to hit the target, but miss the point. Many of the systems we rely on now - for everything from food and education to health and work - are out of step with what’s needed for a just and sustainable future. And many of us in government, philanthropy, business and civil society find ourselves tackling new challenges our systems were never designed to meet. Single-point solutions won’t be enough - the task for all of us now is to make more fundamental shifts to create the different, better systems we need. But what does that look like in practice?
Why now?
Over 5 days we will take a deep dive into the practical realities of shifting systems in conversation with 50 of the boldest system innovators around the world. We’ll be joined by Alvaro Salas, the architect of Costa Rica’s paradigm-shifting community health system, Madhav Chavan, the entrepreneur behind Pratham which has transformed education for India’s underprivileged children, Valerie Hannon, the educationalist leading the movement to remake learning systems for 21st century thriving, and many others engaged in shifting systems, from mental health and humanitarian aid to food and finance, towards better outcomes for all.
We’ll be looking at what it means to shift a system, not just scale a solution. In many contexts, scale matters - but scale without shift will not get us the impact we are looking for - particularly when it comes to issues where the very premise of the systems we have now needs to evolve.
Making the shift
Whether you are working on the inside of a system to bring about change or working on the outside to build an alternative, whether you are a public leader, an entrepreneur, a practitioner or a funder looking for more systemic impact, it can feel like a long and lonely road! That’s why we invite you to join us for this year’s learning festival and discover how we can collaborate to accelerate the shifts we so urgently need.
We’ll dive into a number of shared questions together: how can we unstick entrenched systems and spur new alternatives to take shape? How can we overcome system barriers and shift underlying dynamics? What strategies can we use to invest in whole system change? How can we recognise when we’re making progress?
We’ll share practical frameworks, case studies and stories from experience that will help us unpack the mysteries of how systems shift, and how we can take deliberate, practical action to make that happen.
The conversation
Come and
join us
The Learning Festival is an opportunity to listen, share, explore, discover, ideate and discuss for anyone who:
Are trying to tackle complex challenges in new ways
Want to create fairer, sustainable, better systems for future generations
Want to tune your work, your venture, your funds or your strategies to have more system impact
Are committed to making the deeper shifts needed
Are looking to learn from and connect to others taking a similar approach
Need some hope and inspiration!
The System Innovation Initiative and the Learning Festival are hosted by the ROCKWOOL Foundation. The ROCKWOOL Foundation is an impartial, financially self-supporting institution. The Foundation’s objective is to strengthen the sustainability of the welfare state through the creation of new, independent knowledge about the challenges faced by society and through the development of solutions to these challenges.
