Leon Bellin

The Social Movement of Tomorrow: Sharing Practical VSM Application

'An Organization is What it Does'; this is the lesson of the Viable System Model (VSM) that resonated with me the most strongly. However, for environmental movements, civil society organizations, and cooperatives – types of volunteer organizations which I have also taken part in – a big disconnect exists between sustainable, decolonial, or inclusive aims and lived practice: Common problematic patterns are contested identity, an unsustainable reliance on a select group of members, a lack of foresight about the organizational environment, and a decreased ability to measure the organization's health. Contemporary applications of the VSM have shown its usefulness as a framework to remedy these problems. However, they are often expert-led and target highly institutional groups such as businesses and governments. As a vector to propagate social change, grassroots organizations are critical to transition to global viable and sustainable praxis. However, there are many challenges in applying the VSM in grassroots contexts. Among them are its high complexity, high strategical requirements for scalability and accessibility, suspicion towards centralized technological infrastructure, and inherent tensions between data collection vs. privacy as well as transparency vs. secrecy. In this session, I will share a method for participatory self-transformation adapted to this context and shaped through fieldwork. As a starting point, print materials and software employed in my work with individuals and organizations will be presented to familiarize participants with current activities and their challenges and opportunities. Finally, participants are invited to ask questions about design choices and share their own views and experiences.