Systems maps are mostly useful as process tools, much less so as visual artefacts for outsiders who did not engage in building them. If you’ve ever been part of the process of developing a system map, you will have experienced the difficult conversations and wonderful a-ha moments that come when divergent, opposing stakeholder views finally align

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How to Use Systems Thinking One: Understand the Big PictureUsing mapping as a tool to understand the complexity of a problem or project, we level-set the playing field by making it visual and giving all stakeholders the opportunity to understand it. There are different ways to map, and it is important to define the relationships between elements... See more

guide by Hivos, whilst on the one hand promoting an approach to ToCs grounded in a recognition that “social change processes are complex and characterized by non-linear feedback loops: our own actions interact with those of others and a myriad of influencing factors”, also concede that “in practice, the ToC visualization often presents a diagram or... See more