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February 28, 2006
Daring to Explore
The Fifth Annual Forum of the In2:InThinking Network, March 30-April 4, 2006, Los Angeles, California, USA
The Fifth Annual Forum, themed Daring to Explore – Creating Possibilities Together, continues to expand “thinking about thinking”, raising the consciousness of better thinking in individuals and organizations. To that end, the organizers of the conference have invited pioneering thinkers who “Dare to Explore.” In addition, they are partnering with Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne to offer seven pre-conference workshops and one post-conference workshop. The 2006 Forum aims to promote an environment where compelling ideas and insights will evolve from an exposure to new thoughts, and inthinking colleagues. (And these ideas and insights may lead the participants in untold exciting directions in their work and life after the Forum.)
Posted by ACASA on February 28, 2006 at 03:09 PM in Conferences and Meetings | Permalink | Comments (0)
February 09, 2006
Ackoff's 87th Birthday!
Congratulations ..........
The Most Honorable professor Russell L. Ackoff!
From Felix Tarassenko
Prof. from Tomsk, Siberia.
Download Congratulations.pdf
Posted by ACASA on February 9, 2006 at 11:00 AM in Announcements | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 06, 2006
Complexity, Democracy & Sustainability
The 50th Anniversary Conference of the
International Society for the Systems Sciences
Sonoma State University – Rohnert Park,
California
Call for Participation
The 50th anniversary conference of the
International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS) offers a landmark
opportunity to celebrate and reinvigorate a half-century of interdisciplinary
collaboration and synthesis. The ISSS is unique among systems-oriented
institutions in the breadth of its scope, bringing together scholars and
practitioners from academic, business, government, and non-profit communities
to explore what Gregory Bateson has called the “pattern that connects.”
• Complex Systems and the Roots of Systems Thinking
• Self-Organization and Living Systems
• Ecological Systems and Sustainability
• Social Systems Design and Practice
Confirmed speakers include: Ralph Abraham, Yaneer Bar Yam, Vincent Barabba,
Mary Catherine Bateson, Mike C. Jackson, Alexander & Kathia Laszlo, Ervin
Laszlo, Hunter Lovins, Humberto Maturana, Richard Norgaard, Susan Oyama, George
Richardson, and Geoffrey West.
Economics and Complementary Currencies,
Arts-Informed Inquiry, Terrorism and Peace, Climate Change, and a Bateson
Forum. We also plan to create opportunities for Open Space and World Café
Conversations.
Deadlines: The priority deadline for submission of abstracts and panel
proposals is February 28, 2006. Abstracts submitted after this date and before
June 1 will be considered for inclusion in the program on a space-available
basis. Papers accepted for presentation will be compiled on a CDROM and
distributed at the conference. The deadline for submission of full papers is
April 30, 2006.
Location: The conference will be held at Sonoma State University, located in the
heart of the Sonoma Valley vineyards, 50 miles north of San Francisco. There is
a shuttle service from both the Oakland and San Francisco airports
(http://www.airportexpressinc.com/) to the Doubletree Hotel in Rohnert
Park, which is just a 5-10 minute taxi ride from the conference site.
Accommodations: Comfortable accommodations in on-campus housing are included in
the Resident Registration Fees as outlined below. Fees include all meals, from
Sunday evening, July 9, through Friday lunch, July 14. Rooms are all singles,
each with an adjoining bathroom,
arranged in four bedroom suites that include a kitchen and living room. See
facilities at http://projects.isss.org/Main/Sonoma2006Venue.
Registration: We anticipate having on-line registration available before April
15; in the meantime a downloadable registration form is available on the ISSS
web site. Early registration is recommended, as space may be limited.
Registration fees are described below for both
resident and non-resident categories. Non-resident fees do not include parking
passes (which can be purchased on-site) nor transportation to and from the
conference site. There will be an additional charge of $30 for the banquet on
Thursday, July 13 for both residents and
non-residents.
RESIDENT REGISTRATION FEES
(Includes on-site meals and housing)
Payment by April 15
Regular$725USD
Retired$625USD
Developing country$600USD
Student$575USD
Payment after April 15
Regular$825USD
Retired$725USD
Developing country$700USD
Student$675USD
NON-RESIDENT REGISTRATION FEES
(Includes Sunday reception and lunches)
Payment by April 15
Regular$450USD
Retired$350USD
Developing country$325USD
Student$300USD
Payment after April 15
Regular$525USD
Retired$425USD
Developing country$$400USD
Student$375USD
For further information, please consult the ISSS website:
http://www.isss.org/conferences/sonoma2006/
Posted by ACASA on February 6, 2006 at 12:25 PM in Announcements | Permalink | Comments (3)
February 01, 2006
A Major Mistake That Managers Make
By Russell L. Ackoff
All through school we
are taught that making a mistake is a bad thing. We
are downgraded for them. When we graduate and enter the real world and the organizations
that occupy it, the aversion to mistakes continues. As a result one tries
either to avoid them or, if one is made, to conceal it or transfer blame to
another.
We pay a high price for this because one can only learn from mistakes; by
…
in business, if mistakes are made and laws are not broken, you rarely see any
formal investigation. Even when the companies themselves look into what
happened, they don’t do it in a structured and rigorous way. They don’t learn anything
from the process. (Mittelstaedt, Jr., 2005)
Schools, including
business schools, do not even reveal the fact that there are two kinds of
mistakes.
To read this article, click on the link: A Major Mistake That
Managers Make
Posted by ACASA on February 1, 2006 at 01:53 PM in Systems Articles | Permalink | Comments (2)