7. TOOL: complex pathways
But some people are more resilient than others, they have higher resilience capacities.
- They have a bigger buffer, before being seriously affected.
- They have more options.
What does it take to acquire such capacities? You need resilience capitals.
And you need to make them flow. Capitals are the resources used to build resilience.
Capitals, What are they?
Capitals are the resources that can be used to build resilience. There are many different
capitals, money is one of them. Some capitals are very important, yet they tend to
be forgotten. This is why it is important to learn how to identify different types.
The following are definitions of different types of capital. Can you guess which they are,
and drag the words in the right place?- These are short stories where some capitals are shrinking and the resilience
of communities to local shocks and stressors will decrease.
Can you identify which capitals are eroded, decreasing, or missing in each story? KEY LEARNING ABOUT CAPITALS
You are now familiar with the idea of capitals and can recognise diverse ones.
Appreciating different capitals is useful to support resilience capacities.Here are some important tips:
LINKING CAPITALS AND APPRECIATING COMPLEXITY
Now that you understand what capitals are and are good at identifying them it is time
to appreciate their complexity. Capitals are interrelated and we cannot look at capitals
one-by-one but we need to understand how they connect and influence each other.CAPITALS FLOW!
Flow is an essential concept for good resilience work. A capital is not good if it is just
held. A capital is useful when it can be invested to increase other capitals and to build
capacities for resilience or be stocked for future investments. The following video shows
examples of how capitals flow and link.
let's think systems!
When we understand what capitals are at play in a situation and how they link we are
also appreciating the system driving it. Appreciating the system helps us to think better
and differently about complex issues. An example is the word school which can simply
describe a building. But when we think about schools we often think of a broader concept
that encompasses several capitals forming a school system. Now we can identify a system
with connected capitals.Here are examples of capitals. Can you drag them to the correct place in the system?
When should WE LOOK AT systemS?
From the school example, we learn to see capitals as:
An individual capital, the school building as physical capital.
Another example is a loan as financial capital. Unpacking the loan
A system by unpacking its components.
shows us a system of capitals:INSTITUTIONAL
Which institutions grant loans? How are loans regulated? How are interest rates established?
HUMAN
What are the attitudes, the perceptions of the individual getting the loans or lending the money?
SOCIAL
What social connections exist around loans, like microcredit groups?
SPIRITUAL
What is the overall perception of loans in society and religion?
FINANCIAL
How big is the loan and what is the interest rate?
PHYSICAL
What infrastructures could be used to get or return a loan? What assets could become collateral for a loan?
NATURAL
Are loans considering environmental issues, for example, free interest loans for environmental improvements?
The advantage of looking at the whole system is that it can open up alternatives and new
options for resilience. The disadvantage is that it takes time and we get to have many factors
to consider. Try to find a balance and don't overthink it. A key skill in building resilience is
to understand when to keep things simple and when to look at their complexity."Thinking systems" is a different way of thinking.
Within a system components interrelate and link in different ways.
Thinking in complex systems differs considerably from the way in which many development
and humanitarian projects are managed! The standard way of working and thinking tends to
be mechanistic: we set activities and results, have work plans, thinking that if we do things right
reality will change as we expect. But change does not always happen like this. It is often more
organic, more complex. And because of this, we need to think differently.When you think complexity you are aware that there is not only one way of connecting capitals.
There should be some flexibility. What can work in one location might not work for another! Your
skill is not to "stick to plan" but to evolve and adapt your intended course of action. To strengthen
resilience you cannot follow only one set pathway for change. Pathways are complex!The following video illustrates the difference between linear thinking and complexity.
An interactive scenario
Now you can in practice explore a transformative resilience programme supporting schools
in addressing malnutrition and conflict threats. It is based on work done by ADRA in Uganda,
supported by SMC/SIDA.- The scenario will make you understand the complexity of resilience work.
It is based on a real project and adapted to suit the training. - This is the second part of the interactive scenario.
You will discover how capitals flew differently, in different contexts. A recap of the interactive SCENARIO
The interactive scenario hopefully helped you to see that:- resilience is built through diverse capitals and their interrelations.
- recognizing complexity leads to setting multiple pathways for action and change.
- resilience built through empowerment makes capitals flow, guided by local capacities.
- how capitals flow depends on the characteristics and preferences of the individual and communities.
- options include robustness, self-reliance, scaling up, flexibility.
- we may never stop anticipating threats. With time new challenges and opportunities emerge.
If you want to know more about the project that inspired this scenario, you can visit the evaluation site.
You are nearly at the end of the course.
Now it is your turn to share ideas and experiences.
What concepts and ideas did you find most interesting?
What is your existing experience with resilience thinking:
- explain what threats have been anticipated
- show what capacities were employed and how they changed
How do you want to apply this learning in your work?Feel free to comment on what others shared!