Catalysing Action and Transdisciplinary Pathways towards Sustainable Transitions

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Published: Oct 14, 2024
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24840/2183-0606_012.002_000E
Issue: Vol. 12 No. 2 (2024)

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Jörn Henning Bühring
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design, Hong Kong, China & Abu Dhabi University, College of Business, Abu Dhabi, UAE & RMIT University, College of Business, Melbourne, Australia & Aalburg University, Department of Architecture, Design & Media Technology, Copenhagen, Denmark
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9763-8294
Lucy Kimbell
Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts, London, United Kingdom
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7875-9226
Mika Aaltonen
Sustainable Nation Group, Finland
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1656-4946

Abstract

Prelude – Special Issue Motivation


The year 2023 marked the 300th anniversary of the birth of Adam Smith, the Scottish economist whose work has impacted how we think about economic principles and the dynamics implied in politics, business, and society. Known for his seminal work “The Wealth of Nations” published in 1776, Smith argued for an economic system with little unnecessary government interference. A model built on the division of labor, guided by an ‘invisible hand’, is part of the argument for free markets directed through price mechanisms and the moral conscience of self-interested people to achieve outcomes that benefit society (Stevens, 2023). Smith’s intention to articulate a liberal economic model that prioritized contributing positively to society's welfare1 however, stands in contrast to 20th-century business doctrine, which asserted that ‘their sole social responsibility was to generate as much profit as possible for their stockholders’ (Friedman, 1962, p. 133).


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Author Biographies

Jörn Henning Bühring, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design, Hong Kong, China & Abu Dhabi University, College of Business, Abu Dhabi, UAE & RMIT University, College of Business, Melbourne, Australia & Aalburg University, Department of Architecture, Design & Media Technology, Copenhagen, Denmark

Jörn Bühring. a Ph.D and Strategic Design and Foresight expert and academic. He currently holds visiting professorship positions at the College of Business - Department of Strategy, Leadership, and Management at Abu Dhabi University; the College of Business - School of Management at RMIT University in Australia, and at the Department of Architecture, Design & Media Technology, Aalborg University Copenhagen. He also serves as a Scientific Council Member at the Alternative Planetary Futures Institute (ApFi) in Washington DC., USA. For nearly a decade, he was based at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, School of Design, where he spearheaded a research culture that is cooperative, innovative, and highly impact-focused (i.e. Design Economies, Ignite Innovation, Executive Leadership Education). Jörn continues to be at the forefront of a collaborative approach that brings together academia, industry, and policy stakeholders (cf. Triple/Quadruple Helix Models) to develop high-impact design knowledge, concepts, and forward-looking solutions. His research explores Strategic Design Foresight, Vision, and Fiction techniques as emerging processes within Strategic Decision-making theory, Strategic Design, Entrepreneurship, Innovation principles, and Sustainability strategies. He is a full member of the “World Futures Studies Federation” (www.wfsf.org).

Lucy Kimbell, Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts, London, United Kingdom

Lucy Kimbell. Lucy Kimbell is a Ph.D. and Professor of Contemporary Design Practices at the University of the Arts London. Her research looks at the emergence and development of ‘design thinking’ and the use of design expertise to address organizational, social and public policy issues. Lucy is an experienced researcher, postgraduate educator, and strategic design consultant. She has been involved in research, teaching and assessment within leading international universities for over 20 years. Lucy is Co-Director of the Marie Curie funded Sustainable Transitions through Democratic Design Doctoral Network (2024-28). Before joining UAL Lucy was an AHRC Research Fellow in Policy Lab in the Cabinet Office (2014-15) and principal research fellow at the University of Brighton. Previously Lucy was Clark Fellow in Design Leadership at Said Business School, University of Oxford (2005-10).

Mika Aaltonen, Sustainable Nation Group, Finland

Mika Aaltonen. Mika Aaltonen is a Ph.D. (Econ.), Associate Professor (Foresight and Com- plexity), Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Editorial Board Member of European Foresight Journal, Editorial Board Member of E:CO (Emergence: Complexity and Organisations jour- nal), and Co-Founder of Sustainable Nation Group. He has written 18 books and several articles about foresight, complexity, and societal change. Amongst them are The Third Lens (Routledge), Robustness – Anticipatory and Adaptive Human Systems (Emergent Publications), The Renaissance Society (McGraw-Hill, with Danish futurist Rolf Jensen), and Crossroads – Transformations on the Road to 2040 (with American analyst Michael Loescher). Mika has also worked as a visiting researcher at the London School of Economics (UK), the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers (France), and the Gregorian University (Italy).