Transforming myself to change the world
Working as a conservation scientist and boundary spanner is an incredibly rewarding opportunity. I am lucky that I get to work on the most critical issues facing humanity and all life on Earth along with passionate people. Nature is amazing and sometimes I get to gush about the love I have for wonders like horseshoe crabs, sloths, and corals! And I am motivated by the hope that maybe my work will make a real difference.
But the work can be really hard. Exhausting. Because everyday, I feel the weight of the challenges that we face, including within the usual purview of nature conservation, and underpinning interconnected issues like imperialism, capitalism, colonialism, patriarchy, white supremacy, and more. The problems are really big, y’all, and they go deep.
The science and the politics are clear. We know that because of the scale of the problems and the inadequacy of current solutions, we need transformative changes to address the mounting challenges facing our planet including climate change, biodiversity loss, and inequality — and get to the roots of the problem. In plain language, this means that to address these crises and create a just and flourishing world, it’s going to take bold, collective, and courageous actions to solve them. This also means we need many people across institutions trying and failing and getting back up again. It means bridging divides, working together, and co-creating solutions. It means doing things differently than we are now — not just doing more of the same.
Ok, you might ask — So, what exactly does this look like? How do we achieve transformative change that really works well and delivers equitably — for people and planet? What can I do NOW? Isn’t it, like, really hard?
Well, fortunately, there are many people working on figuring this out — AND enacting ideas with transformative potential at many scales. About 100 experts are working tirelessly on a global scientific assessment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) on the topic of transformative change, to be discussed (and hopefully approved) by governments later this year. There are many communities, organizations, governments, and even companies who are working on actions to safeguard nature in earnest. There will continue to be debates about emerging recommended solutions — emerging from power struggles and inequities — related to the design of initiatives, their governance, and who benefits. From these debates, actions that promote equitable and just solutions are needed to ensure that conservation supports communities and continues to have the social license to operate. In general, we know that conservation can work if well-designed and implemented, but this effectiveness is so contextual (meaning — the only way to answer the question of “will this conservation action in this place and time work?” is “it depends”). So, as we implement interventions, we need actionable and accessible science to figure out what initiatives work, where, why, and how, and what can minimize unintended consequences for people and the rest of nature.
The “Three Spheres of Transformation” theory places personal transformations as foundational to shaping systemic (political) and day-to-day (practical) changes. (source: Leichenko et al. 2022)
To make sense of all of this — what can we do NOW about transformation, before waiting for evidence to point the way? I’d like to share a few lessons I’ve gathered over the last two years contributing as an expert on the IPBES Transformative Change Assessment and grappling with the complexity of transformation as a concept. I’ve been trying to make transformative change real for myself personally, and have been putting new principles into practice into my everyday life. This means shifting the way that I think, communicate, and act — doing my part as an individual to be the change, foster transformative connections with others, and work on leverage points to shift systems. I focus on things that I can control — and taking these actions counters my eco-anxiety. This is a daily practice that grows with time. I hope these ideas help inspire others and spark conversations about how we can transform ourselves and therefore increase our capacity to influence systems — for a flourishing, nature and people positive future for all life on Earth.
Presence and active listening/noticing
Our modern world is full of constant distractions, and our dopamine receptors are addicted to screens and notifications. It’s a miracle that I’m focusing enough to sit down and write this right now! But the practice of presence and active listening/noticing can be antidotes to this constant pull on our attention. In fact, the only time that we are truly experiencing at any given time is the present moment! And how can we make transformations happen if we are constantly distracted and reacting — rather than intentionally responding — to the world around us? I have found that the continual practice of full presence and active listening — including tuning in with empathy about what someone is really saying and feeling — has been a rewarding journey. I still struggle with distractions and notifications, but have found ways of adjusting my environment (turning off notifications at certain times or blocking the calendar to work intentionally on certain tasks) to be effective. I have also completely stopped trying to “multitask,” which is actually not a thing — our brain can only do one thing at a time, and “multitasking” really just means task switching, which drains our energy. I’m therefore being more intentional in what I am doing at any given moment. All in all, I have found a lot of joy in slowing down, especially when I feel stressed, to notice the sounds and feelings of the world around me and feel lucky to be alive.
Reflecting on and grounding my work in my core values
Most colleagues I’ve met in the conservation and sustainability space care deeply about something that intrinsically motivates their work. But we don’t often talk about these values, nor share our perceptions on the values of others we are trying to influence. I once facilitated a dialogue among a small group of government professionals about values, and found, to my surprise, that many of them deeply held intrinsic or relational values for biodiversity! I was expecting a narrow focus on instrumental values as the lynchpin for decision-making, which is often assumed to be the ‘default’ within our economic logic and capitalist system and guides much of mainstream conservation discourse and analysis. This small example illustrates that the values that individuals hold within a group can be more diverse than we expect, and suggests new ways of approaching our influencing work. Values matter, and shape our worldviews, motivations, and actions. I have had the pleasure of reflecting deeply on my own personal values through a course on Transformative Leadership, by Karen O’Brien and Monica Sharma (and you can read this book to get a flavor of it!). Grounding my work in my core values of integrity, courage, justice, equity, and compassion and working mindfully in line with these values has been a deeply rewarding experience.
Meditation and spirituality
Over the last year, I have been increasingly curious about spiritual traditions, including from different Buddhist philosophies. I was not raised within a particular organized religion, but have always felt a “pull” toward spirituality — and I know I’m not alone. Spiritual health is one of the eight dimensions of well-being that needs nurturing, and at least 80% of the world’s population belongs to an organized religion. Buddhism in particular appeals to me, as it’s not dogmatic, surface wisdom aligned with science, and offers practical ways to connect with oneself and others including through mindfulness and meditation. It is a spiritual tradition, rather than a set of beliefs found in the Abrahamic religions, and hence can be layered on top of one’s religious practice. Buddhism is also deeply ecocentric, centering the interbeing of humans and all other life and other material forms on Earth. As a form of ancient wisdom, it offers tools for self-healing and transformation, emotional well-being, and growth. It may not align with everyone’s preferences, but I would like to acknowledge it here as it has offered tools that I have found incredibly helpful to quell my eco-anxiety. I highly recommend this podcast to learn more: Podcast: The Way Out Is In | Plum Village
Differences are good. Or as we say in the social sciences, embrace plurality inclusively
Our species evolved through living in community. Diversity within communities brings resilience, including different perspectives, skill sets, and personalities. Such diversity is part of our evolutionary history and enriches the solutions we can come up with, implement, and maintain — from harvesting the right berries or selecting the most resilient crops, to identifying the most equitable and effective approaches to conservation. I have always been a collaborative, inclusive person, and continue to foster this practice. I have also been identifying and implementing ways to work through personal barriers to collaboration that can come up, like fear of disagreement with others. One way to do this is to practice active listening, and find the commitment behind the complaint — if someone is engaging in good faith and offering a critique, this may signal their commitment to supporting your work under the right conditions. Recognizing their perspective with empathy and without defensiveness can be an entry point for a productive conversation. Notably, it is important to have healthy boundaries around collaboration, and when possible, work with those that are indeed acting in good faith and offering constructive support rather than destructive judgment.
Intellectual humility & endless curiosity and learning
The sphere of knowledge and knowability in the world is infinite. As scientists and professionals, we may be operating within a culture of feeling that we have to know everything and make definitive decisions based on this knowledge. But actually, there are oceans of unknown bits of knowledge — and even new paradigms we haven’t considered. I know a lot, but gosh, no one knows everything! Shifting from a fixed to a growth mindset and applying this to how I see every aspect of the world has been a game changer. By taking moments to pause, reflect, and ask powerful questions to learn, I have been fostering intellectual humility — knowing what I know and what I don’t — which has enabled me to better understand not only the bounds of my knowledge and how to communicate them, but also to more effectively seek help from others. Such intellectual humility is a powerful leadership trait — especially in today’s world in which expertise is atomized and fragmented (like many aspects of our society, thanks to capitalism the way it incentivizes the hyper-individualization of everything). Openness to the fact that no one knows everything (but everyone knows something) combined with curiosity provides an entry point to genuine collaboration — ideally across diverse perspectives — that can not only enrich one’s knowledge but also ensure that the right voices are brought into conversations, and can craft solutions together.
Getting comfortable being uncomfortable and embracing complexity
Our world is increasingly complex, with mounting uncertainty about the future. Existentially, we’re grappling with climate change, biodiversity loss, social inequality, and other critical issues. These are “wicked problems” — challenges with a high degree of complexity and uncertainty, as well as high stakes. If we don’t address these problems, many will suffer. To describe science that focuses on wicked problems, philosophers have coined the term “post-normal science.” Beyond “normal” applied science, or the use of expert judgment applied for specific applications like consultancies, post-normal science operates in a space in which fundamentals like values and facts continue to be the subject of debate. Many scientists are not well-equipped to work within this paradigm, but this is where we operate and have to struggle through complexity in conservation. In post-normal science, an antidote to the challenge is the use of consensus-based, democratic, and co-designed approaches to research and practice in which who is at the table and how decisions are made — power and process — are paramount. I personally work through the challenges of the post-normal world by continually reflecting on (but not getting caught up in) the realities of uncertainty and complexity, reading the systems and social science literature that confirms this reality and provides insights, and focusing on my own resilience. Moving past binary thinking has also been incredibly helpful — beyond “this is a good/bad solution” to “this may be a positive solution under xyz conditions in this context.” Sorry, there are no silver bullets or easy solutions, despite what some donors and decision makers seem to want!
Source: Calvin Beisner on Post-Normal Science | Caffeinated Thoughts
Attunement to power dynamics and my role in each situation
As I develop through new personal and professional growth, and learn about the role of power in transformation, I become ever-more aware of power dynamics including the power that I may hold in a given situation. As I ground my professional engagements in values like compassion and equity, I am able to authentically show up with confidence, bringing my full self. Knowing who I am, and remaining focused in the present moment, helps me to deeply connect with others as well — with the goal of empowering and inspiring them to do the same. I also continually take the opportunity to reflect on power dynamics as I grow in my role as a people manager. Effective leadership can make or break morale and the development of others, so I strive to be the best version of a manager and leader I can be. I am also attuned to privileges I have as a white, cisgendered, straight woman working within a powerful non-governmental organization. When engaging with external partners who may not be in as privileged of positions (for instance across certain international collaborations), I continually remain attuned to power and ensure inclusive, equitable conversations in which all parties can engage and have varied opportunities to assert inputs.
Source: Only 1% Of People Have A Self-Transforming Mind: Learn How To Think In Grayscale — WealthFit
All in all, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to focus on self-development, which began with intensity, by necessity, in the early days of COVID lockdown when all felt lost. And I’ve gained insights through reading the literature on inner transformation as well.
Knowing that such personal transformation and growth, toward being a more authentic, values-oriented, and resilient environmental practitioner gives me hope that at least something can change. And we are each only truly in control of our own selves, including what we think, focus on, consume, say, and do. I have also seen seeds of this personal transformation paying off in my ability to make a systemic impact. I am more confident, more able to speak truth to power, and feel more comfortable under what seems like a constant state of uncertainty. This helps me avoid burnout. I am also less likely to see the world in untrue and harmful, binary ways — including the binary of the self and systems of which we are a part. As I develop my self-authoring and maybe even self-transforming mind, I am reminded of the deep potential capacity of humanity — and the potential for us to foster the societal, collective awakening needed to address the wicked problems of our times.
Thank you for reading! I hope my sharing these personal views and insights has provided some new food for thought to enrich your personal transformative journey.
Key words: self-development; personal transformation; growth; ecoanxiety; spirituality
This piece reflects my personal views, and not those of my employer
