How self-organization works: Lessons from Bali

Webinar  

How self-organization works: Lessons from Bali

Thursday, May 6th, 2021 at 9:00 am Eastern Time

Self-organization is an intriguing concept that describes how order might emerge in systems without a central coordinating force. Organization scientists and designers interested in the emergence of culture and how non-hierarchical structures can work have much to gain from understanding how self-organizing systems emerge and remain viable. J Stephen Lansing is an anthropologist who has spent several decades studying self-organization in the indigenous rice cultivation systems of Bali (Indonesia). A system of synchronized planting, intertwined with rituals and religious practices associated with a network of “water temples”  created an ecologically viable form of agriculture. It wasn’t until the system was nearly destroyed by  overly enthusiastic policy planners that’s its existence became widely known. In this webinar Stephen Lansing discusses his work in Bali and the implications for self-organization in social systems including organizations, with Phanish Puranam.