How to get things done without being the one in charge
IN The IPA Project are you looking at how to incorporate terms such as Inner Development Goals (IDG) and existential sustainability into the work on climate change. Why is that?
- Technically, sustainability is quite possible, so it is no longer about technology but about the fact that we have to want to change our way of life to create sustainability, says Sharona Ceha. It's about the ethical part of sustainability and the choices you make. In the project, we combine work on sustainability with complex and urgent urban challenges and try to solve the challenges by using a portfolio mindset.
Sharona Ceha teaches climate psychology at University of Amsterdam and know that behavior change is one of the hardest things for people to do. She has also led courses for master's students in urban transition management, on “how to get things done without having power.”
The project looks at, among other things, what competencies an intermediate worker needs to have in order for a conscious sustainability work to work.
- I have always been interested in skills and I see that the requirements for what is needed have changed. In project management, it has previously been important to have skills that allow you to control everything from above. The new way of getting things done I usually describe as being the oil in the machinery. The new intermediate worker (intermediary) is a person who can connect people through his vast network. It is also a person who can work at all levels from small to large, high to low. The intermediary develops the ecosystem and uses new tools and ways of working, such as using storytelling, empowering people in their work by taking a position in the background and making sure things get done.
In order to call in the skills needed, a series of interviews have been conducted within the project. In this study, eight portfolios have been examined and interviewed people in Amsterdam, Timisoara and Lund.
- What we are looking at is how and not just what you get done. More and more I see that the person who can bring about change has a special talent, an ability that allows her or him to carry out certain things that not everyone can learn but that are a combination of drive, talent, experience and education. It contains several constituent elements. It can be having a knack for strategic thinking but still being able to go far down in detail when needed. You have to be able to organise things in a good way, get good things done, talk to the right people and always have energy.
It is important not only what knowledge you have, but also what ability you have to create an inspiring work environment for others and understand what they contribute and how.
- One has to think that one should not be the owner of an issue, but rather to facilitate, to empower others and make people want to do things. If you take too much ownership or leadership, people won't take initiatives of their own. It's better that the whole group be accountable so they really want to do something. One of the people we interviewed said that the essential thing is that the group manages to “co deliver” rather than “co create” and I think that is true. Being able to deliver and be concrete strengthens us. Although working with is a big challenge and a big portfolio, everyone has to deliver a common result,” concludes Sharona Ceha.
More about the IPA project
How do we practice green transition and how can culture be used as a test bed for innovation? In the IPA (Innovation Portfolio Approach) project, participants work both with different innovation and development methods and how our worldview and values can be used for meaningful change. The Romanian Cultural Organization participates in the project PLAI from Timișoara, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (hVA) as well as Future by Lund.
Cooperation to find an inner core for innovation and green transition
Unexpected: How are values and innovation connected?
To amplify and scale ideas for new innovations in creative industries
Green transition through holistic thinking
A new way of thinking to create meaningful change