Decision Change: The First Step to System Change

Abstract

Global crises, such as climate change and ecological collapse, require changes in systemic factors that cause the crises. These factors include the economy, population growth, and decision-making in global affairs. Current decision-making processes have failed to accomplish the required system change, necessitating a change to these processes (‘decision change’) for meaningful progress. The key question is how a procedure for deciding on the required system change should be designed in this setting. In this essay, we propose a three-step approach. First, independent experts in collective decision-making should design this procedure under monitoring by auxiliary bodies that safeguard the design process; second, proposals for system change should be collected; third, based on these proposals, system change should be designed and decided upon using the new decision-making procedure. We argue that authority can be given to the new decision-making body that decides on system change. A global team must convene the decision-making experts and auxiliary bodies, collect system-change proposals, and guarantee that the decision-making process is facilitated. We call on individuals and independent organisations to form such a team or support its formation.