There are many ways to approach a problem, and also many ways to solve a problem. But certain approaches have varying disadvantages and advantages. There are six general characteristics of wicked problems. These are problems that could be detrimental to humans if left unattended for a period of time. Problems can also be solved in a series of systems. There are both open and closed systems. Open systems, in general, take in the aspect of outside intervention and conditions while a closed system does the opposite. A closed system just relies on itself and does not take the outside world into effect. Some solutions can be sustained for longer periods of time while other solutions are only temporary. Overall, this chapter was very informative on how to solve problems from multiple angles and the different ways that a problem could be solved and the effects on other things by taking a certain approach.
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Cullen Krieg
Dr. Jack
CODES
September 14 2023
Analysation of Sustainable World
In chapter three of Sustainable World it speaks about how present-day conditions need an individual or group of individuals to have a full understanding of the issue which will allow room for present-day solutions. An analysis of the problem allows the problem drivers to become detected by the problem solvers. The problem drivers are usually known as stress or pressure that is being enacted on an individual or topic. A driver can vary vastly, it could come from humans or from natural causes. Eutrophication has many different contributing factors of why it takes place: Watershed area, Population density, Human activities, Natural sediment load, Presence of dams, Flushing rate, Coastal wetland area, Government policies, and Cultural norms. No matter what happens in the world, Eutrophication will most likely always take place.
After the problem drivers and the system that they are affecting it is very important to look past the larger issues that most individuals can see but to zoom in and realize what is going on in a smaller portion and take the time to look more in depth of what is happening. Being able to analyze closer to the problem allows an individual to see different, smaller problems that could be combined to cause the bigger picture problem. As an example from the book, if farmers were to grow a certain crop that the townspeople didn’t want it would cause a problem because the farmer had spent so much time and effort maintaining his crops and his produce isn’t being sold because the townspeople wanted carrots instead of corn.
There are two different broad drivers, one being indirect and the other being direct. Direct is when it is directly affecting the behavior of a system whereas indirect is when the behavior in a more spatial way, not a direct punch to the problem. An example of direct factors that are directed towards an Ecosystem is: habitat change, climate change, invasive species, overexploitation of species, and nutrient pollution. These are drivers that will have a major hard hitting impact on the ecosystem. The five different indirect drivers towards an ecosystem are: demographic, economic, socio political, cultural & religious, and scientific & technological. These are the drivers that will affect an ecosystem in a slower, more laid back kind of way.
Most individuals establish a causality in a system. When they establish this they are making the set of drivers and the influence on the certain system very evident. In the book they relate it back to a cause and effect situation, which I completely agree with because the individual has a cause towards the system and the effect is the outcome of his or her cause. A way that increases throughout a system is influence, the power of influence goes a long way. If an individual sees another doing something and joins them in taking part of whatever the cause towards the system is, the effect will become greater. Implementing solutions to fix the problem allow individuals to weed out the drivers that are causing the direct problem. But it is also important to look at the relationships from the drivers to the system to try and come out with a better understanding of what exactly is happening.
When the book talks about the wicked problem general characteristics they list of characteristics that seem very bland, I think that when they explained characteristics on the following pages it opened up my knowledge of why those are considered Wicked Problem characteristics. I like how the book says that there are defined solutions that are made to fix certain problems. One problem will most likely have only one solution, but depending on what the problem is there could also be many solutions that are just as good as the MAIN Solution. The web diagram on page 77 shows the human system and the natural system. The natural system has a lot more ways that they connect to the others. In the human system each box only has 3. It also shows that human actions have an effect on the natural system and ecosystem services have an impact on the human system which I think is pretty cool. (ecosystem events that take place play a big role in what happens to the world.) In the reef picture it shows a healthy reef that supports human life and the other reef shown is dead and didn’t support human life.
In chapter three “Current State Analysis” we talk about what defines the system and how you take steps to approach a problem. There is a TSR Frame work which basically breaks down where we are in the situation in time(Current State), where we want to head based on the situation that we are in(Vision), and then how we get to that place we want to be at. There are two types of drivers: direct and indirect. Direct drivers show a clear path of what the influence is without any doubt or hesitation and could be measured by different degrees of accuracy. On the other hand, indirect drivers have an influence behind them and a constant change. An example of indirect drivers could be population or technology due to constant changes. An example of direct drivers includes climate change or pollution. In this chapter Molly Cashion basically started this where people had different religious beliefs and how she made the connection saying “Religious ones are difficult to talk about, but they can’t be ignored because they influence behavior”. This ties back to the reading because when we talk about “Defining the system” this is reality and like Molly touched on you can not ignore the problems and that is where having a system in place and steps to take are a necessity in today’s time. Cultural Eutrophication is an issue that has been going on for years in geological times and it affects our lakes and rivers because we have animals that live in those areas and the human population pollutes that from having human water going into sewage and speeding up the aging process and hurting our ecosystems. Cause is complex, but making it known is just as important because it is key to help find solutions to world problems. This leads to having a causal chain analysis which starts off with an indirect driver then a direct driver and then the effect. This usually can be broken down step by step and then able to retrace your steps back to the root cause. In the chapter it gives an example of a cause-effect relationship when you get a stomach ache after eating cereal and the milk smells sour. You have now established a cause effect relationship scenario. Correlation =/ Causation and this basically means that you can have a problem arise in a situation but it doesn’t mean that’s the main cause of the situation, it could be multiple reasons or drivers.
Source Analysis #1
When opening this chapter, I was very curious as to what a wicked problem was. The textbook defined a wicked problem as “difficult problems that cannot be addressed using only traditional approaches, such as scientific technological advances, and that require continuous attention because they can never be completely solved” this reminded me of the reparative justice cohort. We are all tryingto publicly communicate the injustices of Henry Shaw and acknowledge how those enslaved people impacted the botanical garden, making it what it is today. The textbook also provides general characteristics of a wicked problem: vague problem definition, undefined solution, no end point, irreversible, unique, urgent. In my opinion I believe that our wicked problem is characterized by each of the following characteristics. The problem is vague because exactly how do we address the public about the notable yet shameful history of Henery Shaw, this all makes the solution undefined. Even though we could find a solution as technology advances and life goes on there will be more ways to communicate this problem, this leads to a never-ending turmoil. Regardless of what our solution looks like the effectiveness of what we do is irreversible, this makes the whole problem unique. Although there isn’t any drastic urgence of the matter, I think it is important to bring light to this problem because of how much the background history impacts the present and future possibilities beyond the botanical gardens but the region as a whole.
In the beginning of the chapter it talks about sustainability and why it is such a big issue. I think it is very important for people not to confuse wicked problems as something bad. Having that step by step solution is important to understand not only what the problem is but to address others and ask people what kinds of problems they are facing at that moment in time. In the text it talks about Female Oppression and how it is a really big problem in today’s society. This is even so bad in ways it feels as if it’s like connected to slavery in third world countries. The idea of enslaving children against their will and being sold as sex objects. It’s so bad to the point where local officials and police are taking these children and instead of giving them help they are either putting them back in these terrible working environments or putting them in even worsening conditions. It’s hard to wrap my mind around how in the 21st century kids in other countries are still being sold as slaves. These kids should be able to work in a safe environment and get paid so they can provide for their families.
Cullen Krieg
Dr. Jack
CODES
12 October 2023
MOBOT
The article speaking about Henry Shaw and the past of the Botanical Garden brings up topics that need to be introduced into the tours of the Botanical Garden. The article does a very good job explaining what Henry Shaw did with the amount of evidence that was saved. Personally, I think that the tours of the garden itself need to bring this up or add more signs stating this past. Comparing both of these informational pieces together there can be some changes.
Firstly, when we first visited the garden I didn’t seem many signs of slavery taking place. The guides did bring it up while taking us on the walking tour but most individuals like to walk around the garden on their own. Implementing different signs or statues would allow those individuals to stop and read about the past that Henry Shaw had been a part of. If there were pictures of the records that are in the article many people would have a better understanding of why the Botanical Garden is the way it is.
I think that the article is good because it is multimodal. It informs the reader about the past that Henry Shaw had. It states that he didn’t like slavery to begin with but then with a drastic switch he started purchasing slaves. The photographs that were implemented did a good job at showing the certain topic that they were talking about. However, I think that a translation from the letters would be a very good addition to the website. Since some younger individuals cannot read cursive handwriting, having a printed copy would allow more individuals to read.
Being able to use both of these ways of information is a decent way at being able to figure out our certain wicked problem. But, say a class that is based around the same thing we are doing that hasn’t visited the garden and only looked at the website may have a different understanding that a class that may have gone to the actual garden. I think that a virtual tour of the garden would be a very viable thing to add to the website.
All in all, the article and the visitable garden gives an individual a good amount of information about the past of the garden and Henry Shaw. There are also a few things that I think could be added to the website and brought up during the tours of the garden to help inform about the past of Henry Shaw.
Cullen Krieg
Dr. Jack
CODES
21 September 2023
Henry Shaw the Wicked Problem
The problem that we are trying to solve is about the past of the Botanical Garden and how Henry Shaw should be recognized as someone completely different. This problem is very vast and can connect to the characteristics of a wicked problem in every way. The characteristics are: Vague problem definition, undefined solution, no endpoint, irreversible, unique, and urgent. I believe that our problem fits within all of these characteristics because no matter what Henry Shaw will always have an impact on the Botanical Garden in both the positive way and the negative way.
Henry Shaw has the characteristic of “vague problem definition” because there are so many more people related back to the Botanical Garden and those stakeholders may not want to hear what we have to bring up about Henry Shaw the Botanical Garden’s history. Those stakeholders may have invested or donated towards the Botanical Garden and with this new information becoming more relevant it could lead to less attraction towards the attraction which would be bad for the garden.
He is also considered to be as an “undefined solution” because there’s always going to be an answer to everything but there is always going to be opinions towards that solution causing it to be undefined. One opinionated solution could have a worse outcome than the other opinionated solution which will lead to more undefined information.
The third is very self-explanatory, “No End Point” Henry Shaw’s past with the Botanical Garden that got “covered up” ultimately will have no end point ever. Many individuals will not see eye to eye as we do. We may think we have solved a certain problem, but a deeper dive will show that there is more to the problem than just the small part we solved. Another is that we may think we have solved the problem, but we should never give up, we should always want to try and have a better solution arise from more understanding.
Another way Henry Shaw has one of the characteristics of a Wicked Problem is that some may think coming up with a solution is irreversible and will cause more problems. This can be true, however as long as you see it as the “No End Point” characteristic then you will be able to stop the spread of the non-understatement of the newly arised solution. Some may also see Henry Shaw’s past to be irreversible because they may not want to bring up the past and what actually took place at the Botanical Garden.
Our problem is very unique because not many people know about the nasty past that Henry Shaw had to do with the Botanical Garden. Us being the younger generation trying to inform more mature individuals about this past brings the uniqueness because in my eyes the elders should be teaching the youngsters, however the roles are reversed in this situation. In the description it says that a solution will not work the same in every different place. This is very similar to our problem because a solution about a certain subject that has to do with Henry Shaw personally won’t work with a problem that is generalized about the plants in the Botanical Garden.
The sixth and final reason is the most important. Henry Shaw’s problem is very urgent, we should strive to find many different solutions as quickly as possible. The quicker we can inform others about our wicked problem the more people may want to join. As though if we don’t find a solution it won’t harm anybody but that’s not what we as a class signed up to do. We chose that we want to branch out and help the community and that’s the intended purpose of our class.
All in all, Henry Shaw and the past that is connected to the Botanical Garden is our wicked problem. The characteristics that are explained in the book all relate back to our problem in many different ways. I tried to explain it in the ways I understood the characteristics and how they will fit with our problem.
The page itself talks about the purchase of enslaved people made by Henry Shaw. It also includes many pictures of the slave records, the purchases, etc. Although this information is helpful, it just does not seem to provide enough information about this. They just mention the subject and just want to move forward with the garden, not focusing on the history of slavery associated with the garden. Because of this, the problem is not resolved, and the garden does not want to acknowledge the existence of slavery on the garden grounds.
This just shows how small the other page is compared to the words on the screen for their history.
The website gives useful information about the garden, but also, they just do not provide enough information about the slavery aspect of the garden. Sure, it was in the past, but that does not mean that it did not happen. The garden founder owned slaves, and that should be recognized right now. Henry Shaw was the garden’s founder, but he also had a past that people do not really want to acknowledge. Just because people do not want to acknowledge the past, that does not mean that it should be hidden forever. Because of how the website seemed to put it behind many different things to cover it up. This is why there needs to be some type of physical representation inside the garden. Although it may not be clear what to put in the garden yet, there are multiple ideas that can be implemented easily.
The first characteristic of a wicked problem is a vague problem definition. This connects with our problem because there are multiple stakeholders involved in this problem. Some stakeholders might be supportive of the decision to include something about Henry Shaw’s slaves while others might just want the garden to stay how it is. Some people may want more light to be shined on the past of what Shaw did. Others may like the garden how it is and as we discussed in class, the revenue that comes in from the garden as it is. When these things are changed, many other factors will change in the process.
The second characteristic of a wicked problem is that there may be an undefined solution. This basically states that there is no right way to go about solving the problem. Even though we may have a general idea of how to solve the problem, that doesn’t mean that it is necessarily the best way to go about it. There is to real right or wrong way to go about a problem, it’s just that the problem at hand has no real defined solution. This applies to the problem at hand because there is no right way to go about solving this problem, or there is no current right way to. We may be able to go about different solutions and apply them separately, but there is no right solution.
The third characteristic is that there is no end point. I think that this applies very well to our problem at hand. Even if we propose a solution and it gets implemented, constant revisions will need to be made and eventually more problems with the solution will arise. A problem with no end point means that problems will continue to arise over time even after the proposed solution is implemented. That’s why instead of “solving” the problem “resolutions” to the problem are instead used. Apparently, according to the book, the stopping point of resolving a problem is when the resources become scarce (Remington-Doucette 69). This means that the problem we have will have to be continually monitored, and when different problems arise, more effort will have to be put into just the one solution. Or, we will have to start brainstorming again to bring up solutions for the problem’s problem.
The fourth characteristic is that the solution may be irreversible. This basically means that we know nothing about what is going to come out of implementing a new solution. So testing beforehand doesn’t really work out because people do not know how the solution will turn out. I feel like this would apply to our problem because we really have no idea on how this will turn out with our solutions we are going to develop in the future. Sure we may know some sparse facts about what might happen when the solution is implemented, but we still do not know for sure what is going to happen in the long run.
The fifth characteristic is that the problem is unique. This means that one solution for one part of the problem will not be applicable to the rest of the problem. I feel that this is applicable to our problem because there are multiple parts to the story of Esther, and one solution to shining light on one part of her story compared to the rest is completely different from one another. Showing how Esther escaped Shaw is completely different than looking at her life as a slave.
The sixth and last characteristic is that the problem is urgent. This means that if the problem isn’t solved soon, there will be long lasting effects to “human and natural systems” (Remington-Doucette 69). I believe that our problem does not fall under this category.
If this problem isn’t recognized it will turn into an even bigger problem, but it does not seem that it will injure natural and human systems. I feel as if our research team should define this problem as a vague, undefined, no end point, irreversible, unique problem. The problem is vague because not much is known about it, and not much is known of what will happen if our solution is implemented at some point. Some stakeholders may want to back out of supporting the gardens, but at the same time some different stakeholders may start to support the gardens because of what we are doing. In essence, it is a gamble. The solution is undefined because there are multiple ways to approach the problem and think about possible solutions. There is no right answer, only the answer we provide. The problem seems to have no end point because even if our solution is implemented, some people may find it offensive, or hurtful to them, so we may need to change different aspects about the solution to appeal to almost everyone. The problem is irreversible because once it is implemented, our solution stays there for a while at the least. Which means many people are going to be able to see it and make their decisions about the gardens before we can really do anything about our decision. Finally the problem is unique because defining one part of the problem doesn’t necessarily mean that all parts of the problem are solved. This just means that that particular part is solved, not the whole problem as a whole.