We live in a complicated, complex world; yet we are often rewarded for simplifying, specialising and silos; putting the inconvenient and the uncomfortable outside a boundary called “not our responsibility”. There’s something missing here: joining the dots; and understanding the systems beyond our own boundaries.

For example, when the economy sees the environment as an ‘externality’ (aka ‘not our responsibility’), the consequences shouldn’t be a surprise to us. When charity law tells trustees to invest their money for maximum return and not maximum good, it shouldn’t be a surprise that charity money sometimes causes the problems charities are trying to fix. When we tell ourselves that GDP going ever upwards is a good thing, whilst GDP measures problem gambling, cocaine sales and uranium weapons; but not volunteering or looking after our own children…joining the dots matters.

This is what motivates us to work on systems and learning and design.

We imagine a future of joined-up dots. One in which impact on people and planet is integrated into the way organisations make their decisions; from the way they design and do their work, to who they work with and who they hire. One in which positive conversations between funders and change-makers mean that money is aligned with the mission of organisations and the values that matter to people. And one in which everyone understands how their different contributions influence the systems we collectively seek to change. There is openness to experimentation and learning, a willingness to back something for the long term, and a matching of resources to ambition. Collaborations become commonplace, deeper and have the collective gravity to make changes stick.

We see design and learning as interconnected, where one necessarily leads into the other, combining action and reflection, evidence and intervention, one amplifying the other in pursuit of systems change… joining the dots.