At a time when the usual patterns of our seasons are rapidly changing, it becomes easier to feel disconnected from the world around us. With recent extreme weather and abnormal temperature fluctuations, January has felt uncertain and unsettling, at best.
This is why, as we approach the Celtic celebration of Imbolg (or Imbolc), it feels fitting to introduce our approach to organisational strategy, which aligns with the changing seasons through the adaptive resilience cycle.
The adaptive resilience cycle (originally proposed by Holling in 1986), shows how living systems—whether they’re ecosystems or organisations—constantly regenerate and evolve. An organisation functions as a social ecosystem, and to build resilience while evolving within the larger systems we are part of, it’s essential to engage with this cycle consciously. By tuning into our biological rhythms, the climate, and the seasons, we’re better equipped to time our internal projects, anticipate challenges, and seize external opportunities.
In traditional Western business thinking, it’s often seen as normal for organisations to follow a linear trajectory of growth, striving for profit at any cost. However, this approach has never aligned with our values, and we continue to grow sustainably, all while having a positive environmental impact.
As we emerge from winter—a time of decay, releasing, and creative destruction—we learn what’s essential for our survival. Just as trees shed their leaves, our organisation undergoes a similar shedding process. During these months, we reflect on our vision and purpose, re-examine our processes and policies, and decide what is necessary versus what is redundant. Winter, with its focus on survival and essentials, offers clarity on an organisation’s direction.
Now, with Imbolg on the horizon, we begin planting seeds—committing ourselves to new projects and ideas that have emerged from reorganising our thoughts, energy, and resources during the darker months. The first of these seeds is our inaugural ReALISE Summit, which will take place on 10th April at IMMA Venues. This summit will bring together leaders from across the creative and cultural sectors to explore how we can implement sustainability and regenerative principles in our work. (Stay tuned for more information and tickets on our socials!)
Looking ahead to summer, we’ll see new growth that enhances the health and vitality of our organisation. At the peak of our festival and event production activities, we’ll put into practice the insights gained through our team’s diverse perspectives, networks, research, and sustainability consulting in the creative sector. Festivals and events are like microcosms of society; their shorter adaptive cycles make them ideal places to experiment with new ways of organising, thinking, learning, and creating together.
In autumn, we reach a stage of stability and growth. This is when we focus on organising and maintaining the systems that we’ve built during the busy summer months. At this point, things often feel more predictable, with clearer patterns of how we work together and use our resources. The autumn season, with its sense of abundance and harvest, is often when we feel most comfortable, enjoying the lingering warmth of summer, even though the days are getting shorter.
However, the unavoidable truth is that the breakdown of old systems is necessary to make way for new ones. Celebrating the harvest is just as vital as letting go of the perceived control or order we’ve built. The balance between stability and transformation—order and chaos—is how self-organisation takes place in living systems. Recognising this dynamic within an organisation allows for a more honest and accurate assessment of what’s essential to its performance, growth, impact, and success. The winter is an opportunity for redesign, reorganisation, and ultimately regeneration.
Working in harmony with the natural patterns of life and creativity helps us make sense of the world around us. Operating in ways that don’t align with living systems on a living planet no longer makes sense. As climate change continues to disrupt the familiar patterns of our seasons and weather, it’s even more crucial to embed this way of working, ensuring our solutions respond to the realities unfolding around us.
If you’re interested in living systems thinking and embedding a regenerative approach in your organisation, we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to us at info@nativeevents.ie or call us directly at +353 (0)83 020 4525.
