Intertwined

“Climate change, demographics, water, food, energy, global health, women’s empowerment - these issues are all intertwined.

We cannot look at one strand in isolation. Instead we must examine how these strands are woven together.”

(Ban Ki-Moon)

There’s nothing like having a freedom taken away to make us realise how much we appreciate it.

I’m a wanderer; a flâneur, maybe?

My favourite treat is to drift, gently, taking time to pay attention, to linger and make images, quietly celebrating my observations and reflections. I know it is an incredible privilege; one that is easily unseen and taken for granted, but has been built upon the intricate, intertwined structures of complex, nuanced freedoms, negotiations and agreements.

All of which are suddenly in sharp focus.

Antoni Llena’s ‘Homenatge als Castellers’ in Barcelona’s Plaça de Sant Miquel take might take you by surprise as you explore the side-streets and alley ways behind the City Hall. A 26.5 m high tribute to the human towers that are emblematic of public events and parades in Catalonia. The interlocking stainless steel spirals offer a stark comparison to the fragile, teetering, living constructions they represent.

We are living through a time when the fragility and interdependence of our freedoms and relationships has been laid bare. As we try to strengthen the threads of our social systems, we begin to realise how tightly our ability to ensure basic wellbeing is intertwined with community structures, our economy, supply chains or even just the simple ability to buy food or find childcare for our ‘key workers.’

Vaclav Havel, speaking at the Forum 2000 Conference in Prague said, “Education is the ability perceive the hidden connections between phenomena.”

For too long, we have been dazzled by financial wealth, status, materialism and celebrity. Now we are finding that those who undertake the less visible work; offer care, tend to us when we are sick, stock the shelves, teach our children and empty our bins are those who deserve applause, reward and prestige.

The intertwined steel of ‘Homenatge als Castellers’ is striking not only because it reaches so resolutely to the sky but also for the strength of its interlocking connections.

Our freedoms are so critically dependent upon invisible connections and, if this moment might offer us some learning, I hope we will begin to see the structure of what matters in our lives more clearly.

Notes:

‘Flâneur’ is a French term meaning ‘stroller’ or ‘loafer’ used by nineteenth-century French poet Charles Baudelaire to identify ‘an observer of modern urban life.’ My dad used to accuse me (possibly with justification) of ‘loafing’; now I have learned to claim it as a skill. For a more contemporary view, have a look at Taylor Davidson’s ‘Modern Flaneur’.

I found the Vaclav Havel quote suitable hidden in plain sight among the opening pages of Fritjof Capra’s ‘The Hidden Connections’, a fascinating book bringing complexity theory to the social domain and where, rather than economics, he argues for the imperative of organising the world according to values and beliefs reflecting human well-being.

On ‘noticing’ and paying attention, Amy Herman’s ‘Visual Intelligence’ will sharpen your perception, and possibly shock you, as you realise how much you just don’t see….