From Systems Thinking to Social Soil
In this deeply reflective and powerful session, Otto Scharmer, the Founding Chair of The Presencing Institute, explores the evolution of systems thinking and how it must transform to meet the urgent and layered crises of our time. Drawing from his personal journey from a biodynamic farm in Germany to global peace movements and groundbreaking academic work, Scharmer articulates the shift from traditional social systems to what he calls the “social soil,” emphasizing the need to cultivate the quality of relationships, awareness, and intention as a basis for meaningful change.
He takes the audience through his theory of “awareness-based systems change,” arguing that to solve global ecological, social, and spiritual divides, we must move beyond reactive, output-driven paradigms and instead foster inner leadership and collaborative consciousness. Using vivid metaphors, such as comparing a regenerative farm’s soil to the attention we give to social transformation, he reframes systems change as a journey of deep listening, embodiment, and the courage to act from a place of emerging future possibilities.
Scharmer critiques modern development models, short-term philanthropic agendas, and ego-centric systems leadership, challenging change-makers to build “islands of coherence” that can evolve into global ecosystems of transformation. As an educator and changemaker, he stresses that the most critical work lies beneath the surface, in nurturing the invisible yet essential layers of connection, commitment, and shared human purpose. This session is a call to rethink how we lead, organize, and relate, placing relationships and consciousness at the very heart of systemic evolution.
