A Flourishing Future is Held in the Seeds of the Adjacent Possible
One of the concepts that has always struck me as quite powerful is that of the ‘adjacent possible theory’ introduced by Stuart Kauffman in 2002.
This theory proposes that biological systems are able to morph into more complex systems by making incremental, relatively less energy consuming changes in their make up.
Steven Johnson uses this concept in his book “Where Good Ideas Come From” to describe how new insights can be generated in previously unexplored areas. (Wired, December 2014). As he notes, the adjacent possible “captures both the limits and the creative potential of change and innovation.” (Steven Johnson, ‘The Genius of the Tinkerer’, Wall Street Journal)
In my interpretation, the adjacent possible is a kind of shadow future, hovering on the edges of the present state of things, holding a map of all the ways in which the present can reinvent itself, the ever-present set of opportunities at the boundaries of our reach. Ultimately, the strange and beautiful truth about the adjacent possible is that its boundaries grow as you explore them, which inspires continuous exploration to emerge what’s next. ~ Steven Johnson, ‘The Genius of the Tinkerer’, Wall Street Journal
This illustration is one way to think about the adjacent possible future as the slight shadow under the highlighted ‘our’ of flourishing:
The discovery of this design construct has provided another lens through which to examine the horizon as I work with my collaborators to explore the landscape of future community.
As entrepreneurs, we use metaphysical principles to answer the question “what needs to be true about the world so that we’re still around tomorrow, or in 6 months?”, allowing the activation of the seeds that have been germinating in our individual adjacent possibles to grow into a shared verdant future for all, no exceptions.
