Part of what makes our world so complex is that it is not just a collection of designed objects, it is an interlocking collection of systems that affect and are affected by each other.
For example, a house is not just a building that we live in. It is part of a much larger system involving multiple governments managing zoning laws, taxes, building codes, land ownership, infrastructure maintenance, mineral and water rights, policing and even homeowner association rules and regulations.
The parts of the house from the foundation to the roofing shingles are part of a supply chain system that extends all over the world and can have environmental and economic consequences. The contractors and subcontractors that do the actual construction are part of a system that includes unions, legal contracts and even work visas for immigrant workers.
It’s important to understand the systems that affect the things you are trying to change. Otherwise, your efforts will be battered about by what appear to be forces coming out of nowhere.
