Introduction

Emerging out of the physical sciences in the early to mid-20th century and increasingly spilling over into the social sciences at the end of that century, complexity is a new and exciting interdisciplinary approach to science and society that challenges traditional academic divisions, frameworks and paradigms. For the social sciences, complexity acts like a bridging strategy between order and disorder and significantly refocuses the basis for understanding social life and state action. Subsequently, the Complexity Network organised a website and held a conference, 'Introducing Complexity', in April 2002, which attracted participants from 35 different academic departments as well as several other business and governmental representatives. However, during the 20th century the natural sciences began to experience a Kuhnian 'paradigm shift' that propelled them beyond the confines of the Newtonian linear paradigm. During 2003 and 2004, subject areas began to solidify, a conference website was put together and all of the detailed work of planning the conference venue and accommodation began.