ABSTRACT
Bas: Having spent two chapters exploring this from the perspective of educator– student and educator–educator relationships, I now want to share some experiences that allow us to explore what it means to relate regeneratively to the ‘architecture’ of education – the rules, systems, and organising principles that our institutes bring to life. So, I’ll be zooming in primarily on my own university – The Hague University of Applied Sciences – but also, more broadly, on some forces from outside, like the Dutch ministry of education. As a general introduction, I’d like to share that I often feel like my work takes place in a sort of liminal space of doing the education work that is demanded by the current system and nurturing the potentiality of what may be possible. I believe it is in this liminal space that I can develop a regenerative relationship to contemporary education systems, neither accepting business as usual as an unchangeable reality nor deserting it altogether. Often, at least so has been my experience, this begins with moments of running into restraining forces of some kind, those moments when ‘the system says no’ – for instance, and I’ll share more about this example in a bit, exam regulations not allowing team-based interdisciplinary graduations working on real-world challenges 1 . Or, at least, there being a perception amongst actors involved – teachers, students, managers, directors, but also computers and software – that this is not a valid option. My initial, automatic response to encountering such restraining forces is to go, like, ‘Right, let’s try to break that down by running straight at it!’ Yet this is not always the most regenerative option. I mean, I’m sure I’ll run into more doors in the future, but I feel like I’m learning to nurture in myself the kindness and grace needed to do so in ways that provide space for others. Showing up regeneratively, in this sense, involves truly accepting that there may be obstacles and acknowledging that from the perspective of different system logics, these obstacles may even (have) perform(ed) very important ecosystem functions – although often these are outdated logics that are no longer fit for purpose. But it’s also about trying to find ways to navigate around these obstacles, to work in the shadows, the nooks and crannies, under the radar. And about engaging with this work with patience and (very) long time horizons. It may be impossible to graduate as a group of students now, but a new policy plan cycle is coming in three… four… five or however many years 2 . So, what seeds may I plant now that may flourish by then? It may be the case that you end up planting seeds that you never get to see blossom. These are some of the core themes I would like to explore more deeply in this chapter….
