Margaret Archer, the Director of the Centre for Social Ontology at the École Polytechnique Fédéral de Lausanne, is the leader of the so-called Morphogenetic project. The morphogenetic approach is a social theory attempt to understand change in society in the perspective of critical realism (follow that link: http://cdh.epfl.ch/page-37105-en.html). The usage of the term “morphogenesis” goes back to Walter Buckley who introduced General System Theory concepts into sociology. Margaret Archer invited Wolfgang Hofkirchner to present a system-theoretical view (follow that link: http://www.hofkirchner.uti.at/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/epfl2012-2.mov). Many overlappings could be identified. Further co-operation is intended. The contributions to the workshop Hofkirchner attended are in the process of being re-worked to enhance the unity of an envisaged book publication.

Post-doc researcher at the Centre for Social Ontology Kate Forbes-Pitt leading the general discussion at the workshop on 14th of January 2012 (photo: Wolfgang Hofkirchner). The blackboard shows the agenda of contested concepts

On 17 November 2012 the Bertalanffy Center was host of 20 international systems theorists and practitioners, among them leading representatives of systems movement organisations like the President of the International Academy for Systems and Cybernetic Sciences (IASCYS), Matjaz Mulej; the representative of the European Union for Systemics (UES/EUS), Pierre Bricage; the Director-General of the World Association of Systems and Cybernetics (WOSC), Raul Espejo; the representative of the recently founded Giordano Bruno GlobalShift University, Alexander Laszlo, to name but a few.

They met with the BCSSS board members and other members of the Center to start the discussion on what systems thinking is for in the age of global challenges, which belongs to the Center’s core activities. This gathering was the first international meeting the Center could organise.

One focus was on how academic contributions to the systems movement can be revisited. Since Ludwig von Bertalanffy’s birthday could be celebrated this year for the 110th time, it goes without saying that the discussion revolved around the elaboration and the impact of General System Theory.

BCSSS Symposium “Systems thinking: what’s it for?” (photo: Günther Ossimitz)

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At the symposium “Systems thinking: what’s it for?”, organised by the Center on the occasion of Ludwig von Bertalanffy’s 110th anniversary of his birthday with international experts on 10 November 2011 in Vienna, the death mask of Ludwig von Bertalanffy was handed on to the Center. The last owner of the death mask was Gisèle Bertalanffy, the widow of Felix Bertalanffy. Gisèle Bertalanffy decided to donate the mask to the Center. Therewith, the mask has left Canada and has crossed the border to Austria where Ludwig von Bertalanffy was born and where he was active until 1947.

The death mask of Ludwig von Bertalanffy with which the Center was presented by Michel Saint-Germain, Professor emeritus at the Université d’Ottawa (photo: Günther Ossimitz)

Gisèle Bertalanffy donated another five boxes with manuscripts, lecture transcripts, photos, tapes, super 8 films, and else obtaining to the legacy of Ludwig von Bertalanffy to our center. At first sight writings appeared the existence of which we even had not have knowledge of. All records will be professionally archived before being made available to the public.

Unpacking the boxes. From the left: Manfred Drack, Gerd Müller, Wolfgang Hofkirchner, Birgit Zehetmayer (photo: Gerd Müller)

One of the files (photo: Gerd Müller)

Gisèle Bertalanffy (photo: Michel Saint-Germain)

Representatives of five international organisations met on the occasion of the 8ème Congrès International de l’Union Européenne de Systemique in Brussels from 20 to 22 October:

• Andrée Piecq, President of the European Union for Systemics (UES)

• Gerhard Chroust, Secretary General of the International Federation for Systems Research (IFSR)

• Raúl Espejo, Director-General of the World Organisation of Systems and Cybernetics (WOSC)

• Matjaz Mulej, President of the International Academy of Systems and Cybernetic Sciences (IASCYS)

• Pierre Bricage, Secretary General of IASCYS

• Wolfgang Hofkirchner, President of the Bertalanffy Center for the Study of Systems Science (BCSSS)

In the first of two meetings instigated by Wolfgang Hofkirchner and Matjaz Mulej and organised by Pierre Bricage, Wolfgang Hofkirchner presented his ideas about the next European Meetings on Cybernetics and Systems Research (EMCSR) which the BCSSS under his chairmanship will organise in April 2012. He invited all organisations to contribute to he success of the conference. The IFSR committed to support the Conference in several ways. The WOSC is already partner of the event.

It was also agreed to make efforts to coordinate information about systemic conferences and to organise a collection of abstracts of most/all published systemic articles at least from systemic  journals. This collection could possibly be done automatically. It was felt that the IASCYS could be the appropriate neutral platform for the collection of such information and for making it available to the systems community. The IFSR offered the use of its web-site to host such information.

It was recognised that language is a problem also in the systems community. UES caters mainly to French speaking scientists, while the IFSR has a large majority of English speaking associations. It was also recognised that here is a strong community of Spanish-speaking systemists, especially in Latin America. Furthermore it is also of high importance to take into account the large systems communities in China  and Japan.

The second meeting discussed the role of the IASCYS, originally founded by the IFSR, in view of the newly established cooperation with UES and WOSC. It was the common consensus that the nomination procedure for the IASCYS should better reflect the new cooperation.

With respect to systems conferences (there are supposedly some 40 every year) the role of world-wide conferences was discussed. It was observed that the bi-annual EMCSR conferences, the three-annual conferences of both UES and WOSC together with some other could complement one another by coordinating them and sharing some topics and ideas. This would provide to the general audiences the feeling of a certain continuity between these various conferences.