change lab personal reflection
Change labs are designed to tackle a complex challenge in today’s society. They involve the realization that there already exists certain policies and certain precedents that we must take into account before trying to fix the problem. Adam Kahane defines this as fullness, and this fullness produces complexities. These complexities are dynamic, socially, and generatively. It is by addressing these complexities, with the help of stakeholders, the people that would take an interest in the matter, that we can create “new, ‘best practice’ solutions”, rather than “applying ‘best practice’ solutions from the past.”(Kahane)
For our issue, we chose obesity in children, specifically in the United States. This is a serious matter as the rates of obesity are rising. One out of three kids are now obese or overweight.(1) It was a tricky issue to try to decipher because the wellbeing of children is typically seen as the responsibility of the parents. Yes, there are solutions that have been presented, including having a healthier diet and being more active, but sometimes even those simple solutions can be difficult to attain. We had to look at the socio status of the family, the parent’s lifestyle, and whether the children, or even the parents, wanted to make a lifestyle change. The parents do have a big impact on their children. If one parent is obese, there is a 50% chance the child will be, and if both parents are obese, the chance goes up to 80%.(2) We also had to consider whether there was more influence outside of the home, specifically school, or whether obesity was the effect of a health issue, not just poor choices.
The toughest and most frustrating part was trying to figure out the stakeholders though. So many people and organizations would be impacted, directly or indirectly, by addressing the problem of obesity that it was difficult to try to discuss all of them. We had to look at why they would care, what resource they would contribute, and their constituents. We listed everybody from fast food chains/ restaurants to the government. Doctors, the parents, even the media and the children themselves would be involved. A long list of cause and effect went across the spectrum. The food industry, including grocery stores, production, and farmers, would be impacted by health laws that only the government had the power to implement, which would make it more expensive to produce healthier food, causing the prices to go up. Fast food restaurants would have to change their product in order to reduce obesity, affecting their reputation, possibly making them lose business and causing them to think about the many factors of food. For example with Chick-fil-a, they started using peanut oil because it is healthier. They had to take into account first how many clients they would lose because of allergies or distaste. Then they had to figure out if it was worth it.
The whole idea of having to factor in other companies or people groups ideas and realize how they may affect or be affected by a new idea or a solution to a problem is found globally. This idea of stakeholders is found in everyday life, not just trying to tackle big social problems. Every business has shareholders, which is a prominent stakeholder for a publicly owned company.(3) They are about trying to achieve the biggest profit from the company. Businesses also have business partners, which help them give the best service or product to their customers. This is also found in politics, as elected representatives will take into account their constituents opinions before making a decision, as they are aware that their constituents can bring to the table votes, as well as information and money. In the end though, not everybody will be satisfied, as we came to find out.
It was discouraging to realize that after all the work we put into this problem, that we had not come any closer to a guaranteed solution that would solve the issue of obesity than when we started. For every action, there is a reaction, making it difficult to think about every factor that would become of trying to fix the problem of obesity in children, and everybody that would have involvement and concern for the issue. Not everybody will be happy with any implementation made. As we struggled through this, it gives an idea of how much time and effort must be put into solving social issues. Thankfully though, the people hard at work are not giving up anytime soon and change labs will truly cause change.
Works Cited
1. http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/body/overweight_obesity.html
2. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/obesity_in_children_and_teens
3. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/different-stakeholders-business-20363.html
For our issue, we chose obesity in children, specifically in the United States. This is a serious matter as the rates of obesity are rising. One out of three kids are now obese or overweight.(1) It was a tricky issue to try to decipher because the wellbeing of children is typically seen as the responsibility of the parents. Yes, there are solutions that have been presented, including having a healthier diet and being more active, but sometimes even those simple solutions can be difficult to attain. We had to look at the socio status of the family, the parent’s lifestyle, and whether the children, or even the parents, wanted to make a lifestyle change. The parents do have a big impact on their children. If one parent is obese, there is a 50% chance the child will be, and if both parents are obese, the chance goes up to 80%.(2) We also had to consider whether there was more influence outside of the home, specifically school, or whether obesity was the effect of a health issue, not just poor choices.
The toughest and most frustrating part was trying to figure out the stakeholders though. So many people and organizations would be impacted, directly or indirectly, by addressing the problem of obesity that it was difficult to try to discuss all of them. We had to look at why they would care, what resource they would contribute, and their constituents. We listed everybody from fast food chains/ restaurants to the government. Doctors, the parents, even the media and the children themselves would be involved. A long list of cause and effect went across the spectrum. The food industry, including grocery stores, production, and farmers, would be impacted by health laws that only the government had the power to implement, which would make it more expensive to produce healthier food, causing the prices to go up. Fast food restaurants would have to change their product in order to reduce obesity, affecting their reputation, possibly making them lose business and causing them to think about the many factors of food. For example with Chick-fil-a, they started using peanut oil because it is healthier. They had to take into account first how many clients they would lose because of allergies or distaste. Then they had to figure out if it was worth it.
The whole idea of having to factor in other companies or people groups ideas and realize how they may affect or be affected by a new idea or a solution to a problem is found globally. This idea of stakeholders is found in everyday life, not just trying to tackle big social problems. Every business has shareholders, which is a prominent stakeholder for a publicly owned company.(3) They are about trying to achieve the biggest profit from the company. Businesses also have business partners, which help them give the best service or product to their customers. This is also found in politics, as elected representatives will take into account their constituents opinions before making a decision, as they are aware that their constituents can bring to the table votes, as well as information and money. In the end though, not everybody will be satisfied, as we came to find out.
It was discouraging to realize that after all the work we put into this problem, that we had not come any closer to a guaranteed solution that would solve the issue of obesity than when we started. For every action, there is a reaction, making it difficult to think about every factor that would become of trying to fix the problem of obesity in children, and everybody that would have involvement and concern for the issue. Not everybody will be happy with any implementation made. As we struggled through this, it gives an idea of how much time and effort must be put into solving social issues. Thankfully though, the people hard at work are not giving up anytime soon and change labs will truly cause change.
Works Cited
1. http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/body/overweight_obesity.html
2. http://www.aacap.org/cs/root/facts_for_families/obesity_in_children_and_teens
3. http://smallbusiness.chron.com/different-stakeholders-business-20363.html