Self-design and the related concept of self-organization must be understood as important properties of ecosystems in the context of their creation and restoration. In fact, their application may be the most fundamental concept of ecological engineering. Self-organization is the property of systems in general to reorganize themselves given an environment that is inherently unstable and nonhomogeneous. Although somewhat vague and possibly nonapplicable at the species level (where the major self-organization may be evolution itself), self-organization is a systems property that applies very well to eco-systems where species are continually introduced and deleted, species interactions (e.g. predation, mutualism) change in dominance, and the environment itself changes. All of these activities go on at one degree or another all the time. In a sense, the organization is not derived from some outside force but from within the system itself. Self-organization manifests itself in microcosms and newly created ecosystems “showing that after the first period of competitive colonization, the species prevailing are those that reinforce other species through nutrient cycles, aids to reproduction, control of spatial diversity, population regulation, and other means” (Odum, 1989a). Ecological engineering often involves the development of new ecosystems behaviour; the self-organizing capacity of ecosystems remains both an enigma to ecologists and an important concept for ecological engineering.
All systems have some level of organization, but Paul-Wostl (1995) argues that there are two types of ways that systems can be organized: by rigid top-down control or external influence (imposed organization), or by self-organization. Imposed organization, such as that implemented in many conventional engineering approaches, results in rigid structures and little potential for adapting to change. This is, of course, desirable for engineering design, where predictability of safe and reliable structures are necessary, such as for bridges, furnaces, and sulfur scrubbers. Self-organization, on the other hand, develops flexible networks with a much higher potential for adaptation to new situation. It is thus the latter property that is desirable for solving many of our ecological problems. When biological systems are involved, the ability of the ecosystems to change, adapt, and grow according to their forcing functions and internal feedbacks is most important.
Ecological engineering depends on the self-designing capability of ecosystems and nature. When changes occur, natural systems shift, species are substituted for each other, and food chains reorganize. As individual species sort, with some selected and others not, a new system ultimately emerges that is much better suited to the environment that is superimposed on it. Humans participate in self-design by providing choices of initial species, matching species with the environment. Nature does the rest.
[Compare imposed vs self-organizing systems of learning: learning in classrooms vs. learning picqued by curiosity and self-motivated necessity (“Sugata Mitra’s ‘Hole in the Wall’ experiments have shown that, in the absence of supervision or formal teaching, children can teach themselves and each other, if they’re motivated by curiosity and peer interest.”)]
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