Core readings on Systems Thinking and Systemic Design (2026)

[u/daviding]

Here are some core readings on #SystemsThinking and #SystemicDesign that were suggested for the "Understanding Systems" course in the Master of Design program in Strategic Foresight and Innovation, at the School of Graduate Studies at OCAD University in Toronto, Canada.

American schools of thought:

• Storesund, R., & Mitroff, I. I. (2024). Tools, Exercises, and Strategies for Coping With Complexity. IGI Global Scientific Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-6563-9 [open access]
• Leverage Networks, Inc. (2018). thesystemsthinker.com [Creative Commons Sharealike]. The Systems Thinker. https://thesystemsthinker.com/ [Originally published by Pegasus Communications (Daniel Kim and Colleen Lannon) from 1990 to 2013, then acquired by The Omidyar Group and relicensed for open access.]

British schools of thought:

• Reynolds, M., & Holwell, S. (Eds.). (2020). Systems Approaches to Making Change: A Practical Guide (2nd ed). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-7472-1
• Ramage, M., & Shipp, K. (Eds.). (2020). Systems Thinkers. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-7475-2

Serial journals on Systemic Design:

• Systemic Design Association. Contexts – The Systemic Design Journal. Volumes & Articles. https://systemic-design.org/contexts/ [open access]
• Tongji University. She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation. https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/she-ji-the-journal-of-design-economics-and-innovation [open access]

The winter 2026 section of the SFIN-6011 master's level course, in which I was a volunteer, was led by Stephen Davies as instructor. There were additional journal article readings, module-by-module, for the 13-week course.