The Pivot: Addressing Global Problems Through Local Action

When the world reemerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, it seems likely that it will have transformed irrevocably. Can societies already reeling from climate change, income inequality, and structural racism change for the better? Does the shock of the pandemic offer an opportunity to pivot to a more sustainable way of life? Early in the crisis, a global volunteer collaboration called Pivot Projects was formed to rethink how the world works. Some members are experts in the sciences and the humanities; others are environmental activists or regular people who see themselves as world citizens. In The Pivot, the journalist Steve Hamm--who embedded in the enterprise from the start--explores their efforts and shows how their approach provides a model for achieving systemic change. Chronicling the group's progress along an uncharted path, he shows how people with a variety of skills and personalities collaborate to get things done. Through their work, Hamm examines some of today's most important technologies and concepts, such as systems thinking and modeling, complexity theory, artificial intelligence, and new thinking about resilience. The book features vivid, informal profiles of a number of the group's members and brings to life the excitement and energy of dynamic, smart people trying to change the world. Part journal of a plague year and part call to action, The Pivot tells the remarkable story of a collaborative experiment seeking to make the world more sustainable and resilient.

About the Author :
Steve Hamm is an author, journalist, and filmmaker. He has worked for a number of newspapers and magazines, including BusinessWeek and the San Jose Mercury News, and has made documentary films about immigration, policing, and opioids. He is coauthor of Smart Machines: IBM's Watson and the Era of Cognitive Computing (Columbia, 2013) and Rise of the Data Cloud (2020), among other books.

Review :
The book effortlessly guides us through the ideation and inception stages of the project, onto the pivots undertaken and lessons learned through trial and error, finally revealing how this framework of local action began to emerge, before handing it over to us, the inspired reader, to take what we've learned and contribute to the mission of tackling climate change.-- "SmartThinkingBooks" Hamm, one of the most talented business journalists, has reached across fields, culture, and continents to bring to life an optimistic vision of social change. Against a backdrop of tragedy, the Pivot Projects have tapped brilliant creative minds to provide realistic solutions to vexing problems through imagination and action.--Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld, senior associate dean for leadership studies and Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management, Yale School of Management Exceptionally well written, organized and presented, "The Pivot: Addressing Global Problems Through Local Action" is an inherently informed and informative study and one that should be a part of every community, college, and university library Sustainable/Green Business Development collection and supplemental curriculum studies list. -- "Midwest Book Review" The Pivot is a readable and engaging narrative account of an audacious attempt to stimulate change at a global level.--Professor Ruth Crick, Director, Jearni Sciences CIC The Pivot is an engaging nonstop ride through the development of a vision to address the world's major problems by systems scientists and community activists who came together to assess key challenges that face us.--Michael Batty, Bartlett Professor of Planning and Chair of the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, University College London