Recently John Bywater opened the door to Whitehead. That feels like the missing key that has unlocked much of which I have sought to understand as I have tried to share the essence of Agile with others, particularly those seeking to reimagine education.
Recently I also had a fascinating exchange with Michael Mehaffy who knows, arguably, the work and thinking of Alexander better than anyone else. At one point he shared:
>And in my book of a few years ago, Cities Alive: Jane Jacobs, Christopher Alexander and the Roots of the New Urban Renaissance, I spoke about the topic of "mereology," or part-whole relations, and Whitehead's (and Chris') ideas about it. (i.e. "wholeness.") The middle section was devoted to exploring (mostly) Whitehead's ideas in relation to Chris' and Jacobs' work in more depth.
So yes, I think we can say with confidence that there is a direct link from Whitehead, through Alexander to Ward and then onto Agile of Whitehead's core insight into the magical nature of emergence, that which he coined 'creativity'. Something, we might argue, that the agile community would be wise to recognize.
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A lecture for the Building Beauty program by Michael W. Mehaffy, Ph.D., May 2, 2024. Includes 1:15 of Q&A discussion with Building Beauty program.
YOUTUBE 4OKYjPv0qsg Christopher Alexander and Alfred North Whitehead: Nature (and Buildings) Alive