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anticipatory systems mapping skip to content menu about three domains of asm benefits process steps cosmos case studies technical info faq contact centre for systems solutions close menu anticipatory systems mapping is a participatory interactive and visual approach to systems mapping through which stakeholders related by a common issue co design sustainability pathways learn more what is anticipatory systems mapping in the anticipatory systems mapping or asm stakeholders first create a mutual understanding of the current state of the system in question which also forms the basis of a business as usual scenario they then devise visions of their desired futures and collectively explore possible strategies also known as pathways to reach them strategies can be tested against a range of external scenarios and drivers this process allows these participants to deepen their understanding of the system and identify barriers and levers on the path to their desired futures three domains of anticipatory systems mapping arena of control where problem owners can effectively make decisions and develop pathways to their desired futures problem owners can range from small organizations e g a municipality to large ones e g eu to countries and regions e g a river basin problem owners operate within a context that transcends their arena of influence and therefore encounter and must take into consideration other important stakeholders arena of influence the pathways they develop can both impact and be impacted by these stakeholders and their worldviews decisions and actions uncertainty space taken together these two arenas function within an even larger uncertainty space which encompasses a range of external scenarios to ensure that their pathways are robust against such scenarios participants are invited to collectively identify the most important drivers and constraints externally which translate to various opportunities and threats internally benefits anticipatory systems mapping allows experts and practitioners coming from different backgrounds and holding different worldviews to tap into their creativity and inventiveness we help stakeholders find common ground and reach an agreement on the different aspects of their desired futures the engaging interactive form of asm workshops helps capture the full range of experiences expertise and know how that each participant brings to the table participants in this process have often expressed that using the asm approach improved their grasp of the big picture provided them with a common vocabulary and tools for better collaboration and helped them embrace different perspectives in navigating future challenges we help stakeholders find common ground and reach an agreement on the different aspects of their desired futures one of the key benefits of anticipatory systems mapping is its game like design which enables diverse participants to engage deeply in the process with ease moreover it is flexible it can either inform and form the basis of a strategic planning and management process or can be used for learning and capacity building the results of the process can also be used to inform further efforts into understanding and analysing the system such as modelling one of the key benefits of anticipatory systems mapping is its game like design which enables diverse participants to engage deeply in the process with ease process steps the general process of the anticipatory systems mapping approach is shown more closely below although it is presented in sequential order the process is not entirely linear the steps are fluid and will overlap with each other during the process 1 problem participants face a complex real world challenge that calls for innovative responses and requires the integration of a wide range of data insights and tacit knowledge 2 different perspectives anticipatory systems mapping provides an accessible visual representation of the problem and connects stakeholders with diverse backgrounds values tasks and goals together they can explore the issue from different perspectives 3 communication the unique setting allows participants to present their positions regarding the problem propose their desired responses and negotiate and influence others this leads to a free exchange of ideas and bridges communication gaps 4 complexity throughout their discussions participants discover the most important variables identify interconnections design responses and test how they may impact other actors and the whole system in this process both the problem and the consequences of possible solutions become visible in their entirety 5 creativity participants discover their creative potential and go off the beaten track abstract ideas become tangible opening new original and inspiring pathways into the unknown 6 consensus in this safe environment participants are more empathetic trusting and willing to cooperate even when debates become heated all voices are heard trade offs are negotiated and a joint strategy is developed 7 commitment to action after finding common ground despite differences participants commit to implementing their jointly developed strategy and use their experience and knowledge to face real life challenges collaborative systems mapping of sustainable pathways cosmos under the umbrella of the asm approach we continue to develop different methods to address various kinds of systems co llaborative s ystems m apping o f s ustainable pathways or cosmos is an example of an asm method which is in the most developed phase and thus widely used see examples below cosmos looks at sustainability pathways for social ecological systems in its base form cosmos comes with general categorisations of the water energy land nexus system elements i e related to water food energy economy society and the environment it can thus be used in broad contexts however these categorisations and subsequent system elements can be co designed and customised for specific themes and applications moreover because of the participatory nature of cosmos and asm in general these system elements and even the categories may be improved during the workshops themselves case studies portfolio water energy land nexus in the zambezi river basin cosmos for the zambezi basin was also carried out as part of the iswel project led by iiasa this workshop aimed to co develop different visions and pathways while taking into account different global development and climate trends and enhancing the shared understanding of the implications of different investments in the zambezi basin especially concerning water energy land nexus in the indus river basin the cosmos method applied in a workshop setting was used for the indus river basin and was part of the integrated solutions for water energy and land iswel project led by the international institute for applied systems analysis iiasa in partnership with the united nations industrial development organisation unido and the global environment facility gef fisheries management in the nakambe basin burkina faso the cosmos method applied in a workshop setting was used for the indus river basin and was part of the integrated solutions for water energy and land iswel project led by the international institute for applied systems analysis iiasa in partnership with the united nations industrial development organisation unido and the global environment facility gef implementing sdgs at the local level fimela region senegal the cosmos method applied in a workshop setting was used for the indus river basin and was part of the integrated solutions for water energy and land iswel project led by the international institute for applied systems analysis iiasa in partnership with the united nations industrial development organisation unido and the global environment facility gef resilience building in andalusia region spain the asm process was also used in the context of the eit climate kic deep demonstration forging resilience regions project an initiative aimed at supporting european regions in their transformation to net zero emissions and climate resilient future a workshop based on a combination of cosmos and elements of policy simulations another one of our tools was technical info anticipatory systems mapping can be conducted face to face using physical cards and sometimes printed maps or online using a collaborative whiteboard application participants in an asm session are the stakeholders or actors who have a shared interest and or operate within the same system these may be policymakers or the general public it is important to engage a wide range of stakeholders in this process including non experts and marginalised stakeholders asm requires intensive facilitation crs can either run asm workshops in english or train local facilitators to lead asm workshops in the participants language the materials for the workshop such as cards and maps can be prepared by crs or be made ready for printing by the workshop organisers frequently asked questions what are the main differences between anticipatory systems mapping asm and collaborative systems mapping of sustainable pathway cosmos think of asm an approach as your big plan for creating sustainable pathways while cosmos a method is the specific set of steps and tools you use to make those pathways for social ecological systems an approach may have more than one method is a single workshop enough for an asm process yes but to achieve the best results and get the most out of the process and tool we encourage you to plan a series of workshops how long should asm workshops be while this is dependent on the number of participants and level of detail you wish to achieve 1 to 2 days of workshops is ideal to go through all the necessary phases of an asm process how many people should i invite to the workshop s there is no ideal target number to capture the diversity of perspectives a larger number of participants is preferable to a smaller number larger groups can be divided into smaller groups either across time e g different workshops or space e g different breakout groups bear in mind that a larger number of participants will mean more complex facilitation and a greater number of facilitators needed how do i know how many facilitators i need for my workshop s a good rule of thumb is 1 facilitator per 10 participants do i always need to plan time for a debriefing or can i skip it you need to take debriefing seriously debriefing is where most of the learning happens for participants and facilitators organisers alike it can also be an opportunity to give more marginalised stakeholders a chance to express themselves to the group for example for the debriefing you should think about and prepare questions in advance in line with your learning objectives how long does it take to co design the asm elements with stakeholders there is no straightforward answer to this question as it depends on many factors it is however generally more time consuming than the design and production of the elements cards themselves can participants create their own elements during workshops they can in face to face settings you should always provide participants with so that they can add elements that they feel are missing from the set what can i do if the stakeholders i m designing the asm process with have strong disagreements it is not a prerequisite to have a common vision between stakeholders or even a universal set of elements to start an asm process you can include and present stakeholders different worldviews by creating separate sets of elements they will reach a shared understanding through the workshop process itself icon label icon label icon label back to top anticipatory systems mapping copyright 2026 by the centre for systems solutions crs all rights reserved