Introduction

Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners & Country

I would like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri people as the Traditional owners of the Kulin Nation on which this Field Guide has been written. This is Bunjil's country. I pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the first people of Australia. They have never ceded sovereignty, and remain strong in their enduring connection to land and culture.

Introduction from the Author

Hi, I’m Sam Rye. I have a background which spans disciplines, domains and geographies, and found my way to developing this experimentation practice as I learnt more about complexity science and its implications for how we design, strategise and influence change in the world.

When I first started speaking with Monash Uni’s School of Design about sharing some of my learnings about experimentation, I was keen to learn how and why Monash might be in need of capacity building of this kind, for the research labs. What I found was that the form of experimentation I practice is typically small, nimble, open, and used to orientate towards a preferred future. In other words, it aligns nicely with how the research labs aim to operate, and support regular reflective practice with a repeatable process.

This practice draws on a range of disciplines including systemic design, complexity science, social sciences, impact evaluation, agile and lean startup.

Thank you for your time and interest in this Field Guide, I hope you find it useful.

If you're interested in my emerging insights about experimentation practice, you can subscribe to my writings here:

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