By: Barrett Brown

The quadrants element of the Integral framework developed by Ken Wilber is introduced in the context of sustainability. The quadrants represent lenses with which to better understand any occurrence; they reveal dynamics and forces in the interiors and exteriors of individuals and collectives. Together, they offer a map of psychology, behavior, culture, and systems. After tracing the philosophical lineage of the quadrants, numerous practical examples of a quadrant analysis by sustainability practitioners are offered. The quadrants can be used in three key ways for sustainability: to organize sustainability information, to diagnose the challenges facing a sustainability initiative, and to prescribe an integrated solution that accounts for all the major dynamics at play. The results from recent research—a quadrant analysis—of eight popular sustainability books are shared, quantitatively showing which aspects of reality these books privilege, and discussing the reasons therein. The article ends with guidelines for doing a more complex quadrant analysis, including the introduction of a creative problem solving methodology called Q-DyTS.