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Presencing: 7 Practices for Transforming Self, Society, and Business
We are collectively creating results nobody wants, and most change efforts address the symptoms rather than the source.
Presencing offers a different approach—one that bridges inner development with outer systems change through 7 concrete practices built for this moment.
From Otto Scharmer, MIT senior lecturer and creator of Theory U, and Katrin Kaufer, MIT researcher, cofounder of the Presencing Institute, and author of Just Money (MIT Press), this field guide draws on more than twenty years of global work with the Theory U framework, now used by thousands of organizations across climate, finance, education, and social innovation.
Inside this
The Wheel of Deep Change — a framework mapping 7 societal sectors and specific leverage points where transformation takes holdSocial Fields theory — a deeper layer of systems thinking that accounts for the quality of consciousness from which collective action emergesSeven step-by-step practices covering generative listening, dialogue, co-sensing, presencing, co-imagining, co-creating, and ecosystem governanceReal-world stories of “islands of coherence”—communities already demonstrating regenerative ways of working together across the globeReflection questions and dialogue prompts for individual readers, leadership teams, and classroom or workshop settings
Readers new to Theory U will find a self-contained entry point, and those already familiar will find significant new depth and updated methods.
Presencing offers a different approach—one that bridges inner development with outer systems change through 7 concrete practices built for this moment.
From Otto Scharmer, MIT senior lecturer and creator of Theory U, and Katrin Kaufer, MIT researcher, cofounder of the Presencing Institute, and author of Just Money (MIT Press), this field guide draws on more than twenty years of global work with the Theory U framework, now used by thousands of organizations across climate, finance, education, and social innovation.
Inside this
The Wheel of Deep Change — a framework mapping 7 societal sectors and specific leverage points where transformation takes holdSocial Fields theory — a deeper layer of systems thinking that accounts for the quality of consciousness from which collective action emergesSeven step-by-step practices covering generative listening, dialogue, co-sensing, presencing, co-imagining, co-creating, and ecosystem governanceReal-world stories of “islands of coherence”—communities already demonstrating regenerative ways of working together across the globeReflection questions and dialogue prompts for individual readers, leadership teams, and classroom or workshop settings
Readers new to Theory U will find a self-contained entry point, and those already familiar will find significant new depth and updated methods.
208 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 15, 2025
About the author
C. Otto Scharmer
12 books128 followersDr. C. Otto Scharmer is a Senior Lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and founding chair of the Presencing Institute. Otto introduced the concept of “presencing”—learning from the emerging future—in his bestselling books Theory U and Presence (the latter co-authored with Peter Senge et al.). In 2015 he co-founded the online MITx u.lab, which has since activated a global eco-system of societal and personal renewal involving more than 100,000 participants from 185 countries. Otto received the Jamieson Prize for Excellence in Teaching at MIT (2015) and the Leonardo European Corporate Learning Award (2016). His new book, The Essentials of Theory U (March 2018), focuses on the core principles and practical applications of awareness-based systems change in the context of reinventing our economies, democracies, and educational systems.
For more information visit www.ottoscharmer.com.
For more information visit www.ottoscharmer.com.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 18, 2026
A wonderful written guide to thinking about systems and how to connect in times of polycrisis. Recommend the ulab Online journey as well!
Displaying 1 of 1 review