Wicked Problems, Exquisite Dilemmas

Anyone who has attempted a crossword puzzle understands wicked problems. One wrong letter and the whole solution collapses, elegance becomes a mess. So too in life: complexity makes systems less robust. Solutions are rarely linear unlike a crossword puzzle, wicked problems have no preordained solution. There are many possibilities. The latest edition of Griffith Review addresses diverse wicked problems and exquisite dilemmas: Barbara Gunnell considers the legacy of Julian Assange and the glut of Wikileaks information; Matthew Condon comes to terms with too much water and the floods of 2011; Greg Lockhardt reveals the legacy of wartime deception; John van Tiggelen confronts the myths of the bush; and Wendy McCarthy reflects on women in charge. Other writers consider what happens when design-led thinking, marrying analysis with applied creativity, meets intractable problems one step at a time. It ranges widely, from myth and information, innovation and evidence to sustainability and happiness.