Inner and Outer Sustainability are interconnected

Our inner and outer worlds are deeply interconnected, and sustainability begins within. The emerging field of inner transformation research explores how our values, beliefs, worldviews, and inner capacities shape our actions and collective systems. "Intentional practices" (Ives et al., 2003), such as conscious breathing and meditation, can strengthen resilience, compassion, and awareness—linking personal transformation to global change.

Recent research highlights that this field is both dynamic and interdisciplinary, addressing the interior dimensions of sustainability through the IMAGINE framework, which emphasizes the interdependence of inner and outer, individual, collective, and systemic phenomena; the multiple potential within each person for transformative change; the activation of inner dimensions across personal and societal levels; the generation of inner transformative capacities through intentional practices; the inclusion of diverse perspectives and ways of knowing; and the expansion of knowledge systems for sustainability.

By integrating inner transformation into research, education, and policy, we can cultivate the inner qualities—awareness, empathy, and courage—needed to address complex sustainability challenges. True transformation arises when inner change and outer action evolve together.

Read the full article here: IMAGINE sustainability: integrated inner-outer transformation in research, education and practice | Sustainability Science