For the very first time in my life, I witnessed a murmuration of starlings this week. It was completely captivating - thousands of little birds formed a folding, swirling, swooping flock across the evening sky overhead. The whole forms swirling shapes that appear and then dissolve (we got treated to a heart shape) - like one big living pattern moving across the sky. I happened upon it by chance and couldn't believe my luck.
It was a joyful thing to watch. It prompted me to read a little more about why this happens and what it signifies. It turns out that murmurations are one of the most tangible expressions of collective intelligence in nature. Here are some key features: there is no leader and no hierarchy; each starling responds to the 7-8 starlings nearest to it; each makes tiny adjustments instantly that collectively ripple through the whole flock. There are no collisions, just absolute coherence.
Murmurations are a result of thousands of tiny decisions made in relationship with each other, decisions based on trust and attention. Each bird has an awareness of its place in the whole and responds to subtle signals from the others. Direction and momentum are created collectively.
And we think we're the intelligent ones!
Happy St. Patrick's Day to you this lovely month of March. Wishing you a wonderful month ahead.
Beannachtaí Pádraig ort, a chara.
In this month’s article, I explore five signs that the traditional tourism success model may not be sufficient for the full extent of tourism's emerging mandate. Growth expectations remain firmly in place. Visitor numbers, spend, jobs and regional distribution continue to matter. At the same time, responsibility for place is becoming more explicit. Leaders are being asked to think about resilience, community confidence, environmental integrity and long-term destination vitality.
I share an image that has been helpful for me recently - the idea of an infinity loop, where growth and stewardship are in continuous motion together rather than balanced against each other.
