Talking about knowledge means talking about the
self-organization of society and social systems.
Knowledge is a threefold process of cognition,
communication, and co-operation. How can knowledge be
managed in a self-organizing system? Scientists like
Hayek and Luhmann have argued that human intervention
into self-organizing social systems isn’t possible and
desirable because their can be no central control of
their knowledge. Hence human beings would have to rely
on competition and adaptation to systemic effects, human
intervention would be harmful. I consider participatory
systems design as an attractive alternative to such a
systemic fatalism. If one considers human beings as
central moments of social self-organization, one can
argue that knowledge management is a fundamental human
activity that transforms social systems. Social systems
can’t be hierarchically steered, but fostering
co-operation and participation in processes of social
systems design can increase the possibility that social
systems develop into purposeful systems. Co-operation
and participation allow the shared usage of the
knowledge of a system’s participants. Creative synergies
can arise from communicative actions and result in
novelty and innovation.
