Johanna Nalau | Adaptation Hooks

3 reasons why everyone needs to understand leadership

December 8, 2017December 11, 2017 johannanalau

Debunking the myth of the Lonesome Leader and Genius

December 5, 2017December 11, 2017 johannanalau

Ever wondered why we should be so concerned now about how we plan our societies and businesses if the future is so unpredictable anyway? Why should issues like climate change warrant changes in how we do things today? Well, turns out it’s pretty interesting…

I am an adaptation scientist with a PhD in climate change adaptation based on the Gold Coast, Australia. My research is focused on understanding how, why and when people make decisions to adapt to climate change, and what role science can and should play in that process. That includes issues such as business continuity and planning, policy development and implementation, ecosystem-based adaptation, and the gap that we often see between academic theory and real-world practical actions.

But I am not just an academic. I search for new knowledge on daily basis for my personal growth as well. I am inherently fascinated by the role that insight and intuition play in decision-making and leadership in a world that is increasingly complex and changing. And I read a lot…

Adaptation Hooks is my personal webpage where I hope to share what I’ve learned so far and can engage also with people outside of academia.

About

Most people spend a lot of money to figure out “who they are”. True branding gurus say it’s pretty simple: just list down 3 things you cannot stop doing. That is your personal brand. So, bear with me. These are my top three: Incubator. I can’t stop coming up with ideas for new research projects… Continue reading About

How to maintain and access organisational memory

It struck me the other day when I was speaking with a colleague that institutional knowledge and memory is really retained in people. With institutional knowledge and memory I mean the knowledge about who does what, how things really work, who you need to talk to to get access to particular information. It is the… Continue reading How to maintain and access organisational memory

How risk framing, climate and leadership are linked

This past week there was a piece of news that has caught many people’s imagination: the slowing down of Atlantic Ocean circulation. The Atlantic Ocean circulation is a stream that brings warmer water towards north and is the reason why Western Europe can enjoy warm weather during summer. But a new study has found that… Continue reading How risk framing, climate and leadership are linked

What makes and counts as “impact”?

All of us aspire to make a difference in something, whether it is in our profession, with our family, with friends, or at a broader scale. But how do we know that we are actually getting there, and our work is having an impact and changing the way things are done or the way people… Continue reading What makes and counts as “impact”?

3 daily steps that will make you a more mindful leader

In the past few weeks the universe has bombarded me with different postings about leadership and mindfulness. This does not seem like such a trivial matter that it would warrant a separate blog posting. But it turns out being a mindful leader is not a common practice and it’s hard to maintain especially in a… Continue reading 3 daily steps that will make you a more mindful leader

Can we keep a score on climate?

Last week I attended Climate Update 2018 event in Brisbane where we heard from various eminent speakers on the state of climate and what different organisations, such as the Queensland government, are doing in this space. In his presentation at Climate Update 2018, Mark Howden from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change focused on the latest climate science:… Continue reading Can we keep a score on climate?

Why finding a bouncing-ideas-buddy will pay off: the secrets of collaboration

In science and in many related fields, the lone genius assumption persists: that individuals act and think alone, pour themselves over data in solitude and emerge with a solution that is revolutionary and inspirational. Many do buy into this story. Yet, the stories we actually hear are often those of insights that have emerged through… Continue reading Why finding a bouncing-ideas-buddy will pay off: the secrets of collaboration

Why inclusivity should be the new game in town: Women, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and leadership

We often hear about the glass ceiling that stops women in advancing their careers and how that ceiling, in the era of gender equality, is easier to break through. More and more women are becoming directors, earning degrees, and making significant contributions in science, politics, and everywhere else. Given last week was the International Women’s… Continue reading Why inclusivity should be the new game in town: Women, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and leadership

The fine line between productive habits and stalling points

I came across recently Morten Hansen in Coaching for Leaders episode 337 where Morten discussed his recent book Great at work. Morten’s five year study shows that the most successful people who excel at their work do not work more but less. They are more focused when they work and they also are agile learners:… Continue reading The fine line between productive habits and stalling points

Cyclone Gita and the perils of organising conferences in a changing climate

This past week hundreds of people gathered to Wellington, New Zealand , to attend the second Pacific Climate Change Conference 2018. The conference, organised by the Secretariat of the Pacific Environment Regional Program (SPREP) and University of Victoria, focused on showcasing the latest research in the Pacific Islands and featured several international keynote speakers from… Continue reading Cyclone Gita and the perils of organising conferences in a changing climate

Why “failure dodging” is hurting your career

Lately I have been thinking a lot about what it means to fail. Most of the advice out there in leadership and management is about success: how to have a successful career, how to build a successful company, and how to become a success full stop. Who would not want to know why Oprah has… Continue reading Why “failure dodging” is hurting your career

6 essentials in developing an academic career

I’ve recently been approached by several early career researchers (ECRs) about how to network, how to focus their careers and how to start building their profile while they are still in an early phase in their career. In the university system, there is often not much advice on personal branding for academics or how to… Continue reading 6 essentials in developing an academic career

What’s in a decision?

This week’s two key news items have stuck with me: Cape Town running out of water and UK Met Office announcing we might already see an annual global temperature increase of 1.5 in the next five years. Both are good reminders that even though we have models and science to project future changes, the global… Continue reading What’s in a decision?

Don’t think of a (damaged) reef

A rather fierce debate has been circulating in recent weeks in Australia about the state of the Great Barrier Reef, “the largest living thing on Earth” and what should be done about it. Great Barrier Reef in the state of Queensland is one of the seven wonders of the world and pulls in large number… Continue reading Don’t think of a (damaged) reef

The 3 mindsets in making constraints beautiful

Most of us have a tendency to keep a mental list of all those things in our lives that are stopping us from doing what we really want to do or that are constraining us from reaching our full potential. But although there is much advice out there how every situation has a positive side,… Continue reading The 3 mindsets in making constraints beautiful

Bats are boiling and green turtles are turning female: how close are we to adaptation limits?

This week’s Twitter feed has been particularly concerning, some would say crazy, regarding the changes and shifts in weather and climate trends that are occurring worldwide. In Australia, bats are boiling in the sky and the asphalt is literally melting as heatwaves have come through in various parts of the country. In the US, NOAA has… Continue reading Bats are boiling and green turtles are turning female: how close are we to adaptation limits?

Entrepreneurial Editor: How to edit a book more or less gracefully

I have been reading Dorie Clark’s Entrepreneurial You , which is an amazing collection of hands on advice from podcasting to writing blogs to authoring books. Dorie’s main message is that there are multiple ways that we can contribute and develop our careers. What makes the book fascinating is that much of the advice is grounded in… Continue reading Entrepreneurial Editor: How to edit a book more or less gracefully

Finding Your Mindset: Fleas in a jar

What do you get when you put together fleas jumping in a jar, epigenetics, and Michael Jordan? Surprisingly you don’t get scientific evidence for innate talent (you were born with wings) but a mix of mindset-environment interaction, which can either break or make you. In a recent article in Forbes about how people excel and help… Continue reading Finding Your Mindset: Fleas in a jar

Podcasts

In late 2016, I was trying to find a podcast that was about climate adaptation and I came across America Adapts, which is currently the number one podcast anything with climate adaptation. I am a big time podcast listener so I contacted the host, Doug Parsons, to see whether he was making episodes about adaptation… Continue reading Podcasts