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Scholars are increasingly acknowledging the importance of conversations in the management of complex projects. Defining dialectics as “the art of purposeful conversation”, this paper aims to rationalise the somewhat disorganised field of dialectics by developing a categoreal scheme.

The authors refer to the current state of research into the conversational aspects of complex projects, and examine the historical development of, and philosophical and scholarly commentary on, the dialectical method.

The categories the authors propose are the Socratic, Conversational, Fichtean and Peircean. They differ in relation to the subject matter of the dialectic; their vulnerability to environmental influences; the degree of structure they require for optimal performance; and the situations in which they might most profitably be applied.

A single categoreal scheme is rarely the last word, and the authors invite other scholars to explore the field in a similar way.

The scheme proposed here is intended to enhance the project manager's approach to conversations, by referring to the specific virtues and limitations of each of the categories.

The informed use of dialectics may help to ameliorate the significant damage done to organisations and economies around the world by failed and underperforming projects.

The authors present the first categorisation of the field, with the aim of equipping the practitioner to think about dialectical approaches in a more systematic way.

While the importance of interorganizational learning (IOL) as a resource for strategic renewal has been acknowledged in research, limited attention has been placed on exploring IOL in complex networks or ecosystems. This paper aims to bridge this gap in literature through conceptualizing IOL in the tourism industry at the micro, meso and macro levels of the ecosystem.

This paper applies a narrative literature review to explore the tourism industry and IOL. Through insights which evolved from literature, exploratory typologies and propositions were developed forming the basis of the multi-level typology of interorganizational learning in the tourism industry.

Based on the multi-level typology of interorganizational learning in the tourism industry, market actors may develop in isolation, in clusters or networks, with the aggregate output of these formations constituting the basis of the tourism ecosystem. Within the multi-layers of the tourism ecosystem, IOL may be subdivided into seven distinct typologies, with learning ranging from active, passive, interactive to asymmetric. Each typology of IOL is subsequently influenced by relational ties, which may range from collaborative to competitive, and power distribution, which may lead to symmetric or asymmetric relationships.

The novelty of this paper lies in an ecosystem perspective of IOL in the tourism industry, outlining the multi-level nature of IOL in a destination.

The paper focuses on lesson study, which generally engages the collaborative work of a group of teachers, as implemented with a primary school art teacher who had limited opportunities for collaboration. Through lesson study, the teacher worked closely with a lesson study facilitator and an art education expert to plan a research lesson. The study explores how this collaboration generated cognitive conflicts and eventually teacher change.

This paper presents a case study using a thematic approach to data analysis. The lesson study involved weekly face-to-face meetings and daily online communications over a period of eight weeks. In an attempt to reflect upon and resolve conflicts, the teacher kept a journal in which the teacher wrote down lengthy accounts of the discussions with knowledgeable others, the teacher’s struggles and ways of resolving these. Data were complemented by the different lesson plan versions, the post-lesson discussions and a detailed report documenting the lesson study process.

The paper provides insights into the role that cognitive conflicts play for teacher change. Through ongoing communication, reflection and support to resolve conflicts, the teacher recognised more collaborative opportunities for professional development, freed from rigid lesson planning practices and reported a new conceptualisation to teaching.

Drawing on the literature about effective teacher professional learning, the paper offers implications for supporting teacher change.

This paper provides insights into how lesson study may provide conditions that enable teachers' cognitive conflict and facilitate their consequent resolution.

Earlier studies assume that historical dwellings and post-war dwellings in particular, are less sustainable than modern dwellings, justifying its demolition. Over time, historical buildings have been transformed and their energy performance improved. However, there is little known on the energy performance of historical dwellings. The purpose of this paper is to unveil the role of historical dwellings and its transformations in improving urban sustainability.

In this research, historical dwellings (built=1970) are distinguished in listed and unlisted dwellings. Three cities were selected as case study – Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam – and three post-war neighborhoods – New-West, Mariahoeve and Ommoord. This research uses the difference in energy label (original vs current performance) to discuss the transformations of dwellings: comparing modern and historical; post-war and other historical; and listed and unlisted dwellings.

Findings reveal that historical and post-war dwellings have great potentials to raise the energy performance e.g. by applying after insulation and renewable energy sources. Furthermore, The Hague and its post-war neighborhood Mariahoeve have a considerably lower energy performance. Further research could relate the raising of energy performance to the cultural significance of such dwellings, to better discuss the role of attributes and their transformation to raising energy performance.

This paper addresses the knowledge gap of the current energy performance of historical dwellings, by presenting and discussing its role in improving urban sustainability.