Joseph first ran into systems thinking as an undergraduate where he studied the seminal “Limits to Growth” as well as the systems philosophy of Ervin Laszlo. In the years since, which has included work in as diverse systems and situations as serving as a tribal administrator for a small indigenous nation to hospital administrator to preschool teacher and owner, and ultimately to leadership positions in non-profit organizations, he has kept the one question central in his life and work: how can we better design the ways we work, collaborate, and act together to create a more just, sustainable, and joyful world.

For the past twenty years his primary focus has been in sustainable food systems. For over 12 years he served as executive director of Ag Innovations, a non-profit dedicated to bringing systems thinking and advanced collaboration tools to the challenges of modern agricultural systems. Currently he is principal at 10 Circles, a social enterprise that is seeking to popularize and make widely available the tools and practices of systems leadership. He has a particular interest in supporting emerging leaders from diverse and underrepresented communities and is a close partner to the Wallace Center at Winrock International’s Food Systems Leadership Network which is promoting these tools throughout the US.