to dream about ideal scenarios. This was partly because the question was not asked clearly enough to direct the discussions towards an ideal image of the future. But even where it was asked very explicitly, the participants tended to shift back into discussing existing challenges instead of an ideal future. At the same time, the feedback was that already asking the question of a vision in a designated session helped bring the participants from different sectors together and to “reduce the distance”.49 Thus, it is important to reflect on how to strengthen this important focus, e.g. by ensuring that the analysis of the problem is properly concluded before moving to the vision, providing a good introduction on the specific value of developing a common vision to the participants and by ensuring a strict moderation of workshops. 2.4 Engaging key stakeholders for change Another guiding principle of the systemic approach is to “seek actively and integrate different viewpoints and multiple perspectives”.50 It is of key importance in order to gain full understanding of the problem and possible solutions (see above, § 2.2). We do not hold the truth about how change can be influenced but are limited to our perspective. Many different perspectives can allow us to gain a more complete idea of the problem and develop more valuable hypotheses for solutions. More importantly change depends on a variety of stakeholders and their relations that need to be addressed systematically. From a systemic perspective, change cannot be forced from the outside but needs to be owned and accepted by those who are meant to change their behaviours. This explains why change interventions that are not carefully crafted can often create even greater resistance: “The harder you push the system the harder the system pushes back.”51 Therefore, it is crucial to engage stakeholders from the very outset.52 Engaging key stakeholders individually and collectively, is the foundation for change,53 not only to understand the problem but also to generate a common vision and responsibility and build relationships for the change process. As one of the participants at the CSO event concluded “change took place where everybody agreed that there was a need for change”.54 EXAMPLES A good example can be found in Belgium with the process of redrafting the letter of rights handed out to suspected persons in police custody in plain language. While the process was initiated by CSOs (Fair Trials and a plain language experts organisation), other criminal justice stakeholders were engaged from the very beginning of the exercise. First, a training module was created to raise awareness among lawyers and judges on the importance of plain language in criminal proceedings. The second half of the training was a group exercise in which participants had to comment and redraft the language used in the official letter of rights used in police custody. Based on these exercises and discussions, Fair Trials and the plain language experts created a first version of the alternative letter of rights. It was then presented to representatives of the federal and local police to assess whether it was usable and relevant for them and matched the needs on the ground. A wider team of representatives from the Ministry of Justice also welcomed the initiative. This broad stakeholder engagement led to the creation of a working group including lawyers, judges, representatives from the federal and local police, and representatives from the Ministry of Justice which finalised a plain language version of the letter of rights. The 49. See Feedback to the Austrian National Round-table 50. Suntinger and Birk, ‘Systemic Thinking in Preventive Human Rights Monitoring’ (2021) 18. 51. Peter M. Senge, The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of The Learning Organization (Doubleday 2006) 58. 52. See also English and others, ‘Influencing for Impact Guide’ (2020) 10. 53. Stroh, Systems Thinking for Social Change (2004) 74. 54, Project EU workshop with CSOS, Brussels on 18 October 2022. 23