As organizational pedagogy is regarding itself as an ethical and not only analytical science (Göhlich et al. 2014), it has an increased interest in forms of organizing that benefit society’s happiness and wellbeing (Weber 2015). Both are closely linked to a certain way of organizing, generating causes and conditions. From this perspective, organizations are an important lever for societal change. Most organizations continue to orientate their strategies and actions toward narratives that project the present onto the future despite the fact that today’s society is facing challenges on different levels (Peters & Weber 2019). Assuming that our thinking of today is building the reality of tomorrow (Scharmer & Käufer 2008, 2013), we need to create new narratives of the society we want to become. How can organizations develop successful practices of organizing that enable narratives for a sustainable future? Theory U is one possibility to further investigate this question: The change theory aims at shifting the structures within a social field – a social system seen from within – from an ego-system to an eco-system awareness (Scharmer 2018). Under these conditions, the present can emerge from the future, and even more importantly, it leads to social fields acting in a way that benefits society and makes these actions a matter of commonwealth. Beyond developing a certain attitude and practice, could a didactic means be supportive for a state of increased reflexivity within an organization? The “pattern language of commoning” (Helfrich & Bollier 2020) is one approach that shall be explored in this contribution. First, it offers an ontological position that inspires an understanding of collectiveness and the development of a common good attitude and ethics (Helfrich & Petzold 2021). Second, it provides a didactic means that aims to support shaping alternative images and successful practices of organizing. Which meaning can this aesthetical artefact have from an organizational theory perspective? How can it promote collective learning by visualizing boundaries in communicative processes and serving as an external point of reference? In which way can it be a frame for a collective self-design and support organizations in creating new, sustainable narratives for their future and therefore the future of us all?

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