How do you enable a living system to flourish? At a time when leading scientists are suggesting that we face the most significant geopolitical, environmental, social, and economic challenges in history, we are in urgent need of more adaptive, creative and resilient ways to navigate the constant changes that have become part of everyday life. Fortunately, amidst the rubble of many failed Newtonian-inspired attempts to help systems to flourish, there are shining examples of what is possible when we embrace the emergent complexities of a living system to create positive disruptions that encourage people to generously self-organize around a shared and meaningful focus. Many of these examples share a common underlying framework for disrupting and supporting living systems – an Appreciative Inquiry (AI) Summit – and drawing on my PhD research this presentation identifies why, how and when this approach is likely to help a system to flourish.