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Ten years into the new century, one could argue that while we are in the Information Age we have yet to break down many of the confines of the industrial era. A characteristic of industrialization being the linear organization of work and people to maximize efficiency—in short, the “siloing” of our work and our world.

Digitization of incomprehensible amounts of information, moving freely, in unpredictable directions, compels us to rethink and explore how to adapt and “unsilo” our antiquated thinking and systems. Technology not only allows for, but also pushes us to think and learn in new ways. It demands that we redefine the ecosystem we inhabit and move from linear pathways to infinite points of contact; from reliable certainty to mental agility.

The silos that bind us come in many forms, both concrete and conceptual; some by default and others by design. And while boundaries can sometimes be constructive and prevent disastrous results (think “too big to fail”), many outdated silos have come to inhibit both our creativity and productivity.

Ask yourself: “What divides my world and my work from that of another?”

Silos can be economic, organizational, societal, or geographic. At work, the silos of department, budget, grant, or location can squelch collaboration and potential.

Private vs. public, global vs. local, conservative vs. progressive, proprietary vs. open-source, me vs. we, these silos of perspective, point of view, and ideology also create boundaries, which keep us from seeing a more holistic picture of our world and ourselves.

While the fragmentation of information has the potential to drive us deeper into our silos, a key to liberating ourselves from them is creating pathways for meaningful engagement, collaboration, and opportunities to develop trust and mutual respect. It may all begin with simply framing our questions differently, creating a forum for open dialogue, or finding new ways—high tech and low tech—to share our ideas and learning.

The College of the Environment at the University of Washington is an example of removing institutional barriers by uniting previously siloed schools, in an effort to foster greater collaboration and share resources.

Encouraged to explore innovative alliances, The School of Forestry, within this College of the Environment, partnered with University of Southern Mississippi and The Nature Conservancy to create the Climate Wizard. This visual climate data generator was then made available to both the scientific community and the general public—yet another barrier buster.

When we allow ourselves to see beyond perceived differences, adversaries like environmentalists and transportation agencies team up to build highways with wildlife bridges that are still on budget and ahead of schedule.

As Eric Fingerhut, Chancellor of Ohio Board of Regents, illustrates, when we dare to defy turf mentality, we can begin to think systemically to address our limited resources. He urges the trustees of Ohio’s Universities, “If you see a need in higher education in Ohio, the question is not how should my institution respond. The first question is, which institution should respond? How should we respond to this need collectively as a system?”

On a larger scale, the development of the European Union and the euro currency are radical examples of economic and societal unsiloing, with consequences that are still being debated and won’t be fully seen or understood for decades to come.

Although unsiloing often presents more questions than answers and brings with it many unknowns, it is in the territory of unanswered questions and unknowns where innovation happens. Innovation may be a result of competition but exponential innovation is a result of collaboration.

The first step is asking: “Who is on the other side of the wall, down the block, and around the world? What can we learn from them and how can we share our learning with others?”