Each element in the system is ignorant of the behaviour of the system as a whole, it responds only to information that is available to it locally... … - Paul Cilliers

There has to be a constant flow of energy to maintain the organization of the system and to ensure its survival. Equilibrium is another word for death.

In order to constitute a complex system, the elements have to interact, and this interaction must be dynamic.

There is no over-arching theory of complexity that allows us to ignore the contingent aspects of complex systems. If something really is complex, it cannot by adequately described by means of a simple theory. Engaging with complexity entails engaging with specific complex systems. Despite this we can, at a very basic level, make general remarks concerning the conditions for complex behaviour and the dynamics of complex systems. Furthermore, I suggest that complex systems can be modelled.