12 children trapped in a cave in Thailand. 20 children trapped in an orphanage in Libya, orphans of ISIS fighters, now stateless and parentless. 300 Palestinian children in prison in Israel, 995 children separated from their parents at the American border.

All children, all victims of circumstances not of their own making (expect perhaps those in the cave). So why, asks my Facebook feed, can the resources, commitment and care be mobilised for one group and not for the others – what’s the difference between all these children?

Complicated vs Complex – Why Some Problems Get Solved

The difference isn’t between the children. The difference lies in the nature of the problem: complicated versus truly complex. The Thai boys found themselves in a terrible situation. They were trapped by flood water and four miles deep in a cave. They could not return the way they had come. No food, no light, little fresh water and running out of air.

But, there was no geopolitical turf war keeping them in that cave (only water).

There was no multigenerational conflict that had led them into that cave (only a sense of adventure).

There was no traumatised population trying to rebuild their own lives and ignore them (only parents, communities and a government all wanting to bring them home).

There was no risk that, if they were released that more would follow them into that cave. All of these factors exist for our other trapped children.

Extracting ‘The Wild Boars’ was a vastly complicated task. It involved solving problems never seen before (have any children ever cave dived?), it involved risk, and demanded incredible coordination across a huge multilingual, multinational team. It needed a few heroes and heroines.

However, it was not complex. The problem had a single root cause; too much water in the cave. While conditions worsened as the oxygen levels fell and the rains came, the nature of the problem stayed the same; how do we get the children out? Above all, the current situation benefited no-one, and no one stood to lose anything if the boys were released.

When Problems Become Truly Complex

By comparison, let’s take the children at the American border. A state policy separates them from their parents. That state sees itself as under threat from illegal migration and believes national security is at stake. This policy serves a purpose beyond the individuals experiencing it. It aims to spread fear and discourage others from making the journey.

As a process it is a response to a (very reasonable) legal agreement that children should not be detained in prison. It also responds to another policy that demands would be migrants caught trying to cross the border illegally are prosecuted and imprisoned while they await trial. As a media storm, it demonstrates Trump’s ‘toughness’ and his willingness to do whatever it takes to ‘Make America Great’.

And perhaps most significantly, it acts as a distraction from a other political activity going on a long, long way from the Mexican border. And this is why releasing these children will take more than heroics.

Indeed, maybe it was the stark simplicity of the Thai boys’ situation that galvanised action and attention. Could the ingenuity of people take on the absoluteness of nature? Literally, could we hold back the flood waters? Could clever committed well intentioned people work together to pull off a miracle?

Complex problems are not like this. Complex problems demand more than resources, goodwill, or the commitment of a few individuals. They need more than a handful of brilliant heroes and heroines.

Why Complex Problems Matter

So, the reason the Thai boys were rescued whilst those in Libya, the USA or Palestine have not is not about care, it is about difficulty. It is easier to take 12 non-swimming children and 1 adult cave diving in a confined dark cave and then carry them through 4 miles of underground tunnels and haul them up a vertical rock face than it is to reform US immigration policy, find a state to adopt ISIS orphans, or resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Complex problems are hard to work with. They take time and sustained effort. Solutions are rarely clear, complete, or immediately successful, and yet tackling such problems is fundamental to the peace, prosperity and ultimately, humanity of us all.

So, let us take on complicated problems because we can, and complex problems because we must.

Want to read more about working with complex problems? Then check out Harvard Business Review report on Tackling Global Challenges.

Written by Kate Simpson of Wasafiri Consulting Ltd.