self-organisation is a high-level property that emerges from the underlying network, not a feature of any of the individual components.
This has interesting consequences. Where any part of the mechanism is sensitive to the environment, the whole self-organising loop can be too.
http://aeon.co/magazine/science/why-the-symbol-of-life-is-a-loop-not-a-helix/
Here’s an example from the Resilience Alliance – the adaptive cycle – that maps nicely onto the four cultures of cultural theory:
See also: redundancy and resilience
Four Cultures 
I guess life is a perpetual dynamic in constant flux, constantly shifting and re adapting to changes and perturbations. I suppose in many ways that’s why social media and the blogosphere are such critical tools in the development of human consciousness and why groups like the US government conduct PsyOps at many different levels because they know all about sensitive dependence ! I suspect all of nature and things like the cell cycle have much to teach us about loops and symbols and natural dynamics.
Thanks for posting and drawing the links !