When people struggle to imagine different futures, it’s tempting to say they lack imagination. I don’t think that’s usually the problem. More often, people are drawing on futures they’ve inherited: images, narratives, and assumptions absorbed from films, policy...
As I am sure I’ve said before, one of the most persistent misconceptions about futures and foresight is that it’s about prediction. It isn’t. Good futures work doesn’t tell you what will happen. It helps you become more capable in the face of what might happen. Its...
People are often fascinated when I tell them that I often incorporate walks and place in my futures work. I do this because some futures can’t be accessed sitting still, and because “places” matter to us. Movement changes how people think. Walking slows...
Used futures are seductive because they feel inevitable. For those not familiar with “used futures”, this is a a concept that futures pioneer and professor Sohail Inayatullah introduced in a paper called “Six pillars: futures thinking for transforming”. The term...
A little while ago, I wrote about the problems that arise when futures work becomes theatre. When I tell people that a great deal of my work in futures (and elsewhere) is about storytelling, many often assume that there must be some theatrical aspect to this. But...
One of the most persistent mistakes in futures and foresight work is treating participants as audiences, who are expected to consume expert input, trend decks, and scenarios prepared elsewhere. What I’ve seen is that futures work only really comes alive when...
