Pub Date : 2024-07-23DOI: 10.1177/19467567241262951
Matthew J. Spaniol
Futures and foresight tools support strategy work by structuring inquiry into- and generating information about the user’s uncertain operating environment. Each tool accomplishes this differently, making their selection non-trivial. Scholars have recommended that tools be organized for selection based on criteria such as the nature of inquiry they generate, the resources needed for their implementation, their input or data transformation affordances, the content they produce, or their temporal directionality. In practice, foresight tools are selected by actors under constrained circumstances. With the aim to improve the impact of foresight investments, a selection schema is developed that shortlists tools by how each generates relevant knowledge for solving the user’s problem across a landscape (locus and level) of uncertainty. The paper reports on initial field tests, the resulting refinements to the schema, and proposes a diagnostic protocol for its operationalization. The paper concludes by offering suggestions for leveraging the schema in firms, consulting, and teaching.
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Pub Date : 2024-07-16DOI: 10.1177/19467567241261613
Timothy E. Dolan
The domestication of plants and animals differs from symbiotic relationships in its literal redesign of one lifeform by another. The shaping of lifeforms with the domestication of both animals and plants from canines to corn via selective breeding, hybridization and now genetic engineering confirms how evolution is governed more by culture and less nature. The focus here is on the theme of design in which we are fully involved as witnessed in our developing numerous breeds for our ends ranging from food to flowers. We created unnatural colors, floppy ears, and no procreation without intervention each of which run counter to what was heretofore natural order. Each of these alterations and innumerably more are artificial and entirely unnatural from a standard Darwinian perspective with market forces now determining the directions that were the province of evolutionary forces. The patenting of life forms, genetic mapping and gene splicing have only accelerated what was already a process of artificial selection. The piece concludes with discussion on the biases that have implications for life on this planet from our meddling with myriad species everywhere. Our preferences for the warm and furry over the cold and slimy is addressed suggesting that futurists should take the lead along with environmental scientists and bioethicists in critically assessing these biases in the context of the enormous complexity which comprises the web of life.
{"title":"Genetic Aesthetic: The Futures of Shaping Life to Our Tastes","authors":"Timothy E. Dolan","doi":"10.1177/19467567241261613","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241261613","url":null,"abstract":"The domestication of plants and animals differs from symbiotic relationships in its literal redesign of one lifeform by another. The shaping of lifeforms with the domestication of both animals and plants from canines to corn via selective breeding, hybridization and now genetic engineering confirms how evolution is governed more by culture and less nature. The focus here is on the theme of design in which we are fully involved as witnessed in our developing numerous breeds for our ends ranging from food to flowers. We created unnatural colors, floppy ears, and no procreation without intervention each of which run counter to what was heretofore natural order. Each of these alterations and innumerably more are artificial and entirely unnatural from a standard Darwinian perspective with market forces now determining the directions that were the province of evolutionary forces. The patenting of life forms, genetic mapping and gene splicing have only accelerated what was already a process of artificial selection. The piece concludes with discussion on the biases that have implications for life on this planet from our meddling with myriad species everywhere. Our preferences for the warm and furry over the cold and slimy is addressed suggesting that futurists should take the lead along with environmental scientists and bioethicists in critically assessing these biases in the context of the enormous complexity which comprises the web of life.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"3 7","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141641727","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-07-02DOI: 10.1177/19467567241249714
Marguerite Westacott, Trudi Flynn
This paper presents an open inquiry that embraces curiosity and vulnerability in the anticipatory space of an art-led, Futures orientated PhD supervisory relationship. We use sandtray work to elicit an anticipatory aesthetic, recording emergent data and processes through the dialogical method of duoethnography, and the visual format of photography. We seek to generate an environment that rouses imagination, creativity and futures consciousness implicit in the Australian Research Council’s definition of research. We use a duoethnographic method to collaborate, reflect and provide dialogical ways to surface deep meanings. There is a shared equity of understanding of the research process as a vehicle for engaging with the unknown. Both supervisor and supervisee hold explicit and implicit referent knowledge in relation to person and process. Therefore, it is a collaborative, reciprocal and fluid environment, where 1 + 1 = ∞ possibilities. We use sandtray to provide the location of open inquiry, dialogical reciprocation, reflection, and improvisation. This gives voice to the meaning that is made in the meandering paths between the words and an opportunity to loosen the shackles of business as usual. The sandtray moves not-known material into conscious awareness via somatic/intuitive symbol selection, engagement with metaphor, and projection; each privileging the unconscious. Introducing sandtray process into the supervisory relationship provides an alternative and adjunct modality of non-verbal inquiry that can support the calling of an anticipatory aesthetic through the Futures Senses. While there is rich, though sparse, literature describing the facilitation of sandtray work within the context of clinical supervision of mental health professionals, the introduction of such an approach within research supervision appears rare, or unique in relation to published research.
{"title":"The Writing in the Sand. Introducing Sandtray Work in Futures Research Supervision","authors":"Marguerite Westacott, Trudi Flynn","doi":"10.1177/19467567241249714","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241249714","url":null,"abstract":"This paper presents an open inquiry that embraces curiosity and vulnerability in the anticipatory space of an art-led, Futures orientated PhD supervisory relationship. We use sandtray work to elicit an anticipatory aesthetic, recording emergent data and processes through the dialogical method of duoethnography, and the visual format of photography. We seek to generate an environment that rouses imagination, creativity and futures consciousness implicit in the Australian Research Council’s definition of research. We use a duoethnographic method to collaborate, reflect and provide dialogical ways to surface deep meanings. There is a shared equity of understanding of the research process as a vehicle for engaging with the unknown. Both supervisor and supervisee hold explicit and implicit referent knowledge in relation to person and process. Therefore, it is a collaborative, reciprocal and fluid environment, where 1 + 1 = ∞ possibilities. We use sandtray to provide the location of open inquiry, dialogical reciprocation, reflection, and improvisation. This gives voice to the meaning that is made in the meandering paths between the words and an opportunity to loosen the shackles of business as usual. The sandtray moves not-known material into conscious awareness via somatic/intuitive symbol selection, engagement with metaphor, and projection; each privileging the unconscious. Introducing sandtray process into the supervisory relationship provides an alternative and adjunct modality of non-verbal inquiry that can support the calling of an anticipatory aesthetic through the Futures Senses. While there is rich, though sparse, literature describing the facilitation of sandtray work within the context of clinical supervision of mental health professionals, the introduction of such an approach within research supervision appears rare, or unique in relation to published research.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"17 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141685904","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-15DOI: 10.1177/19467567241253123
Elissa Farrow
In an ever-changing technological landscape, organizations stand at a pivotal juncture, seeking to harness the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) while confronting the spectre of workforce upheaval. This study extends on an exploratory journey into the profound impact of mindset, drawing inspiration from images of the future. It delves into how these mental landscapes shape organizational responses to imminent disruptions ushered in by AI. Employing an innovative participatory research approach, participants reviewed previously created hand drawn images of the future to conduct a thematic analysis and haiku poetry contribution. Participants envisioned a world where AI implementation led to employee displacement. This essay extends on this transformative research journey and showcases participant-generated summative poetry contributions. The essay deepens the profound relevance of cultivating creative and anticipatory mindsets within people as they navigate AI-induced disruptions.
{"title":"Haiku Horizons: Visions of Tomorrow, Creative Mindsets, and Artificial Intelligence-Driven Change","authors":"Elissa Farrow","doi":"10.1177/19467567241253123","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241253123","url":null,"abstract":"In an ever-changing technological landscape, organizations stand at a pivotal juncture, seeking to harness the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) while confronting the spectre of workforce upheaval. This study extends on an exploratory journey into the profound impact of mindset, drawing inspiration from images of the future. It delves into how these mental landscapes shape organizational responses to imminent disruptions ushered in by AI. Employing an innovative participatory research approach, participants reviewed previously created hand drawn images of the future to conduct a thematic analysis and haiku poetry contribution. Participants envisioned a world where AI implementation led to employee displacement. This essay extends on this transformative research journey and showcases participant-generated summative poetry contributions. The essay deepens the profound relevance of cultivating creative and anticipatory mindsets within people as they navigate AI-induced disruptions.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"84 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140973558","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-12DOI: 10.1177/19467567241253119
Simeon Spearman
This paper embarks on a methodical exploration of TVTropes.org, a comprehensive crowd-sourced wiki that documents storytelling conventions across various forms of media, with a special focus on representations of artificial intelligence and future scenarios. The study delineates the multifaceted nature of the platform, asserting that its offerings extend beyond mere television tropes, and explores its potent applicability for futurists and scholars. Through the strategic application of web scraping and data analysis, this research quantifies diverse aspects of science fiction media and the embedded tropes therein. The paper underscores the pivotal role of tropes in shaping societal perceptions and influencing discourse, particularly in the realm of futuristic thinking, using instances such as the impact of “The Terminator” franchise on military strategic thinking as a case study. Furthermore, the research engages in a quantitative analysis of trope density and frequency within science fiction works, offering a nuanced understanding and uncovering patterns in storytelling conventions. This study thus offers a foundational framework for understanding, categorizing, and analyzing the influential images of the future that permeate today’s media environment, thereby providing a valuable resource for futurists, researchers, and media scholars in their respective endeavors.
{"title":"A Quantitative and Qualitative Exploration of Futuristic Narratives on TVTropes.org","authors":"Simeon Spearman","doi":"10.1177/19467567241253119","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241253119","url":null,"abstract":"This paper embarks on a methodical exploration of TVTropes.org, a comprehensive crowd-sourced wiki that documents storytelling conventions across various forms of media, with a special focus on representations of artificial intelligence and future scenarios. The study delineates the multifaceted nature of the platform, asserting that its offerings extend beyond mere television tropes, and explores its potent applicability for futurists and scholars. Through the strategic application of web scraping and data analysis, this research quantifies diverse aspects of science fiction media and the embedded tropes therein. The paper underscores the pivotal role of tropes in shaping societal perceptions and influencing discourse, particularly in the realm of futuristic thinking, using instances such as the impact of “The Terminator” franchise on military strategic thinking as a case study. Furthermore, the research engages in a quantitative analysis of trope density and frequency within science fiction works, offering a nuanced understanding and uncovering patterns in storytelling conventions. This study thus offers a foundational framework for understanding, categorizing, and analyzing the influential images of the future that permeate today’s media environment, thereby providing a valuable resource for futurists, researchers, and media scholars in their respective endeavors.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"118 27","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140986658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-10DOI: 10.1177/19467567241249721
Andy Hines, Martin J. Vincent, R. Puddy
This article chronicles the experiences and lessons learned in establishing strategic foresight (SF) in a U.S. government organization. This has value to the field of foresight, which is seeking to establish foresight in organizations as an intentional capability to explore alternative futures and work towards preferred futures. This work also has particular value to other federal agencies establishing or considering establishing a SF practice.
{"title":"Establishing a Strategic Foresight Learning and Action Network (SF-LAN) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)","authors":"Andy Hines, Martin J. Vincent, R. Puddy","doi":"10.1177/19467567241249721","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241249721","url":null,"abstract":"This article chronicles the experiences and lessons learned in establishing strategic foresight (SF) in a U.S. government organization. This has value to the field of foresight, which is seeking to establish foresight in organizations as an intentional capability to explore alternative futures and work towards preferred futures. This work also has particular value to other federal agencies establishing or considering establishing a SF practice.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":" 40","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140992820","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-08DOI: 10.1177/19467567241249709
Justyna Doherty
The research initiative titled “About Time” undertaken at the Institute of Art, Design + Technology (IADT) in Ireland, sought to develop and assess design-led methods aimed at shaping and influencing attitudes towards the long-term future. The primary focus was influencing behaviours concerning individual futures and the planet. This study encompassed exercises and experiences to explore the intricate connections between past and future, delving into the multidimensional nature of time, art and creativity. Additionally, it aimed to foster positive futures and long-term thinking, reflect on ways to respond to global uncertainty, effect transformative change, and open new dimensions of understanding. The outcome of this research is The Barometer - a template of a journal/sketchbook intended to facilitate deep contemplation of the subject of time and the futures. Filled with creative tasks and prompts, it serves as a vehicle and tool to enhance futures literacy in participants. Seamlessly blending foresight, art, and creativity it extends a playful invitation to engage in reflection, futures thinking, speculation, and world-building. It also serves as a starting point for fostering long-term thinking, by establishing a close emotional connection to future generations, as well as nature connectedness, while addressing the challenges posed by the climate emergency. In this reflection, the author of the study offers insights into the research process, the underlying concept of the journal, and feedback obtained from the test group. The reflection delves into the synergy of creativity and art with future-focused journaling portraying it as a means to enhance futures literacy capabilities. Furthermore, this approach represents a significant stride in fostering sustainable practices and holds the potential to become a robust support tool for resilience, particularly in the face of uncertainties, trauma, and challenging circumstances. Further details: https://pdl.iadt.ie/programme/about-time/
{"title":"Journaling About the Futures- Personal Reflection From the Research “About Time”","authors":"Justyna Doherty","doi":"10.1177/19467567241249709","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241249709","url":null,"abstract":"The research initiative titled “About Time” undertaken at the Institute of Art, Design + Technology (IADT) in Ireland, sought to develop and assess design-led methods aimed at shaping and influencing attitudes towards the long-term future. The primary focus was influencing behaviours concerning individual futures and the planet. This study encompassed exercises and experiences to explore the intricate connections between past and future, delving into the multidimensional nature of time, art and creativity. Additionally, it aimed to foster positive futures and long-term thinking, reflect on ways to respond to global uncertainty, effect transformative change, and open new dimensions of understanding. The outcome of this research is The Barometer - a template of a journal/sketchbook intended to facilitate deep contemplation of the subject of time and the futures. Filled with creative tasks and prompts, it serves as a vehicle and tool to enhance futures literacy in participants. Seamlessly blending foresight, art, and creativity it extends a playful invitation to engage in reflection, futures thinking, speculation, and world-building. It also serves as a starting point for fostering long-term thinking, by establishing a close emotional connection to future generations, as well as nature connectedness, while addressing the challenges posed by the climate emergency. In this reflection, the author of the study offers insights into the research process, the underlying concept of the journal, and feedback obtained from the test group. The reflection delves into the synergy of creativity and art with future-focused journaling portraying it as a means to enhance futures literacy capabilities. Furthermore, this approach represents a significant stride in fostering sustainable practices and holds the potential to become a robust support tool for resilience, particularly in the face of uncertainties, trauma, and challenging circumstances. Further details: https://pdl.iadt.ie/programme/about-time/","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":" 115","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141000568","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-06DOI: 10.1177/19467567241249713
Jai Heiner-Wright, Cat McNicholl
The arts have had a historical relationship with holding technology accountable through artists’ speculation on its harmful and redemptive characteristics. As young futurists born into an age where Artificial Intelligence (AI) and related processes have become increasingly integrated into society, we wished to utilise this tradition to engage with contemporary anxieties concerning AI’s role in the potential automation of the creative industries. Using the comic book medium, we speculate on how this automation may prove to be an extension of capitalist exploitation through the story of Eve. Simultaneously, we embrace the more redemptive aspects of this technology’s use. We celebrate non-exploitative ‘machine’ art and the potential modes of expression that it may herald. This is as we do not wish to entirely foreclose the involvement of AI in art but simply question the effects such art may have under capitalism.
{"title":"Eve","authors":"Jai Heiner-Wright, Cat McNicholl","doi":"10.1177/19467567241249713","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241249713","url":null,"abstract":"The arts have had a historical relationship with holding technology accountable through artists’ speculation on its harmful and redemptive characteristics. As young futurists born into an age where Artificial Intelligence (AI) and related processes have become increasingly integrated into society, we wished to utilise this tradition to engage with contemporary anxieties concerning AI’s role in the potential automation of the creative industries. Using the comic book medium, we speculate on how this automation may prove to be an extension of capitalist exploitation through the story of Eve. Simultaneously, we embrace the more redemptive aspects of this technology’s use. We celebrate non-exploitative ‘machine’ art and the potential modes of expression that it may herald. This is as we do not wish to entirely foreclose the involvement of AI in art but simply question the effects such art may have under capitalism.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"2 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141010841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-06DOI: 10.1177/19467567241249717
Marcus Bussey, Linnéa Humble
This poem examines how we experience Time. It is a call for a wider palette of emotional and spiritual colours through which our thinking with Futures can be enriched. It is accomanied by a lovely illustration from Swedish illustrator Linnéa Humble.
{"title":"It’s Time!","authors":"Marcus Bussey, Linnéa Humble","doi":"10.1177/19467567241249717","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/19467567241249717","url":null,"abstract":"This poem examines how we experience Time. It is a call for a wider palette of emotional and spiritual colours through which our thinking with Futures can be enriched. It is accomanied by a lovely illustration from Swedish illustrator Linnéa Humble.","PeriodicalId":92860,"journal":{"name":"World futures review","volume":"107 9‐12","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141007065","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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