A few weeks ago, we explored a few thoughts around the history of the foresight field. APF colleague Ruben Nelson …
Continue Reading about Historians & Futurists: More Alike than Not →
Foresight Value Proposition
We were discussing the value proposition last week, as we often do on the APF listserv. I thought we’d discuss a couple …
Next Economy Additions: Zero marginal cost, metaspace, conscious, and Blockchain
A couple of years, I started collecting and posting concepts or names for the next economy as part of my scanning (which …
Observations from tracking mentions of futurists in media
The Houston Foresight program initiated a project to track, collect and analyze mentions of futurists in the media back …
Continue Reading about Observations from tracking mentions of futurists in media →
Foresight for changing the world
We’re always exploring new things to teach at the Houston Foresight program. One topic that has come up a lot in recent …
Roots of foresight: When (and how) do you say it started?
We had a great discussion last week at APF on the origins of the foresight field. I was not sure whether to even start …
Continue Reading about Roots of foresight: When (and how) do you say it started? →
Personal Futures Planning
Our ProSeminar class had a visit last week from a dozen Norwegian students studying under futurist Derek Woodate. We did …
Can I get a job as a futurist?
Yes, but it ain't easy! It’s the number one question on the mind of prospective foresight students. Futurists are …
Adding some wow to our projects
Every now and then I like to scan the home library and see if anything I hadn’t read deserves to be promoted, or if …
Exploring the Future…with MISC
The bonds are strengthening between foresight and design. I’ve just received the first physical shipment of beautiful …
Transformative scenario planning
I finally got to Transformative Scenario Planning by Adam Kahane. It’s one of those books that stayed too long in my …
The Aspirational Archetype
I’ve written previously about the scenario archetype technique. A few years ago, In World Futures class, we started …
Can we all get along? The key role of group norms
Getting along is pretty important in all walks of life, including it turns out, if you want to have a high-functioning …
Continue Reading about Can we all get along? The key role of group norms →
What is a futurist?
Last year my grad assistant Maria Romero produced a series of short videos (none more than two minutes) about the …
Mastery and Foresight Practice
Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment does not quite fit in with the foresight classics I’ve been …
Second edition of Thinking about the Future
An updated second edition of Thinking about the Future is now available on Amazon. The foreseeable depletion of the …
Continue Reading about Second edition of Thinking about the Future →
Foresight Classics: Rescuing All Our Futures
Rescuing all our Futures: The Future of Futures Studies was edited by Zia Sardar and published in 1999. It makes a …
Continue Reading about Foresight Classics: Rescuing All Our Futures →
Shifts in teaching the future
Teaching should not stand still of course, but it is part of an academic mission is to stay true to what is the core of …
Foresight Classics: Macrohistory and Macrohistorians
It’s about time that I got to Macrohistory and Macrohistorians: Perspectives on Individual, Social, and Civilizational …
Continue Reading about Foresight Classics: Macrohistory and Macrohistorians →
Soft Path Indicator “Hits:” More on a Guaranteed Basic Income
If you’ll allow the Soft Path my choice of the global socioeconomic transformation archetype, I’d suggest we an …
Continue Reading about Soft Path Indicator “Hits:” More on a Guaranteed Basic Income →
Dictionary of obsolescent concepts: television
Some may say that Captain Obvious has paid us a visit with this topic. Forecasting the death of television goes way …
Continue Reading about Dictionary of obsolescent concepts: television →
Foresight Classics: The Next Three Futures
I’ve been meaning to revisit – or visit for the first time -- foresight classics. I started slowly with a two-part …
Continue Reading about Foresight Classics: The Next Three Futures →
Houston Foresight Fall Semester Reflections
It’s time to turn grades in (and deal with the last-minute pre-deadline submissions) at the Houston Foresight program. …
Continue Reading about Houston Foresight Fall Semester Reflections →
An organizational futurist role for integrating foresight into corporations
As many readers here likely know, I did my dissertation on the experience and possibilities of organizational futurists. …
Continue Reading about An organizational futurist role for integrating foresight into corporations →
Values and Design Thinking
The increasing partnership between foresight and design over the last several years has nudged more and more futurists …
Three Horizons of Work
I had the pleasure of participating on a panel exploring the future of work at the GAO for IFPTE Local 1921annual union …
Dictionary of obsolescent concepts: Vacation Days
“You can only roll over x% of your vacation days, so please use them before the end of the year.” How many of us have …
Continue Reading about Dictionary of obsolescent concepts: Vacation Days →
Thinking about futurists and jobs
Jobs have been on my mind lately. I’ve been looking through job descriptions as part of my work on the APF …
Do not be a “nothing new here” futurist
One of the most vexing comments I hear from fellow listeners to a talk is that there was “nothing new here,” …
Continue Reading about Do not be a “nothing new here” futurist →
Lords of Foresight?
I recently finished reading Walter Keichel’s The Lords of Strategy on the recommendation of Peter Bishop. And like all …