Association of Professional Futurists - APF

Summit of the Future Report Side Event: Contesting Futures Location: The New School Host: The Observatory on Latin America On the eve of the Summit, I found myself intrigued by a critical discussion about whether the Pact for the Future was ambitious enough. One of the more direct statements was delivered by Sheela Patel and continues to resonate: “We can't build a future for future generations on top of infrastructure built for the past." This declaration serves as both a warning and a call to action, challenging many varieties of infrastructure including our conventional approaches to future-making. Juan Manuel Gonzalez Scobie delivered an insightful critique that the United Nations only seems to be able to vision the future through FIVE LENSES: 1. The Catch-Up Future: This perspective views progress as a linear race where developing nations must sprint to reach the standards set by developed countries. It's a narrative that implicitly accepts current power structures and development models as ideal. 2. The Adaptive Future: This lens focuses on responding and adjusting to changes already in motion, particularly climate change and technological disruption. While practical, it's inherently reactive rather than proactive. 3. The Remedial Future: This vision centers on fixing past harms, whether environmental damage, social inequities, or economic imbalances. While important, it keeps us tethered to historical problems rather than imagining new possibilities. 4. The Corrective Future: Similar to but distinct from the remedial lens, this approach focuses on addressing systematic mistakes and failed policies. It assumes that our current systems are fundamentally sound but need adjustment. 5. The Maturation Future: This perspective suggests we simply need to wait for existing initiatives and technologies to reach their full potential. It's a passive approach that might miss opportunities for transformative change. Scobie then asked: How do ordinary citizens envision the future? Do they naturally fall into these same institutional patterns of thinking, or do they possess different, perhaps more innovative ways of imagining what is possible? The UN might be missing the rich diversity of futures imagined by the very people its policies will affect. The path forward requires developing a common language of foresight that can serve both governments AND citizens. For #professionalfuturists, this presents an exciting frontier. Our role isn't just to help organizations navigate change, but to facilitate a more inclusive process through building capacity for #futures thinking at community levels and helping institutions expand beyond their traditional frameworks. Only then can we truly begin building a future that isn't constrained by the infrastructure of the past. https://lnkd.in/g3c_CScu #foresight #criticalfutures #ObservatoryonLatinAmerica #SummitoftheFuture Travis K. Jeremy Wilken Seth Harrell

🤔 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐞? Five times a year, the Association of Professional Futurists publishes its online magazine, Compass. Every issue is jam-packed with thoughtful and thought-provoking articles from professional futurists around the world. Previous issues of Compass are now available for purchase for anyone interested in learning more about the future at the APF’s store for just $10 each. Previous issues have explored the future of AI, Food, Water, Climate Change, Space, Work, and much more. Check out the APF store: https://www.apf.org/store *𝘈𝘗𝘍 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘥 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘗𝘋𝘍𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘥 𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘢. Or, become a member today. Compass comes part of your APF membership. Learn how to join: https://lnkd.in/e_9c3i_E

𝑱𝒐𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 🌏 𝑨𝑷𝑭 𝑺𝒆𝒂𝒑𝒖𝒏𝒌 𝑺𝒚𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒖𝒎, ⁉ 𝑸&𝑨 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑫𝒓. 𝑩𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒚 𝑺𝒖𝒆 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔, 🥇 𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝑭𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅-𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 📚 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑪𝒍𝒖𝒃 𝑴𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒖𝒑! We're excited to announce that APF Board Member and Director for Asia, Luke Tay, will be attending the Seapunk Symposium, where he'll lead discussions on Seapunk x Food Futures and engage in wider conversations on Futures x Design x Systems Thinking. This event is a unique opportunity to explore a Seapunk Theory of Change and foster new collaborations from the Seapunk harvest.   We also have a special Q&A session with Dr. Betty Sue Flowers! Attendees will have the chance to dive deep into her wealth of knowledge. Make sure to submit your questions during registration to ensure Betty can craft insightful responses.   Excitement is building for our first APF Book Club meetup! We’re thrilled to see RSVPs coming in as we prepare to explore History for Tomorrow by Roman Krznaric. His message of hope, rooted in the past, inspires us to reflect on the future. Krznaric writes, “The time for gradualism is long over. The case for rapid and transformative change is all too clear.” Whether you've finished the book or just started, we’ll dive into the ideas together. Join us for APF First Friday, featuring Kimberly Camrass, 1st place winner of the Student Award 2024 (PhD category). She'll present her winning thesis, which explores eight principles for regenerative futures thinking and practice. Unlike traditional sustainability, regenerative approaches aim for net positive impacts on natural and social systems. Kimberly’s research draws on methods like Causal Layered Analysis, case studies, and interviews to create a framework for transformation, emphasizing the unique, place-specific nature of regenerative futures. Don’t miss this insightful presentation on the future of regeneration and foresight! RSVP now: https://lnkd.in/g7cGG96c Luke Tay, Dr Kimberly Camrass, Betty Sue Flowers, Steve Tighe, James Balzer, MSusDev MPP, Seth Harrell, Bülent Duagi 🇷🇴, Sonia Fèvre, Matthew Mullan, KAMİL KAZIM SARI, Nicci Obert, Shahnaaz Hendricks

𝐀𝐏𝐅 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 2024 - 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 & 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐈𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞! 🎊 Do you think we’ll be working side-by-side with androids some day? Do you think millions of jobs will be eliminated because of AI? Or, millions of jobs created? Do you think a four-day work week will ever become reality? In the latest issue of Compass magazine, published by the Association of Professional Futurists (APF), professional futurists explore the future of work and workplaces. This issue is now available at APF.org: https://lnkd.in/gRpKStHd Thank you to all of our contributors to this issue, including: Joshua Barthel, Meredith Bowden, Ashley Chiarelli, 𝐉𝐢𝐦 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫, Martin Davis, Rich Erwin, Dr Elissa Farrow, Devin Fidler, Sara Fogarty, Dan Fukushima, Marina Gorbis, April Gorelik, Seth Harrell, James Holcombe, Samista Jugwanth, Johannes Kleske, Chris Mayer, Jacob Morgan, Langdon Morris, JT Mudge, Fernando Gutiérrez Olaizola, Claus Sneppen, Jessica Streit, Vinny Tafuro, Jay Vietas, PhD, Jeremy Wilken, Richard Yonck, and Khalil Zafar. Thank you to Stephen Dupont, APR, Fellow PRSA for editing this issue, Harmanjot Kaur, for magazine design, and Jocelyn Cheung, for website and marketing support.

Translations Honestly, I couldn’t wait to use the audio translator earpiece when I first sat down in the #UN General Assembly Hall. They have become such an icon of UN activities in TV news that branded replicas should probably be sold as souvenirs in the UN gift shop. Precise language and proper translation are extremely important to the functioning of the UN which is why there are so many expert translators of verbal and sign languages constantly in use. Perhaps language was taken slightly for granted when it came to the #PactFortheFuture. Association of Professional Futurists - APF foresight professionals inherently understand the inability for the public at large to talk and think in terms of far off or even plural futures. It is this language of #foresight, the language of acting for the future that is most in need of translation into the short term business and election cycles, the day-to-day language that constantly surrounds us. If your organization is having trouble reaching the UN #SustainableDevelopmentGoals or speaking the language of foresight, Association of Professional Futurists - APF members are global and can serve as your local foresight translator. #Summitofthefuture #APF #foresight #futures

Visual proof at 18:13 that I did in fact attend the UN #SummitoftheFuture. One of many excellent side events, this session featured inspired commentary from a panel of world class experts including Kenneth Nsah (Mala), PhD and Wales Future Generations Commissioner, Derek Walker. The later half features a provocative Q&A with author Kim Stanley Robinson on implications of a real-life #MinistryFortheFuture. UN Web TV contains an archive of all the on-site events held during the summit. It was impossible to attend them all as they ran simultaneously. I highly encourage those interested in the summit to watch these videos on your own time as I will be doing to discover what I missed while there. #APF #UNwebTV #Foresight

Read, Discuss, Connect: Launching the APF Book Club! 👏 The APF is excited to announce the launch of the Book Club. A community aimed at exploring thought-provoking literature, share insights and reflections. It’s also a safe space to learn from, and foster connections among fellow futurists. 𝑺𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒕: Meetups will start with a group conversation for everyone to share thoughts on the selected book. This will be followed by smaller breakout rooms, allowing for more focused and meaningful discussions. We cannot wait to embark on this literary journey with you! Join us on 𝐖𝐞𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 13 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 2024, 𝐚𝐭 4 𝐩𝐦 𝐂𝐄𝐒𝐓 for our inaugural Book Club meetup as we dive into 𝘏𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸: Inspiration from the Past for the Future of Humanity by Roman Krznaric: ‘𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴. 𝘐𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘶𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸.’ Get ready for engaging dialogues and interactions. To be a part of this inaugural Book Club meetup, RSVP via: https://lnkd.in/g7cGG96c Thank you for the amazing effort of the planning and development of the book club: Bülent Duagi 🇷🇴, Nicci Obert, Matthew Mullan, Sonia Fèvre, Shahnaaz Hendricks, KAMİL KAZIM SARI

Post from our Founder Luke Tay, wearing his Association of Professional Futurists - APF hat!

😎 𝐀𝐏𝐅 𝐎𝐂𝐓𝐎𝐁𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 Join us for an exciting blend of strategic foresight, expert insights, and meaningful connections! Starting your October from a Oceania Fireside Q&A with expert Joseph on foresight methods, environmental scanning and more, followed by an engaging session with Peter Madden to explore Cardiff University’s futures journey and strategy for 2035. Plus, attend a networking brunch with Miguel, APF Vice-chair, in Manila and RSVP to APF Asia Townhall & Awareness session to discuss regional foresight challenges and the APF’s global initiatives with Luke Tay, APF Asia Regional Director. More information on the APF event page: https://lnkd.in/g7cGG96c We look forward to seeing you there! 🚀

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 12 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐏𝐅 𝐄𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 2025 𝐂𝐨𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭. 👀 If you missed the FAQ session, the blog post summary may be helpful for you: https://lnkd.in/eKw4-C96 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐅𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦: The Emerging Fellows Programme is designed to recognize emerging futurists and mentor them to develop their Foresight capabilities. It emphasizes authenticity and personal growth, aiming to help you discover and develop your unique voice through writing and community engagement. With its global reach, the program underscores the importance of embracing a foresight mindset and making it accessible through collaborative learning. Download the Application Guide for more information: https://lnkd.in/eQdvhGtX