About the workshop
How can we effectively plan for a future that is increasingly unpredictable, unknowable, and unmeasurable? How can communities and community-serving organizations become more adaptable and resilient to these unannounced futures-in-waiting, while retaining a focus on strategic direction and operational alignment? Foresight, Futures and Anticipation studies have contributed evidence-driven tools, practices and frameworks that enable us to connect with the future and bring it into the present, so that we can shape organizational strategy and collaboration efforts to imagine, plan for, and navigate these unpredictable futures with purpose, creativity and adaptability.
In community change and systems change work, navigating uncertainty, fostering innovation, developing resilience and managing risk are often the pillars at the heart of effective, scalable and responsive community action. For some time now, the emerging fields of Futures and Anticipation studies, and the Futures toolbox of foresight and forecasting, scenario planning, horizon scanning, etc., have been a critical component for building resilience, fostering innovation ecosystems, developing adaptability, and mitigating risk in other sectors. These tools centre equity by asking us to welcome inclusive futures that break from existing mental models, leveraging diversity as a key catalyst for innovation and sustainable change for all.
Through practical examples and working sessions, this workshop will introduce the basic concepts and core practices of Futures Thinking in the context of the community sector. By exploring the use of Futures tools across two community change examples - strategic planning and Collective Impact initialization – we’ll work together to expand your toolbox for catalyzing community impact and building a more robust, adaptive and resilient approach to systems change.
