Futuring

In the late 18th century, a series of stunning events – including the American and French Revolutions and the onset of the Industrial Age – cracked the existing world order wide open. One consequence was an onrush of panic, epitomized by the work of the Reverend Thomas Malthus. To say that these cataclysmic events made Malthus pessimistic is probably a bit of an understatement.

There is a major wave right now of backlash against the shallow analysis of science and technology as a route to understanding the future.

Students have been learning the basics of logic through the re-iteration of this syllogism for centuries.

Last weekend, I attended the Association of Professional Futurists (APF), ProDev Seminar, July 27, 2012, and other APF events in Toronto, and part of the World Future 2012 conference. The APF ProDev day was our best ever: tight, focused, yet exploratory. There were no negative spirits in the room and I had a chance to learn about and try some new things, then muse with colleagues over what I could take from them, use or discard, etc. in my work.

The Society's recently concluded WorldFuture 2012 conference lived up to its billing as a gathering of futurists from around the world, an expo for cutting-edge start-ups, and an international media event. The list of speakers this year included Intel futurist Brian David Johnson; Lee Rainie, director and founder of the Pew Internet and American Life Project; Geordie Rose, creator of the world's first commercial quantum computer, the D-Wave One; world-renowned consultant Edie Weiner; representatives from the Silicon Valley and Toronto venture capital communities; as well as inventors, scientists, and public policy experts from all over the world. Here's a small sampling of the standout coverage the we received.

WorldFuture 2012 is an opportunity for all the attendants to discuss one of the long-awaited questions that should be addressed in the field: the problem of professionalism. Can we really dream, design, develop, and deliver a credible code of professionalism for futurists and foresight practitioners? It seems we can.

The World Future Society has a theme for this year’s conference in Toronto:
DREAM, DESIGN, DEVELOP and DELIVER.
A very appropriate theme for futurists. So I’m going to jump right to the point, Deliver. Because that’s what I’ve been working on for several months. So here’s the headline:
Es TU Futuro and O SENIN Gelecegin.

Anti-Futurological Answers To Futurological Questions: "Am I Going To Become A Cyborg In the Future?"