July 27-29, 2012 • Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel

Preconference Courses: July 26-27, 2012 • Professional Members’ Forum: July 30, 2012

Sessions

Singularity University: Team Projects to Positively Change the World

Singularity University is a new interdisciplinary university whose mission is to “assemble, educate and inspire a cadre of leaders who strive to understand and facilitate the development of exponentially advancing technologies in order to address humanity’s grand challenges.” With the support of a broad range of leaders in academia, business, and government, Singularity Univer

José Luis Cordeiro is founder of World Future Society Venezuela Chapter; chair, Millennium Project Venezuela Node; and faculty member, Singularity University, NASA, Ames, California, USA

Nikola Danaylov is a graduate student at Singularity University, NASA Ames, California, USA

Antony Evans is a graduate student at Singularity University, NASA Ames, California, USA

Speed Futuring

Speed Futuring is a participant-driven meeting that will provide a unique environment for WorldFuture 2012 attendees to learn from one another, grow networks, discuss issues, and connect across generations and geographies.

Lisa Donchak works at Google, where she is a business strategist for Google Apps, and a research analyst for Weiner, Edrich, and Brown, where she writes strategic abstracts on trends in technology, and demography, San Clemente, California, USA

Systemic Solution to Achieving Green Economic Growth and Sustainable Development

Achieving green economic growth and sustainable development requires comprehensive and coordinated strategies for entire regions as a complex system fully considering global drivers and local actions. Relying solely on green technology cannot achieve a green economy or communities.

Kenneth Hunter, senior fellow, Maryland China Initiative, University of Maryland, and board chair, World Future Society, Laurel, Maryland, USA

Zhouying Jin, director, Center for Technology Innovation and Strategic Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China

Technology and Ideology: Its Effects and the Future

This session will look at the role of technology on ideology as not only an accelerant but also the instigator of a new ideology born out of the creation of the Internet. Drawing in elements of psychology, emergence, philosophy, networks, economics, and politics, the talk will look at the intersections and influence of each in the fracturing of society as we see it currently.

Sasha Grujicic is a media, marketing, and technology executive working with Fortune 500 companies (Toyota, adidas, Diageo, Citi Bank, Disney, Target, etc.) to understand media, technology, and their inherent connections to their businesses. He has actively developed product, service, marketing, and sales solutions for his clients based in London, New York, Paris, Boston, and Toronto since 2004. He is a writer, speaker, and technology evangelist, contributing to many publications, Toronto, Canada

The Best of Houston

The University of Houston offers a leading master’s degree in Futures Studies. For the past 11 years, the faculty have selected the best products from their most talented students, many of whom are professional futurists themselves, to offer attendees of the annual meeting of the World Future Society.

Peter C. Bishop is an associate professor of Strategic Foresight and director of the graduate program in Futures Studies at the University of Houston and founding board member of the Association of Professional Futurists. He specializes in techniques for long-term forecasting and planning, Houston, Texas, USA (see also)

Jason Swanson Learning Management Systems: Machines That Think, Jason is a graduate student in the University of Houston’s Future Studies program. He currently works as a Foresight Professional and Market Research Analyst for the Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA

Josh Lindenger Locative Media: The Internet Always Knows Where You Are

Sean Daken Wireless Sensor Networks: The Internet of Things

The Dream-Do Nexus

A university’s academic mission is traditionally dedicated to student success through academic excellence within individual courses taken in specific student degree plans.

Rodney Hill is a professor in the Department of Architecture and a member of the board of directors of the Institute for Applied Creativity, College of Architecture at Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA

Jorge A. Vanegas is dean of the College of Architecture at Texas A&M University and an international artist and sculptor, College Station, Texas, USA

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