For three days during Futurotopia we immersed entrepreneurs and education specialists in the fascinating world of strategic future thinking. The location of this event was Belgium, transformed for the occasion into a futuristic setting with a 360° experience and the central stage as an arena.
Gladiator on duty was Professor Bishop. His most important message for our participants and the red line throughout the powerful three-day program: “Embrace the Future!”
The only certainty is uncertainty
We will explain briefly. People are afraid of the unknown, that is a normal reaction. People often need stability and control. And the future is simply uncertain and, above all, unpredictable. But those negative thoughts are not necessary at all. The only certainty about the future is uncertainty. And we should embrace that idea.
Disruption is inevitable. We know it will happen, we just don't know exactly what will happen and when. Does this mean that we cannot prepare for this? No, on the contrary. Peter Bishop teaches us that we can provide strategies or measures as an individual or as an organization to deal with unexpected events or emergencies that can disrupt regular business operations. As a company, you can prepare and anticipate, for example, interruptions in the supply chain or a cyber attack or data breach.
By drawing up a step-by-step plan or strategy for future setbacks, we increase the resilience of our company or organization. It enables us to respond quickly and efficiently at all times and to minimize any impact. We don't know what the future will bring. We know that several future scenarios are possible. That is why we should not pin ourselves down to one future scenario. Naturally, we have an ideal scenario in mind. But we must also take other future scenarios into account and prepare for them.
Celebrate the future: proactive action thanks to strategic foresight
Professor Bishop gave those present on the opening evening on Tuesday, October 4, tips & tricks to create a future mindset. First, how can we analyze certain trends and assumptions to map out possible future scenarios?
The initiators of Futurotopia - POM West Flanders, TUA West and the Province of West Flanders - developed the documentary 'Future Literacy' especially for Futurotopia. This documentary will be further distributed after Futurotopia to ensure that the importance of strategic future thinking permeates all levels of our society. But you already get the chance to watch the documentary here!
Education the future: the key lies in the hands of education
With his organization Teach the Future, Professor Bishop has the mission to implement strategic future thinking in education. We learn about the past, why not teach our children about the future? That is why he travels around the world to explain the importance of this to education specialists.
On Wednesday, October 4, Bishop gave a keynote and workshop to both policy makers from education and secondary school teachers. The future is evolving faster and faster. That is why it is important, especially for the next generation, to consider possible future scenarios and how certain decisions can have an impact on them. Just think of the evolution in the labor market, technological progress, globalization, social changes or environmental awareness.
Understand the future: get started yourself
On Thursday, October 5, Peter Bishop started working with entrepreneurs. Building mental flexibility is very important to deal with an uncertain future as a business manager. With a workshop and keynote, he provided attendees with certain tools, such as the Future Wheel, to tackle complex and interconnected future challenges from a multidisciplinary approach.
We captured the essence of the keynotes, workshops and presentations using visual harvesting. This was the result:
